Up close and personal with warden Ben Alderman
In 2008, the Government of Canada authorized Parks Canada to create armed officer positions dedicated to law enforcement. Called park wardens, these men and women help protect and preserve our national parks and visitors through proactive law enforcement activities, such as targeted patrols, intelligence gathering, special operations, proactive education and close partnerships with other agencies such as the RCMP.
Park wardens investigate a variety of incidents and unresolved occurrences such as illegal hunting/fishing, firearms offences, habitat destruction, cultural resource thefts, public peace and safety issues, wildfires, and much more.
How long have you worked with Parks Canada and where have you worked?
I鈥檝e worked with Parks Canada for 20 years. Locations include the Chilkoot Trail, Jasper, Banff, Elk Island, Riding Mountain and Pacific Rim. Assignments and training have taken me to Yoho, Kootenay, Mt. Revelstoke/Glacier, Gulf Islands, Prince Albert and Terra Nova national parks, as well as national office in Gatineau. I鈥檝e also spent a lot of time at RCMP Depot Division, where we train. I鈥檝e probably logged at least 10 months overall working there.
How long have you been a park warden?
I鈥檝e basically been a park warden since 1993, but it鈥檚 important to note that the duties of a park warden changed fundamentally in 2008.
Incidentally, beginning in 1931, my grandfather worked as a park warden, chief park warden and superintendent, including working here in Jasper.
What would you say are the most important issues you deal with here in Jasper National Park?
That鈥檚 a difficult question. The challenge is actually to find the right balance so that we can address the more serious offences while still making the time to be available to devote resources for the minor problems that, if left alone, could have a significant cumulative impact.
If you were to look at the Canada National Parks Act to determine the most serious offences, you would find that hunting our most protected species can result in the highest fines (maximum fines are well into the millions). Examples of these animals include the grizzly bear, bighorn sheep and mountain goat. But in order to do our job, we also enforce provisions of the Criminal Code, the federal Fisheries Act, the Species at Risk Act, the provincial Traffic Safety Act, Gaming and Liquor Act, and many more.
Jasper is the largest of the mountain national parks, with the second highest visitation rate in the country, making it a real challenge for our small but experienced team.
What is one of the more bizarre things you鈥檝e dealt with in Jasper as a park warden?
There鈥檝e been a few bizarre dealings in my career, and some that I鈥檓 better off keeping to myself.
In 1996, however, very early in my career, I was patrolling the south end of the park when I got called to the Saskatchewan Crossing park gate. There were about 80 members of a well-known outlaw motorcycle gang entering the north end of Banff Park through that gate. They were wearing their 鈥渃olours,鈥� and according to the gate attendant the bikers rode up to the gate in a formation of pairs stretching a kilometre down the highway.
Motorists subsequently began reporting that this group was forcing vehicles off the road and generally driving recklessly. One of the motorcycle leaders signalled to someone way at the back who then rode up and paid for everyone鈥檚 park pass with a few handfuls of cash out of a duffle bag.
In the parking lot of the resort just up the road, I suddenly found myself alone and surrounded by this group, which has a well documented history of violence and intimidation.
Luckily, they weren鈥檛 the least bit interested in the young park warden, and I wasn鈥檛 about to get in their way. So once they bought a few souvenirs in the gift shop they were on their way, roaring off up the parkway.
If you could ask the public to do one thing, what would it be?
The primary duties of a park warden are the enforcement of the Canada National Parks Act and the preservation and maintenance of public peace. That might seem straightforward, but in a lot of cases we really do depend on the public to contact us and report violations or just describe situations where they feel something might not be right.
Our 24-hour contact number is 780-852-6155 or toll free at 1-877-852-3100.
For more information about park wardens and the laws associated with Parks Canada and Jasper National Park, feel free to call the Park Information Centre at 780-852-6176, or visit http://www.pc.gc.ca/jasper and click on 鈥漀ational Park Regulations.鈥�
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