National Parks

Compared to Western Canada’s provincial parks our national parks system is almost a paragon of virtue. The legal protection of our national parks is stronger than provincial legislation, and unlike its provincial cousins ecological integrity is promoted within the mandate of Parks Canada. The development of natural resources within park boundaries is also prohibited.

Parks Canada needs to meet its mandate to establish a national park in each of Canada’s 39 natural regions. Establishing a national park in the South Okanagan Similkameen, one of Canada’s most endangered ecosystems, would be a good first step. Funding and staffing levels are still recovering from earlier cuts but there have been positive, increases in budgetary expenditures in recent years.

Manitoba

Manitoba is one of the bad boys on the block when it comes to its provincial parks system. Not only does logging and mining occur within park boundaries, their Parks Act expressly allows it.

Amazingly, logging is permitted within the habitat of the endangered woodland caribou in Nopiming Provincial Park. Tembec, a large logging company, has cutting rights to 62 percent of Nopiming’s total area.

Manitoba needs to stop dragging its heels and expand its small and fragmented parks system. It also needs to institute much needed changes to strengthen its Park Act before it can remove itself from the back of the pack. Staffing levels and funding, as with most Western provincial parks are in the suboptimal level, leaving a parks system that largely has to fend for itself.

Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan sits at the back of the class along with Manitoba by allowing logging and mining within some of its provincial parks. Moose Mountain Park is also open to oil and gas development. Other provincial parks in Saskatchewan are heavily fragmented by roads and cottage subdivisions.

Saskatchewan’s protected areas are too small and fragmented and many important ecosystems such as the boreal forest and Great Sand Hills are under-represented. Park rangers are few and far between and staffing for parks could be increased. If Saskatchewan wants to improve its grades it must strengthen its park legislation to forbid industrial activities and expand its protected area system.

Alberta

Alberta’s provincial parks are better funded than most, however the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society Northern Alberta points out that their park legislation is amongst the weakest in Canada and doesn’t protect parks from industrial, commercial and recreational activities. Astoundingly, the Alberta government can also eliminate a park with no public notice.

Although Alberta has over 500 protected areas many are too small to adequately preserve endangered flora and fauna, something that is critically important given that Alberta has no endangered species legislation. This criticism is offset to a small degree by the fact that Alberta has a larger national parks system within its boundaries. However, much improvement is needed before Alberta gets a passing grade.

British Columbia

British Columbia has a lot of protected areas compared to the other western provinces, but unfortunately the BC government isn’t standing up for our parks. The operational budget for BC Parks is the same as it was in 1994 when the parks system was half the size it is today.

Park rangers are an endangered species here. Despite a government promise to hire more rangers in 2005, there are just 10 permanent full-time rangers to protect BC’s parks system. The government has further eroded an already weak BC Park Act to facilitate private development, including resorts, within park boundaries. Unfortunately when it comes to its protected areas BC talks the talk but doesn’t walk the walk.