Parks For Sale
The underlying government rationale for the creeping commercialization and privatization of BC’s parks is that provincial parks are a drain on the public purse. In reality nothing could be further from the truth. According to the government’s own research contained in the illuminating report, The Economic Benefits of British Columbia’s Provincial Parks, parks contributed over $500 million to the provincial economy. In fact for every dollar spent on parks by the provincial government, ten dollars was returned to the economy in visitor expenditures(2).
Despite the fact that BC’s public parks contribute significantly to the provincial economy, the Liberal government continues to be guided by a vision of a for-profit privatized park system – undermining both the ecological integrity of our parks and their accessibility by all British Columbians.
In 2002 a leaked government document, entitled Stop Doing Protected Areas, detailed plans for the provincial government to withdraw from the management and funding of parks. Shortly after, in January 2003, the BC government “bundled” 198 parks and began inviting bids from private operators regarding long-term leases in the selected provincial parks.(10)
The drift towards the privatization and commercialization of BC parks officially began when the BC government appointed the Recreation Stewardship Panel (RSP) in May 2002. The controversial panel was struck “to make recommendations on a new management and funding model for fish, wildlife and park recreation.” Consisting of handpicked delegates the RSP was most notable for its six-month “consultation” process which consisted of just two closed-door, invitation-only meetings with “key stakeholders.”
Guided by sustainability principles that included a provision to ensure “that British Columbia remains internationally competitive by removing barriers to investment and promoting open trade,” it was not surprising that the panel recommended introducing park user fees and “a limited number of commercial, revenue-focused” facilities within park boundaries.(11)
This ideological shift to commercialization and privatization means that provincial parks will increasingly be managed less for the public good and ecological integrity and more for short-term profits and private interests. Furthermore, under far-reaching trade agreements like NAFTA and GATS once private operators have an expectation to profit from parks, any legislation or environmental safeguards that impact on these profits could require future governments to pay for the private operator’s projected lost profits. As auditors PriceWaterhouseCoopers advised BC Parks in 2001, “Big outside investment money means big outside control.”
