Aerial-related Recreation: All Habitats, Winter and Snow-free
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Introduction
- The following results, desired behaviours, indicators, and limits apply in addition to any
relevant policies or regulations; for example, area-based closures and existing statutes.
- Concerns are ranked according to the potential risk
to wildlife and their habitats, where potential is defined
as the probability that the activity will result in either
the alteration or destruction of habitat, or the temporary
or permanent abandonment of habitat, in the absence of
guidelines or statutes.
- "Aerial-related recreation" is defined as the
portion of any recreation activity that involves the use
of helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft.
- Guidelines are summarized by:
- Results - What the guidelines are attempting
to achieve.
- Desired Behaviours - Actions by users
that are most likely to achieve the specified results.
- Indicators - What should be measured
to determine if the specified results are being achieved.
- Limits - Acceptable bounds related to
the measured indicator.
- Results and Desired Behaviours are identified for low-risk
issues.
- Results, Desired Behaviours, Indicators, and Limits
are identified for high-risk issues.
- NOTE: These guidelines have been produced as a means of ensuring that environmental values and
tourism recreational activities can co-exist on the landscape. Tourism operators may find these guidelines useful and may choose to adopt them. However, if a licensee chooses to use a different strategy, and it is accepted by government, the licensee must undertake an effectiveness monitoring program. The Tenure
Management Plan must reflect a commitment to the monitoring program, and opportunities to partner with
government may be explored.
- Safety remains the first priority under all circumstances.
1. Degradation of Soil, Air and Water Quality
Concern: Fuel spills
Results |
Desired Behaviours |
Indicators |
Limits |
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- Number and volume of spills.
- Documented responses to spills.
- Soil tests near tanks
- Compliance with regulations.
- Suitable location of caches.
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- No non-compliance with regulations.
- No unsuitably located fuel caches.
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2. Integrity of Vegetation Communities
Concern: Damage to sensitive sites
(Are these in my operating area?)
Results |
Desired Behaviours |
Indicators |
Limits |
- Protect habitats of endangered wildlife species and ecosystems.
- Protect sensitive ecosystems (grasslands, alpine/tundra, and moist-soil ecosystems such as
riparian areas and wetlands).
- Protect nesting/calving sites.
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3. Direct Disturbance of Wildlife
Concerns: Physiological and behavioural disruption, displacement
from preferred habitats; direct mortality, habituation/sensitization
Results |
Desired Behaviours |
Indicators |
Limits |
- Minimize physiological and behavioural changes in animals associated with aircraft activity.
- Minimize changes in habitat use resulting from aircraft activity.
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- Record wildlife encounters, actions taken, and responses of animals.
- Obey all area closures.
- Do not harass wildlife.
- Focus activities in areas and times of the year when wildlife are least likely to be disturbed
(seasonal closures might be necessary).
- Take immediate action to increase separation distances when animals react to aircraft.
- Use consistent flight paths, preferably in the center
of valleys, or the valley side opposite key wildlife
habitat. If key wildlife habitats are in the center,
fly on one side of the valley rather then the center.
- Stay at distances sufficient to prevent changes to the behaviour of animals (more than 500 m
line-of-sight is the default).
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- Proportion of encounters resulting in an
alarm response.
- Population abundance and distribution trends of wildlife species.
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- No increase in rate of
alarm responses over time caused by aircraft.
- No harassment caused by aircraft.
- No abandonment of habitats caused by aircraft.
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4. Integrity of Fisheries Resources
Concern: None for this activity
5. Special Management
Concern:
Ungulate winter range
(Are these in my operating area?)
Results |
Desired Behaviours |
Indicators |
Limits |
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- Minimize activity in and near identified
ungulate winter ranges (seasonal closures might be necessary).
- Stay at distances sufficient to prevent changes to the behaviour of animals
(more than 500 m line-of-sight is the default).
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Concern: Mountain Caribou
(Are these in my operating area?)
Results |
Desired Behaviours |
Indicators |
Limits |
- Minimize physiological or behavioural disruption of Mountain Caribou.
- Continued occupation of existing range by Mountain Caribou.
- Ensure that aircraft activities are not a barrier
to Mountain Caribou population or range recovery.
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- Record wildlife encounters, actions taken and responses by animals.
- No intentional "flight-seeing" of
Mountain Caribou.
- Ensure a system is in place to proactively identify high-use habitats with a
high probability for encountering caribou (see Note A below), and to show how activities
shift during the operating season in response to the presence of caribou.
- Minimize activity in and near identified high-use areas.
- Avoid activity in occupied habitats (see Note B below).
- Stay at a sufficient distance from caribou to prevent changes to their
behaviour or their use of habitat
(more than 500 m line-of-sight is default).
- Seasonal closures might be necessary.
- Operate in a manner that is consistent with government's
approved approach to Recovery Planning for Mountain Caribou.
