British Columbia • Protected Areas • Lands and Regulations • Issues & Advocacy

This data was accurate as of April 2008.

Page Index
Land description
Brief History
Process of Development/Consultation Type
PAS Implementation and Candidate PA selection process
Results
First Nations Land Claim Settlements
Post-completion and On-Going issues
Non-Governmental Organizations

Land description
The current area protected in British Columbia is approximately 13.95% or 13.217 million hectares (2007).
The land and fresh water area of British Columbia is 94,759,990 hectares with the land only area being 92,518,600 hectares. Approximately 94% of land in British Columbia is Crown or public with the remaining 6% being private. There are 6 National Parks covering a total of 633,400 hectares, with approximately 871 provincial parks, recreation areas and ecological reserves covering approximately 12.584 million hectares. Industrial land use is prohibited in national and provincial parks, and various ecological and nature reserves and wilderness areas. Special Management Zones and Resource Management Zones allow industry with possible land use restrictions. The Province has 100 terrestrial ecosections, representing different ecosystems, as designated habitat types.

Brief History: (prior to initiation of land use plan and development)
Land use planning has been undertaken for decades in British Columbia.  The 1970’s and 1980’s environmental and economic pressures in British Columbia brought a focus to some difficult land use issues.  Valley by valley conflicts, primarily in the forest sector,  became common and were frustrating to both industry and communities.  The 1987 Brundtland Commission report (“Our Common Future”) suggested that 12% of a jurisdiction should be protected strongly influenced the approach British Columbia would use to resolve these conflicts.

The BC Parks policy document “Striking the Balance”, released in 1988, set the stage for increasing areas protected in BC.  This was followed by a major initiative called “Parks and Wilderness for the 90’s” in communities all over the province. 

In late 1991, the Commission on Resources and Environment (CORE) was created with a mandate to develop a provincial land use strategy and to undertake regional land use planning based on promoting decision-making through the building of consensus amongst diverse perspectives and stakeholders.  The creation of new protected areas became a focal point of the land use planning processes.  CORE also produced a land use charter and 45 land use goals as part of their overall land use strategy.

In 1992, the Canadian Parks Ministers Council signed A Statement of Commitment to Complete Canada’s Networks of Protected Areas, by the year 2000.

In 1994, the Whitehorse Mining Initiative was signed to provide a strategic vision for a healthy mining industry in the context of maintaining healthy and diverse ecosystems in Canada.  Among other things it called for establishing an ecologically based system of protected areas.  Representatives of five sectors agreed to participate. They were the mining industry, senior governments, labour unions, Aboriginal peoples, and the environmental community.  A report from the Land Access Issue group was released in 1994.

In June 1993, the government released A Protected Areas Strategy (PAS) for British Columbia.  This document set a commitment to “expanding a protected areas system that will protect 12% of the province by the year 2000”.  Protected areas were defined in part as lands where no industrial extraction is permitted; no mining, logging, hydro dams or oil and gas development will occur.  The experiences gained from the CORE and their regional land planning processes led to changes in how land use planning was conducted in BC.  A smaller “sub-regional” scale of planning overseen by a new Land Use Coordination Office (LUCO), reporting to the Finance Ministry, replaced the CORE in 1995.  These new Land and Resource Management Plans (LRMPs) continued to deliver the PAS target of achieving 12% protection. 

In 1999, the British Columbia and Yukon Chamber of Mines (now the Association of Mineral Exploration, British Columbia), who generally represented the mineral exploration  industry at the LRMP tables, and the Mining Association of British Columbia, formally withdrew from the land use planning process across the province, citing that, among other reasons, the process was fundamentally flawed and inappropriate for mining.  With a change of government in 2001, both the Chamber and the Mining Association announced their return to the planning process, indicating greater confidence that a revised and timely process that better addresses economic values would be instituted. 

In 2001, the Land Use Coordination Office (LUCO) was eliminated and LRMP’s were placed under the direction of the Ministry of Sustainable Resource Management. 

In May 2002, the province legislated the “Two Zone System” of land use, put forward by the mining industry:            

“Mineral Zone” = land open to mineral exploration and mining.
“Protected Zone”  = crown land closed to mineral development   through either legislation or order-in-council.

In 2004, LRMPs were moved to the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands as part of the new Integrated Land Management Bureau (ILMB).

A major land access/land use change was instigated in January 2005 when the province converted to map Online map acquisition (staking) for mineral claims.  This measure removed the ground disturbances of line-cutting, tree blazing and post placement.

Process of Development/Consultation Type:
CORE set up four regional planning tables during 1992-1994 based on a multi-party consensus-seeking negotiation model. When it became clear that no consensus could be reached at the planning tables, CORE ended the process and completed the plans itself. They submitted recommendations to government and further negotiations by government with key stakeholders led to the final land use plan in these four areas. During this time CORE conducted an analysis of the Tatshenshini-Alsek park proposal and the Windy-Craggy mining property conflict. Ultimately the government of the day unilaterally created the Tatshenshini-Alsek Park.

The June 1993, release of A Protected Areas Strategy (PAS) for British Columbia was intended to help guide planning tables in making recommendations for new protected areas. Supplementary documents provided advice on decision analysis and economic resource assessments, including mineral assessments and interim management guidelines for mineral activities. The PAS establishes the concept of ecosystem representation as the fundamental premise guiding the identification and selection of new protected areas.
British Columbia’s Protected Area Strategy goals are:

Goal 1: Representativeness – to protect viable, representative examples of the natural diversity of the province;
Goal 2: Special Features – to protect the special natural, cultural heritage and recreational features of the province.

