National parks of Canada: Difference between revisions

{{Short description|Parks owned and maintained by the federal government of Canada}}

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<br /><small>Herbert Lake in</small> {{small|[[Banff National Park]], [[Alberta]]}}

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|[[Banff National Park]], 1885

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|[[Georgian Bay Islands National Park]], 13.5&nbsp;km²

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|[[Wood Buffalo National Park]], 44,807&nbsp;km²

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== Early History of Canada's National Parks ==

 

The transition towards developing parks as a place of preservation began with the ''[[National Parks Act (Canada)|National Parks Act]]'' of 1930. This event marked a shift in park management practices. Revised in 1979 under the National Parks Policy, the Act placed greater emphasis on preserving the natural areas in an unimpaired state through ecological integrity and restoration, moving away from development based heavily on profit. Acting as national symbols, Canada's national parks exist in every province and territory representing a variety of landscapes that mark Canada's natural heritage.<ref name="Campbell 2011 p. "/>

==Timeline==

 

*1908–1912 – Four national parks are established in Alberta and Saskatchewan with a mission akin to national wildlife refuges. All would be abolished by 1947 once their goals were achieved.

*1911 – Dominion Parks Branch creates the world's first national park service. This branch was overseen by the Department of the Interior, which is now known as [[Parks Canada]], the governing body of Canada's national parks.

*1998 – The Parks Canada Agency Act is implemented.

*2011 – To mark the 100th anniversary of the creation of the national parks system, Parks Canada, Primitive Entertainment and [[Discovery World HD]] commissioned the [[National Parks Project]] to create a series of documentary films about various parks in the system.<ref name=dixon>[https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/movies/the-national-parks-project-wildlife-and-wild-music/article2028806/ "The National Parks Project: Wildlife and wild music"]. ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'', May 20, 2011.</ref>

[[File:Visiting Sable Island.jpg|alt=A visitor views an area of Sable Island National Park Reserve from a helicopter|thumb|A visitor views an area of [[Sable Island National Park|Sable Island National Park Reserve]] from a helicopter]]

 

[[File:012 035 Ile Mingan Niapiscau.jpg|thumb|Niapiskau island, [[Monolith|limestone monoliths]], [[Gulf of St. Lawrence]], [[Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve]]]]

[[File:Morning at Spirit Island.jpg|thumb|[[Maligne Lake]] in [[Jasper National Park]]]]

[[File:Kluane National Park and Reserve of Canada, Canada (Unsplash).jpg|alt=A view in Kluane National Park|thumb|A view in [[Kluane National Park and Reserve|Kluane National Park]]]]

[[File:Tundra landscape with mountains and small pond, Ivvavik National Park, YT.jpg|alt=Tundra landscape and a pond near the confluence of Wolf Creek and Firth River, with mountains in the background, in Ivvavik National Park|thumb|[[Tundra]] landscape and a pond near the confluence of Wolf Creek and [[Firth River]], with mountains in the background, in [[Ivvavik National Park]]]]

Parks in less frequently visited, northern parts of Canada were created with more consideration of Aboriginal usage. [[Kluane National Park and Reserve]] in the [[Yukon Territory|Yukon]] initially had restrictions on hunting in order to preserve the presence of wildlife in the park, as did [[Ivvavik National Park]] in the Northern Yukon. Through grassroots organizations and political lobbying, Indigenous residents of these areas were able to have greater influence over the process of park creation. For both Kluane and Ivvavik parks, Indigenous organizations protested and testified to Parliamentary Committees, describing how these restrictions infringed on their ability to provide for themselves through traditional fishing, hunting, and trapping.<ref>Neufeld, David. “Kluane National Park Reserve, 1923–1974: Modernity and Pluralism” A Century of Parks Canada, 1911–2001. Edited by Claire Campbell. Calgary: University of Calgary Press, 2011. 245–247.</ref><ref>Martin, 281.</ref> Ivvavik National Park, established in 1984,<ref>Martin, 278.</ref> was the first in Canada to be created through a comprehensive land claim settlement, and set a precedent for collaboration and co-management in future parks.<ref>Martin, 275.</ref> In June 1984, the [[Inuvialuit]] Final Agreement was signed, which deviated from past parks by committing to a more extensive inclusion of Aboriginal interests and gave the Inuvialuit exclusive rights to hunting and harvesting game within the park. This agreement was an example of and the beginning of co-management, which ensured that Indigenous voices would be heard and given equal representatives on parks boards.<ref>Martin, 292.</ref>

