Environmental Trends 2002

Protected Areas

Percentage of Province in Protected Areas Status

SOURCE: BC Parks, 1995 and Ministry of Sustainable Resource Management, 2001. NOTES: Data for this graph were compiled by decade until 1990, and do not reflect annual trends. Protected areas include those which have been designated and those announced but not yet designated under the Protected Areas of British Columbia Act, Park Act, Ecological Reserve Act or other provincial or national protected areas legislation. In British Columbia, protected areas include national parks, ecological reserves, class A and C provincial parks, recreation areas and protected areas established under the Environment and Land Use Act. They do not include wildlife management areas, migratory bird sanctuaries and regional parks.

Status and trends in protected areas

• British Columbia’s goal is to protect viable, representative examples of the natural diversity and special natural, cultural and recreational features.

• British Columbia met and surpassed the goal recommended in the 1998 Brundtland report of reaching 12% of the provincial land base dedicated to protected areas by 2000.

• In 1991, approximately 6.1% (5.74 million hectares) of the land base was dedicated to protected areas; by February 2002, approximately 12.5% (11.86 million hectares) was dedicated to protected areas.

• Significant increases in ecosystem representation have occurred in the Province including the Northern Rockies (Muskwa-Kechika), Northwest (Tatshenshini-Alsek), Central Interior (Ts'il ?os), Southern Interior (Lac du Bois, Snowy) and on Vancouver Island (Carmanah Walbran).

• In 2001, 23.3 million visits were made to provincial parks in British Columbia, down from the 1998 high of 26 million visits.

Why is it important?

• The protected areas network is an integral part of British Columbia’s strategy to protect the province’s biological and cultural heritage. This is becoming increasingly important as British Columbia has a high number of species “at risk” relative to other provinces and territories in Canada.

• The protected areas network also provides outdoor recreational opportunities, for both residents and visitors.

• A recent study demonstrated that parks annually contribute over $521 million to the provincial economy and 9100 person-years of employment.

What is being done?

• Since 1992, the protected areas strategy has ensured that strong regional and stakeholder input from land use planning processes is a critical part of identifying new protected areas.

• The federal and provincial governments are working together towards a new national park reserve on the southern Gulf Islands.

For detailed information, including graph data, see In-Depth report [pdf].