Twelve of Canada鈥檚 largest environmental groups issued a joint statement calling on the federal government to prohibit any future development in Canada鈥檚 national parks鈥揵ut not everyone agrees.
The group鈥攚hich includes the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) and the David Suzuki Foundation鈥攎et with Parks Canada last week in Banff to discuss their concerns.
The groups are concerned Parks Canada has become too focused on increasing visitation and tourism instead of protecting the ecological integrity of Canada鈥檚 national parks.
The statement specifically asked the government to 鈥渟ay no鈥� to the conceptual proposal to build overnight accommodations at Maligne Lake and the proposed bike path from Jasper to the Columbia Icefield. The statement also asked the government to 鈥渟ay no鈥� to the Lake Louise Ski Resort expansion.
鈥淲e are saying 鈥榥o鈥� to inappropriate development in our national parks, which would go against the mandate of our parks, which is to protect nature and wilderness habitat for the benefit of both current and future Canadians,鈥� said Alison Ronson, executive director of the northern Alberta chapter of CPAWS.
鈥淥ver the last few years the message from Parks Canada is that people don鈥檛 visit our parks and that they need more visitors, but in fact what we鈥檙e seeing is park visitation has been up year-over-year for the last few years and that our parks can鈥檛 keep up with it.鈥�
She pointed to traffic jams and the number of animals that have been killed this year as examples.
In August, Parks Canada confirmed it had killed at least five elk and a black bear in Jasper National Park this year. In Banff, six wolves have died of unnatural causes in the Bow Valley, according to the Rocky Mountain Outlook.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not the visitors鈥� fault. The parks are for people and we want people to connect with nature, but it needs to be managed properly so we don鈥檛 have these negative impacts on the parks, such as wildlife having to be killed,鈥� said Ronson.
The Association for Mountain Parks Protection & Enjoyment聽(AMPPE) said it supports the responsible use of Canada鈥檚 national parks, but said there needs to be a balance between protection and development.
鈥淏anff and Jasper National Parks are internationally renowned destinations that need to be protected鈥揳bsolutely鈥揵ut that also has to be in concert with providing a positive visitor experience through sustainable tourism,鈥� said Casey Peirce, executive director of the pro-tourism organization.
鈥淚t鈥檚 important to remember that visitor experience is one-third of Parks Canada鈥檚 mandate. That dictates that infrastructure has to be maintained and improved in order to provide for the increasing number of Canadians and visitors that come here.鈥�
She reaffirmed her organization鈥檚 support of the 107-km bike path from Jasper to the Columbia Icefield, and chided the environmental groups for misleading the public about the proposal to build overnight accommodations at Maligne Lake and the expansion at Lake Louise.
鈥淥ften the claims coming from these groups are emotional and they are not based on scientific evidence,鈥� said Peirce.
鈥淲hen you request the federal government to make changes in policy it鈥檚 very important to have scientific evidence behind it and I would ask where is that?鈥�
Ronson shot back, describing Peirce鈥檚 comment as an 鈥渦nfair assessment鈥� of the groups鈥� statement.
鈥淥ur parks report that was released back in July contains all the references related to these statements, which in our estimation are all true.鈥�
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think there鈥檚 anything wrong with being emotional. These are supposed to be Canada鈥檚 most protected areas, safeguarding nature and wildlife for current and future generations, we should all care about that.鈥�
Parks Canada also weighed in on the debate.
鈥淚t should be noted that strict development limits are in place to protect the ecological integrity of national parks,鈥� wrote Meaghan Bradley, a communications officer with Parks Canada鈥檚 national office.
鈥淧arks Canada remains committed to a rigorous development review and environmental assessment process that ensures all development proposals comply with these limits and that a park鈥檚 ecological integrity is maintained or restored. Additionally, any development in national parks is managed through consultation with the public, stakeholders and Indigenous communities, and planning that is informed by science.鈥�
According to Bradley, Parks Canada uses more than 600 independent scientific measurements to help inform its decisions about park-specific priorities and guide conservation investments.
She also noted that 97 per cent of Jasper National Park and 96 per cent of Banff National Park has been declared wilderness areas with strong limits on development and use.
Maligne Lake proposal
In November 2015, a federal court judge dismissed a legal challenge disputing Parks Canada鈥檚 approval of a conceptual proposal for overnight accommodation at Maligne Lake.
The judicial review was filed by Ecojustice on behalf of CPAWS and the Jasper Environmental Association鈥搕wo conservation groups concerned that overnight accommodation at the lake would negatively affect threatened wildlife in the Maligne Valley.
Although the case was dismissed, the judge made it clear that in order for the tent cabins to receive full approval, there would have to be an amendment to the management plan, and such amendment could only be made by the minister of environment and climate change.
Brewster, which bought Maligne Tours in January 2016, did not respond to an interview request to confirm whether or not the company was still pursuing the project, however, according to Parks Canada, there are no proposals for development at Maligne Lake.
鈥淔or the Maligne Valley in Jasper National Park, there are currently no proposals before Parks Canada for development at Maligne Lake,鈥� said Bradley.
Icefields Trail Project
In June, Parks Canada revealed plans to build a 107-km paved bike trail from Jasper to the Columbia Icefield.
The $66-million multi-use trail will run parallel to the Icefields Parkway and make use of areas that have already been disturbed, such as the old paved highway. The hope is that by building a separate trail it will improve cyclists鈥� safety.
Environmental groups fear the trail will damage caribou and grizzly habitat and point to it as the latest example of parks ignoring its mandate to protect the park.
AMPPE has been a strong supporter of the project since Parks Canada released details about it and urged those opposed to the project to wait for an environmental assessment to be completed before assessing its ecological impact.
Lake Louise expansion
In August, the federal government approved new site guidelines allowing Lake Louise Ski Resort to expand its operations.
The controversial decision would actually reduce the size of the resort鈥檚 leasehold by 669 hectares, but allow the resort to expand in other areas ultimately allowing it to double its current capacity from 6,000 to 11,500 visitors per day.
The plan includes more ski lifts, more ski hills, a new lodge and increasing the size of its parking lot.
Environmental groups and 11 former Parks managers are opposed to the plan, arguing that doubling the ski resort鈥檚 capacity is not an environmental gain.
Paul Clarke
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