Section 5 of the JBNQA establishes a particular land regime:
- Category I (approx. 5,500 km2): Land reserved for the exclusive use of the Cree communities, managed by their local administrations with the support of the Cree Nation Government;
- Category II (approx. 70,000 km2): Provincial public land, where the Crees have exclusive hunting and fishing rights, which cannot be developed for other purposes unless the affected parcel or parcels of land are replaced or compensated, and where the Cree Nation Government has certain governance powers;
- Category III (approx. 277,000 km2): Provincial public lands under the supervision of the Regional Government of Eeyou Istchee James Bay where the Crees have exclusive trapping and fishing rights for certain species, and non-exclusive hunting and fishing rights for others.