[[File:Kouchibouguac National Park (36429403124).jpg|alt=Sunset seen from a beach at Kouchibouguac National Park|thumb|Sunset seen from a beach at [[Kouchibouguac National Park]]]]

Non-Indigenous groups were also dispossessed from their land during the creation of national parks, such as the [[Acadians]] of [[Kouchibouguac National Park]] in [[New Brunswick]]. This park was created in 1969 and included recognition of the Aboriginal groups who had once resided there but no recognition of the Acadians who comprised approximately 85 percent of the over 1,500 people who were displaced to create the park.<ref>Rudin, Ronald. “Kouchibouguac: Representations of a Park in Acadian Popular Culture” A Century of Parks Canada, 1911–2001. Edited by Claire Campbell. Calgary: University of Calgary Press, 2011. 206, 207, 211.</ref> Many inhabits dispossessed of their land by Parks Canada resisted, and the Acadian residents' resistance of eviction was extensive enough to delay the official opening of the park until 1979.<ref>Rudin, 205.</ref> Through protest and civil disobedience, they won greater compensation from the government to address the loss of fishing within the park that had previously been their main source of income.<ref>Rudin, 212, 214.</ref> The resistance of the Acadians impacted future park creation, as in 1979 Parks Canada announced that it would no longer use forced relocation in new parks.<ref>Rudin, 216.</ref> An advisory committee was created by Parks Canada in 2008 to reflect on the Kouchibouguac process and address outstanding grievances.<ref>Rudin, 225.</ref>

 

==Shifting value behind park creation and management==

 

===Conservation movements===

 

Created in 1909, the Commission of Conservation became the Canadian forum for conservation issues, acting as an advisory and consultative body used to answer questions related to conservation and better utilization of Canada's natural and human resources. The Commission focused on a concept that maximized future profits through good management in the present.<ref>Bella, Leslie. "Parks for Profit." (Montreal: Harvest House), p.45</ref> Rather than preserving through non-use, the commission was concerned with managing resources for long-term gain.

Other conservation-minded organizations, like the [[Alpine Club]], had different ideas that focused on the preservation of natural wilderness and opposed any type of development or construction. This movement was successful as the creation of parks solely for preservation purposes, like the bird sanctuary in Point Pelee, began developing.<ref>[http://www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/on/pelee/natcul/natcul2/3.aspx/ "Parks Canada – Point Pelee National Park of Canada"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130210060720/http://www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/on/pelee/natcul/natcul2/3.aspx |date=February 10, 2013 }}</ref> In order to push their views further, this movement, headed by [[James B. Harkin]] and [[Arthur Oliver Wheeler]], was forced to argue that divine scenery was itself a source of profit – tourism – in order to push aside what they saw as a far greater avenue of exploitation: resource extraction.<ref>Bella, p.58</ref> By 1930, even the conservation movements within Canada came to understand that the country's national parks had an entrenched system of profit-based motives.

 

 

===Ecological integrity===

 

The change in values is derived from the establishment of 1930 ''National Parks Act'' that limited use of resource for park management, and in 1979, under revised National Parks Policy, the maintenance of ecological integrity was prioritized for the preservation of national parks of Canada. In 1988, the ''National Parks Act'' was amended and the regulation of ecological integrity was embodied. However, due to the conflicting interests of profit and preservation, the maintenance of ecological integrity has progressed slowly.<ref>Bella, Leslie(1987).''Parks for Profit''. Montreal: Harvest House</ref><ref name="Newfoundland 2005">{{cite web|url= http://www.releases.gov.nl.ca/releases/2005/exec/0122n02back4.htm |author=Newfoundland| author-link= Parks Canada| title= Completing Canada's National Parks System|date=April 2005 |access-date=March 16, 2012}}</ref>

