James Allen of the Alaska Highway Aboriginal Coalition said the new guide will help First Nations know how their rights would apply to the construction of an Alaska Highway natural gas pipeline. (Dave Croft/CBC)

Yukon First Nations along the Alaska Highway are getting advice about their land claim rights if a natural gas pipeline ever gets built.

The Alaska Highway Aboriginal Pipeline Coalition has compiled a guide on First Nations' rights and expectations if a long-proposed pipeline from Alaska goes ahead.

The Alaska government has been pushing for the construction of a 2,760-kilometre pipeline from the state's North Slope through the Yukon and part of B.C. to Alberta.

Eight Yukon First Nations would be along the pipeline route, if it is approved by regulators.

Aboriginal coalition spokesman James Allen said the new guide advises First Nations on how their rights, under land claim agreements, would apply to pipeline construction.

"It's a tool that will help First Nations make the most of any benefits that may come out of a pipeline project," Allen told reporters Tuesday in Whitehorse.

"It also prepares them, if and and when the pipeline comes through, [so] the project doesn't pass them by like many projects in the past."

Detailed information

The Alaska Highway Aboriginal Coalition is an organization that provides information to Yukon First Nations about the proposed Alaska Highway pipeline.

The coalition receives funding from the Yukon and federal governments and from energy companies. It maintains a neutral position on the proposed pipeline, according to its website.

Florian Lemphers, the coalition's project manager on the guide, said the document has detailed information that can help First Nations with various issues, from negotiating pipeline-related job opportunities to asserting rights to environmental oversight.

"There'd be significant environmental reviews, still, of this project as it proceeds. It's not a done deal in terms of the environment," Lemphers said.

Allen said the coalition has consulted with all eight First Nations that would be along the proposed pipeline route.

The coalition now hopes to secure enough funding to return to those First Nations and conduct workshops on what the guide says, he added.