LRMP planning tables initially focused on achieving full consensus agreements; many achieved this, but some took many years to do so. With the change in government in 2001, the focus shifted from achieving full consensus to working through a collaborative consultation, still seeking agreement, but within a defined timeframe. LRMP tables consist of individuals, First Nations, industry, interest groups and local governments, usually with professional facilitators; a variety of provincial government staff act as technical advisors.

PAS Implementation and Candidate PA selection process:
In 1991, 6.1% or 5.74 million hectares of land in British Columbia were protected from industrial use.
Land use plans are prepared through a process involving all stakeholders using a consensus-seeking approach, and interest-based negotiations. Candidate protected areas are identified by each LRMP Table as part of the overall land use plan. The land use plan, with or without a consensus agreement, is then submitted to government for approval. Most areas are recommended as fully protected parks and when approved, these are legislated. Some areas are recommended as “protected areas” and receive a slightly different designation through Order-in-Council to accommodate a specific activity that would not be allowed in a park (such as a provision for a future industrial road corridor through the protected area.

The completion of the LRMP planning, will establish which lands are permanently protected and which lands are open to development. A few areas of the province will not have LRMP-level planning completed. Future planning will be completed where economic drivers demonstrate a need or opportunity to complete strategic plans; this may be done at a more detailed scale through a “sustainable resource management planning” process. Plans completed to date identified Protected Areas and integrated Resource Management Zones (RMZs). The RMZs may be further divided into General Resource Management Zones (a variety of resource uses), Enhanced Resource Management Zones (suitable for intensive resource development (typically forestry) and Special Management Zones (SMZs) (lands containing sensitive values). Some plans do not divide the RMZs.

SMZs created some uncertainty for the mining sector as they were perceived as quasi-protected areas, however all SMZs allow for mineral exploration and mining activities.

In May 2002, the government accepted the “Two-Zone” approach which will ensure that mining applications are considered, subject to existing legislation, in all areas except parks, ecological reserves, protected heritage property or where mining has been prohibited by an order under the Environmental and Land Use Act. This means that mineral exploration and mining are acceptable activities in all RMZs. All planning tables in progress will be required to implement the Two-Zone approach. Some tables may use the SMZ classification, however, the more recent trends were to address values rather than SMZs.

In 2004, the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands took over the responsibility of land use planning under the LRMP’s through the Integrated Land Management Bureau. As of 2007, 24 land use plans have been completed and approved, two plan areas are underway, two are under consideration and two have not been started.

Results:
In 1991 only 16 ecosections had greater than 12% of their area protected. As of 2002, 37 ecosections had greater than 12% protection. Only 11 ecosections have less than 1% protection with the remaining 52 eosections having between 1 and 12% protection.

Of 32 Regional and Sub-Regional Land Use Plans 21 LRMPs have been completed, four are in progress and seven plans have not yet been initiated. Discussions with First Nations are on-going in order to make decisions on the final LRMP documents. In 2001 there were 289 approved SMZ’s encompassing 13 million acres (14% of the province). In 2003, 16% of province was recognized for enhanced resource use (mostly for improving timber values, however a “coal enhanced resource development zone” was created in the Elk Valley coalfields). General management zones cover 23% and agriculture/settlement zones are represented in approximately 8% of the province.

With the recently announced (February 2006) Great Bear Rain Forest of 4.4 million hectares, on the central coast of the province, the total protected areas in British Columbia are now 3.82%. An additional 10 million hectares will be classified as a management zone, and other area agreements may bring the total protected area/management area to 21 million hectares.

First Nations Land Claim Settlements:
The only historic treaties in British Columbia were Treaty 8 (the northeast of the province) and fourteen treaties on Vancouver Island. British Columbia has 51 First Nations and 197 Bands moving toward land claim treaties. As of 2001, 112 of the Bands have chosen to participate in the BC treaty process. The Nisga’a Treaty was formally ratified in 2002, covering a self-governing defined land area of 199,200ha and the Nass Wildlife Area (1,421,600ha) to be co-managed with the BC government.

Governments are obliged to consult with First Nations and the current provincial government has a strong focus on providing certainty for resource development. Twenty-six planning agreements and 66 economic agreements have been signed with First Nations since 1991.

Post-completion and On-Going issues:
Future strategic planning will be undertaken to facilitate sustainable resource development of resources, including mineral resources. Mineral reserves that prohibit claim staking are being reviewed across the province to remove any redundant or unnecessary reserves.

Government Departments, Agencies and Legislation, for further information:

Ministry of Agriculture and Lands www.gov.bc.ca/al/
(search under Ministries on government home page)

Muskwa Kechikan Management Area Act 1998

Integrated Land Management Bureau (LRMP’s) http://ilmbwww.gov.bc.ca/

Ministry of Environment (Parks and Protected Areas) www.gov.bc.ca/env/

(search under Ministries on government home page)
BC Parks www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/
Environmental Assessment Office www.eao.gov.bc.ca/

Ecological Reserve Act 1996
Environmental Assessment Act 2002
Environment and Land Use Act 1996 Environment Management Act 2005
Land Act 2003
Park Act 1996
Park (Regional) Act 1996
Protected Areas of British Columbia Act 2000
Wildlife Act 2003

Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources
(search under Ministries on government home page) www.gobv.bc.ca/empr/

Mineral Tenure Amendment Act 2004
Mineral Tenure Act Regulations 2004
Mineral Title Online Grid Regulation 2004
Mines Act 1996
Mineral Exploration Code 2000
Mineral Land Tax Act 1996
Mineral tax Act 2000
Mining Right of Way Act 1996

Non-Governmental Organizations:

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