Canadian Parks Suffer from Expansion

Written by Posted On Monday, 30 May 2005 17:00

Canada has the right idea when it comes to protecting green space, but it's execution may be off.

Protected natural areas grew to nearly 82 million hectares or 8.4 per cent of Canada's total land mass between 1989 and 2003, and the expansion continues. A recent independent report raises the alarm that this growth is not matched by sufficient increased funding and management support.

When the final series of planned national parks and marine conservation areas are added by the end of 2008, Parks Canada, which currently manages over one-third of the total protected hectares, will increase the territory it is responsible for by 50 per cent. Canadians who take for granted that parks are sacrosanct, may not be pleased to learn that, according to a recent report from The Fraser Institute (FI), which cites corroborating research from sources that include the Auditor General: "Canada's network of national parks has expanded at the expense of existing parks."

Since proximity to parks often add significant value to residential, commercial and recreational real estate, property owners may benefit from a "heads up" before their local natural area suffers. Those who rely, directly or indirectly, on parks for their income should also take note.

Parks Canada states that every dollar invested in its programs is said to have an impact of C$3.50 on GDP and yet The Fraser Institute report, "Can Markets Save Canada's National Parks?", blames government neglect for the threat to parks and wilderness. In short, The Fraser Institute, an independent public policy organization established in 1974, believes "the politics of park management have prevented Parks Canada from considering the full range of policy options that could help secure a sustainable future for Canada's national parks."

One quarter of all Canadians visited a park in 2004 while even more took part in a nature-related activity. In 2000, campers and nature lovers spent C$11 billion on nature-oriented activities. According to Parks Canada, national parks, historic sites, and marine conservation areas have even greater indirect economic value, contributing C$112 billion annually to GDP and creating 38,000 full-time jobs.

Yet, this Fraser Institute paper describes a dismal maintenance record for federal government with regard to protecting Canada's parks:

  • 25 per cent of the heritage buildings managed by Parks Canada have been lost in only 30 years.

  • Two-thirds of national historic sites are currently at risk.

  • One third of park facilities are now in "urgent need of repair" with another third likely to need repair in the next five to ten years.

  • New funding promised by the federal government fails to meet current infrastructure requirements of C$425 million and C$100 million in long-term maintenance needs.

This report offers government management the following creative solutions:

  • Localizing management and decision-making processes while fully retaining and reinvesting in all locally-generated revenues.

  • Contracting out park management and service delivery to reduce the present allocation of 60 per cent of Parks' budget that goes to salaries and benefits.

  • Establishing new efficiencies by experimenting with various privatization options and managing parks towards self-sufficiency, preferably through land trusts and other voluntary means.

"Notwithstanding heavy government involvement, private land conservation initiatives are achieving considerable success in Canada," said co-author and FI policy analyst Sylvia LeRoy, emphasizing that there may be other groups more able than government agencies. "Over the past 5 years, the number of known land trusts operating in Canada has more than doubled, from 60 to 125, protecting a growing expanse of Canada's land and waters. Private stewardship groups are credited with creating over 70 per cent of new protected areas in Atlantic Canada between 1987 and 1996."

Embodying the best hope for long-term maintenance and protection of Canada's parks, private conservation initiatives also eliminate "park barrel" politics, reduce conflict and secure better environmental outcomes. A survey of 63 land trusts conducted by the Land Trust Alliance of British Columbia recorded that 2,091 square kilometers of land was protected privately through conservation covenants, easements, and servitudes.

The largest and best-known land trust, the Nature Conservancy of Canada , owns more than 90 per cent of the land it protects in fee simple through the Trust. Land is purchased or received through donation, or, short of outright ownership, partial interest in the land is negotiated with private property owners. These partial interests, called conservation easements, covenants, or servitudes, are customized legal agreements in which landowners agree to impose restrictions on activities that might threaten the value of the land.

Preservation of green space should not be left entirely to Ottawa. Success lies with an emphasis on local decision-making -- a call to action for local property owners.

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