As you may have heard, British Columbia provincial parks gained nearly 276,000 extra hectares last month through the Protected Areas of British Columbia Amendment Act.
In a press release, Environment Minister Terry Lake talked about the benefits of such legislation.
“Through this legislation we are helping to protect our environment, including spawning habitat for sockeye salmon and a unique mineral source used by mountain caribou and other wildlife, which is the result of an extensive land-use planning process we have undertaken with First Nations, stakeholders and the public,” he said.
In a backpacking sense, this means that even more of our province is protected from too much development. We can continue to enjoy the magnificent landscapes and wildlife that are such a key part of our hiking experience.
It also means that the province could potentially build more provincial trails, and more of the province might have a backcountry camping fee through the parks system.
British Columbia has the largest provincial/territorial parks system in Canada, and the third largest protected areas systems in North America (after the Canadian and US national parks systems). All together, 13,986,106 hectares to be exact.
It says Beautiful British Columbia on our license plates for a reason. Sometimes it is good to reflect on how lucky we are to live in such an amazing place, and look forward to preserving these landscapes for the future.
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