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- Encounter frequency.
- Proportion of encounters resulting in an alarm response.
- Population abundance and distribution trends of sub-populations as they
relate to the activities.
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- No increase in rate of alarm responses over time caused by aircraft.
- No harassment of animals caused by aircraft.
- No abandonment of habitats caused by aircraft.
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Note A. High-use habitats can be determined based on habitat mapping,
information from government biologists, or sightings from previous years.
Note B. "Occupied habitats" refers to areas known
to be occupied by caribou within at least the last 48 hours. Occupation is determined by the observation
of caribou in the target area or by observation of tracks (either caribou or other ungulate) in the target area. The desired behaviour is to shift activity from the occupied area to an area where the
likelihood of encountering caribou is low. The aerial activity will not resume in occupied habitats for at least 48 hours and only after a high-level reconnaissance flight can confirm the absence of the animals or their tracks (i.e., the areas are no longer occupied). The high-level reconnaissance flight entails
approaching the target area at an altitude of 500 m or higher, and conducting an observation flight over
the target area before gradually descending toward the ground. If at any time caribou or tracks (either
caribou or other ungulate) are detected during the reconnaissance flight, the target area is considered
occupied and further aerial activities will be suspended for at least the next 48 hours, at which time the
procedure may be repeated.
Concern:
Mountain Goats/Wild Sheep (Are these in my operating area?)
Results |
Desired Behaviours |
Indicators |
Limits |
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- Do not land in identified Mountain Goat winter ranges.
- No intentional “flight-seeing” of
Mountain Goats/sheep.
- Stay at distances sufficient to prevent changes to the behaviour of animals
(more than 1500 m line-of-sight is the
default).
- Avoid occupied habitats where Mountain Goats/sheep have been seen in the current season and/or
animals consistently occupy the area and the area is mapped as occupied.
- Minimize 1 use in areas of high probability or potential, where there is documented
past use by Mountain Goats or sheep.
- No behavioural restrictions 2 apply in areas not considered Mountain Goat/sheep
habitat, or where potential habitat is mapped 3 with no verification of Mountain
Goat/sheep use.
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Notes:
1 "Minimize" means using one or all of the following operational strategies:
- Distributing aerial activities across the operating area so that these habitat areas receive
less use (particularly for landings and take-offs) relative to other areas where the probability of
interaction with goats is lower.
- Identifying and maintaining use of regular and predictable patterns and distribution
of flights.
- Flying on the opposite side of the valley from where these areas are located.
- Flying at distances from these areas sufficient to prevent changes to behaviour of animals (if
they might be in the area but not visible). Normally, this is a minimum 1500 m horizontal
separation, unless the flight path is separated from the habitat by geographic barriers. Where
aircraft are within this normal separation distance, they should maintain maximum vertical
separation from the areas (normally more than 500 m).
- Flying aircraft in a way that reduces noise and ensures that animals are not surprised by
sudden encounters.
- Ensuring that monitoring and feed-back systems are in place to show due diligence with respect
to meeting the intent of this category.
- Employing the established practices of HeliCat Canada when animals are inadvertently
encountered.
Note that management plans and/or company
operational strategies will be expected to outline the
specific practices being used to achieve this intent, and to ensure/confirm the on-going success of
the strategies. In addition, it is recommended that the Ministry of Environment be informed of any
reported sightings during an annual information exchange.
2 Flights into mapped Mountain Goat/sheep winter
ranges that have no verification of animal presence are deemed
to include cursory presence/absence assessment. Clients should
be advised to inform pilots/guides if they observe Mountain
Goats/sheep. If animals are detected, the area’s classification
becomes “occupied” and the “Desired Behaviours” are
modified accordingly.
3
Mapped winter ranges under this category do not need to be included in Tenure Management Plans.
Concern: Calving areas, nesting sites,
Grizzly Bear and
Wolverine dens (Are these in my operating area?)
Results |
Desired Behaviours |
Indicators |
Limits |
- Minimize physiological or behavioural disruption of wildlife during
critical calving/ denning/ nesting periods.
- Continued occupation by wildlife of critical calving/ denning/ nesting habitat.
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- Avoid flying or landing near known calving/ denning/ nesting habitat; more than 500 m
line-of-sight is the default for large mammals and
Great Blue Heron rookeries, except 1500 m or more for
Mountain Goat natal areas (seasonal closures might be necessary).
- No intentional “flight-seeing” of wildlife during calving/ denning/ nesting
periods.
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- Continued occupancy of calving/ denning/ nesting habitats.
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- No harassment caused by aircraft.
- Continued occupancy of known calving/ denning/ nesting habitats.
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6. Additional Information
BCHSSOA. 2003. Stewardship of mountain ecosystems: best practices for sustainability.
HeliCat Canada
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