Canada Considers Its Endangered Parks
1/16/00
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Title: Canada considers its endangered parks
Source: Environment News Network, http://www.enn.com/
Status: Copyright 2000, contact source for permission to reprint
Date: January 16, 2000
Byline: Robinson Shaw
Prince Edward Island National Park, home to the endangered piping
plover and at least 256 other bird species, is the most endangered of
Canada's 39 national parks, in the estimation of the Canadian Nature
Federation. The federation has drawn up a list of the country's 10
most endangered parks as part of an effort by the Canadian government
to address a sprawling national problem. The clear and present dangers
to Canada's parks, says CNF wildlands campaign director Kevin McNamee,
include overuse, development within park borders, commercial and
agricultural development and industrial resource extraction on
adjacent lands.
"The creation of the Ecological Integrity Panel, a proposed freeze on
community development, actions to protect Banff (National Park) in
its new management plan and the removal of inappropriate tourism
facilities from parks such as Point Pelee suggest a promising new
trend to protect our threatened national parks," said McNamee.
Minister of Heritage Sheila Copps created the ecology panel to
determine the status of Canada's national parks. Copps, who oversees
Parks Canada, the country's national park land agency, will be the
first to review the panel's findings.
The most endangered national parks, in order of severity, are:
1. Prince Edward Island National Park, Prince Edward Island. This
narrow coastal strip of land, dotted with beaches and dunes, suffers
from overuse. The park is home to the endangered piping plover and
more than 256 other bird species. One of Canada's smallest national
parks, it is also the most crowded, averaging 30,000 visitors per
year on .62 square miles. A recent proposal to build an interpretive
center, hotel and other tourist amenities, which would have increased
visitor traffic annually by an estimated 100,000 people, was nixed.
2. Point Pelee National Park, Ontario. Canada's most southerly
national park contains the most endangered species and exotic flora
and fauna of any national park in Canada. A 2,669-acre marsh
surrounding the park is recognized as a significant wetland. The park
suffers from intensive agriculture outside its boundaries.
3. St. Lawrence Islands National Park, Ontario. Measuring only 5.6
square miles, St. Lawrence Islands is Canada's smallest park. Its 22
islands are spread over a 50-mile stretch of the St. Lawrence River
and support many endangered species as well as exotic flora and
fauna. The park is the victim of air pollution, water pollution and
noise pollution associated with recreational boat use.
4. Fundy National Park, New Brunswick. Threatened principally by
forestry, the park has lost many native species. Wolves, caribou and
the wood frog have been extirpated and 153 exotic species have
invaded the natural flora.
5. Elk Island National Park, Alberta. A 121-square-mile island refuge
amid a sea of altered landscapes. The park is surrounded by grain
fields, grazing land, rural communities and industry. Land use in
neighboring areas threatens the park. Predators such as black bears,
grizzly bears and wolves have been forced out by nearby development.
6. Pacific Rim National Park, British Columbia. This 93-mile strip of
temperate rain forest along the western coast of Vancouver Island is
at risk from logging, which has reduced the landscape to a narrow
band of wilderness. The park's ecosystem is also vulnerable to marine
pollution, evidenced by the Grace Harbor oil spill in 1989.
7. Mount Revelstoke and Glacier National Parks, British Columbia.
8. Riding Mountain National Park, Manitoba
9. Banff National Park, Alberta.
10. Nahanni National Park Reserve, Northwest Territories.
The CNF says four steps are required to restore the endangered
national parks:
* Stop new development and, in some cases, remove existing
development from within the national parks.
* Work with provinces to ensure suitable development of adjacent
land.
* Increase Parks Canada's core funding for park-management programs.
* Continue to work on protection measures for eight national parks
under the National Parks Act.
"With the 70th anniversary of the National Parks Act in the new year,
Canada needs to rededicate itself to the mission that Parliament
established for our national parks in 1930 - to maintain our parks
unimpaired for the benefit, education and enjoyment of future
generations," said McNamee.