 

===Co-management===

 

In 1984, [[Ivvavik National Park]] was established as a result of an Aboriginal land claim agreement. Now, Ivvavik is managed co-operatively by Parks Canada and the Inuvialuit. Their mutual goals are to protect [[Wildlife|wild life]], keep the ecosystem healthy and protect their cultural resources. In addition, they ensure the preservation of the Inuvialuit traditional way of living, including trapping, hunting and fishing.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/pn-np/yt/ivvavik/plan.aspx|author=Parks Canada| author-link= Parks Canada| title= Completing Canada's National Parks System|date=February 2012 |access-date=March 16, 2012}}</ref>

Another example is [[Torngat Mountains National Park]]. In 2005, it was established as a result of the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement. It preserves the aboriginal rights of the Labrador Inuit in Canada, which are land, resources and self-government rights. The federal government also signed the Labrador Inuit Park Impacts and Benefits Agreement with Inuit Association. As with the Ivvavik agreement, it ensures that Inuit can continue to use land and resources as their traditional activities and keep their exclusive relationship with the land and ecosystems. In addition, they agreed to manage the park cooperatively. A seven-member co-operative management board will be established to advise the federal minister of Environment for the matters of parks eco-management.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/pn-np/nl/torngats/plan.aspx|author=Parks Canada| author-link= Parks Canada| title= Completing Canada's National Parks System|date=November 2011 |access-date=March 16, 2012}}</ref>

 

 

==Adding to the system==

[[File:NP-Natural-Regions-EN-11x17-04Feb2020-High-Res-FINAL-DIR.jpg|thumb|300px|Locations of proposed national parks within the various natural regions outlined by [[Parks Canada]]]]

===Proposed national parks and national park reserves===

*[[Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site|Gwaii Haanas]]

*[[Gulf Islands National Park Reserve|Gulf Islands]]

*[[Kluane National Park and Reserve|Kluane]] (a portion of the park is designated as a Reserve)

*[[Mealy Mountains National Park Reserve|Mealy Mountains]]

*[[Naats'ihch'oh National Park Reserve|Naats'ihch'oh]]

*[[Nahanni National Park Reserve|Nahanni]]

*[[Pacific Rim National Park Reserve|Pacific Rim]]

*[[Sable Island National Park Reserve|Sable Island]]

*[[Thaidene Nëné National Park Reserve|Thaidene Nëné]]

 

The following areas have been proposed as Parks or Reserves, studied, and discussed among stakeholders:

 

*Expanding Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta into the Flathead Valley in [[British Columbia]] (as a national park reserve)

 

 

Two areas are under consideration as a National Marine Conservation Area or NMCA Reserve:

 

===National landmarks===

[[File:Ibyuk - Canada's Tallest Pingo.jpg|alt=A view of Ibyuk Pingo, Canada's tallest pingo, and one of eight protected by the Pingo Canadian Landmark|thumb|A view of Ibyuk Pingo, Canada's tallest [[pingo]], and one of eight protected by the [[Pingo Canadian Landmark]]]]

 

To date, only one Landmark has been established—'''[[Pingo Canadian Landmark|Pingo National Landmark]]'''—in the [[Northwest Territories]]. Another was proposed at the same time (1984)—'''Nelson Head National Landmark'''—on the southern tip of [[Banks Island]], also in the Northwest Territories. It was to include some {{convert|70|sqmi|km2|-1|abbr=on|order=flip}}, {{convert|25|mi|km|0|abbr=on|order=flip}} of coastline, and protect the sea cliffs at Nelson Head and Cape Lambton. Durham Heights were to be included, which reach an elevation of {{convert|2450|ft|m|0|abbr=on|order=flip}}. The legislation providing for the Landmark required a formal request be made by the [[Minister of the Environment]] within 10 years (until 1994).<ref>[http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/pr/agr/inu/wesar_e.pdf The Inuvialuit Final Agreement] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030804100633/http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/pr/agr/inu/wesar_e.pdf |date=August 4, 2003 }} (Sec. 7 (77–81))</ref> None was ever made.

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[[Category:1885 establishments in Canada]]