Too many parks are just ‘paper parks’

Re: “Mount Work park bulks up with $1-million land purchase,” July 26.

The Capital Regional District has purchased 28 hectares of private land to be added to Mount Work Park.

Eighty per cent of parks or protected areas in the world are “paper parks,” meaning that they have been legally designated but are not supplied with effective protection and stewardship.

Mount Work Park is a representative piece of the least protected ecosystem in B.C. and is home to sensitive wildflower sites, rare to Canada. It deserves a high level of protection and a sustainable trail system that can handle 200,000 annual visits with minimum impact.

The main trail has serious accelerated erosion, and poor provision of viewpoints along the summit ridge has induced considerable trampling of rare wildflower sites. This places Mount Work Park in the paper-park category.

Park management authorities have a duty under international agreements to protect natural conditions. Conservation agencies in other jurisdictions have made considerable progress in sustainable access and reduction of visitor impacts. Civilsociety organizations and volunteers are actively encouraged.

Similar leadership is lacking in B.C. Gowlland Tod Park, next to Mount Work, has similar issues and more derelict stewardship under management by B.C. Parks.

CRD park expansion is financed by a Land Acquisition Fund built from a levy on household property taxes. It is set to expire in 2019, and the CRD has an online survey on its renewal. The fund needs to be replaced by a Protected Area Fund that provides for effective stewardship and land purchases.

Andrew Mitchell, RPF (retired) North Saanich