Banff National Park of Canada

Park Management

Banff National Park Management Plan

Introduction to the Amended Management Plan
July 2007 NEW!

The current management plan for Banff National Park of Canada was approved in 1997and amended in 2004 to include a Human Use Management Strategy.

This amendment completes the Human Use Management Strategy by incorporating the component for the Lands Adjacent to the Town of Banff (in Section 5.6.4.3).

Section 11.8 is a new section, providing the environmental assessment of this amendment.

All sections of the 2004 amended management plan remain in force.

Foreword

Canada’s national historic sites, national parks and national marine conservation areas offer Canadians from coast-to-coast-to-coast unique opportunities to experience and understand our wonderful country. They are places of learning, recreation and fun where Canadians can connect with our past and appreciate the natural, cultural and social forces that shaped Canada

From our smallest national park to our most visited national historic site to our largest national marine conservation area, each of these places offers Canadians and visitors unique opportunities to experience Canada. These places of beauty, wonder and learning are valued by Canadians - they are part of our past, our present and our future.

Our goal is to ensure that each of these special places is conserved.

We see a future in which these special places will continue to contribute in meaningful ways to Canadians’ appreciation, understanding and enjoyment of Canada, to the economic well-being of communities, and to the vitality of our society.

Our vision is to build a culture of heritage conservation in Canada by offering Canadians exceptional opportunities to experience our natural and cultural heritage, opportunities that celebrate our protected heritage.

These values form the foundation of the amended management plan for Banff National Park of Canada. I offer my appreciation to the many thoughtful Canadians who helped to develop this plan, particularly to our dedicated team from Parks Canada, and to all those local organizations and individuals who have demonstrated their good will, hard work, spirit of co-operation and extraordinary sense of stewardship.

In this same spirit of partnership and responsibility, I am pleased to approve this Banff National Park of Canada Management Plan Amendment.

1.0 Introduction

1.1 Banff National Park Management Plan

The National Parks Act requires each national park to have a management plan. These plans reflect the policies and legislation of the Department and are prepared in consultation with Canadians. They are reviewed every five years. This management plan will guide the overall direction of Banff National Park for the next 10 to 15 years and will serve as a framework for all planning within the park.

In 1988, the federal minister responsible for Parks Canada tabled the first management plans for Banff, Jasper, Kootenay and Yoho National Parks in Parliament. These plans were the result of an eight-year planning exercise involving nation-wide public consultation and in-depth analysis of the social, economic, and environmental conditions facing each park. Since that time, these four parks have addressed many of the plans' priorities and many significant changes have taken place. A review of the park management plans began in 1993. This review was intended to make sure that the plans continue to provide sound guidance for the managers of this important World Heritage Site.

This revised management plan reflects the many initiatives and changes that have taken place since 1988. One of the most significant of these was the creation of the Banff-Bow Valley Task Force in March of 1994. The Task Force was asked to prepare recommendations concerning the long-term management of the area that would maintain ecological integrity while allowing appropriate levels of development and continued access for visitors.

The independent Task Force was made up of five people from the academic and private sectors with expertise in ecological sciences, tourism, public policy and management. Public involvement was a critical component of the Task Force's work. A Round Table, with representatives from fourteen sectors with an interest in the valley, met and crafted a vision, principles and values to guide the management of the Bow Valley and Banff National Park. This management plan has incorporated many of the Round Table's recommendations.

In October 1996, the Banff-Bow Valley Task Force submitted more than 500 recommendations to the Minister responsible for Parks Canada. An Advisory Group, appointed by the Minister and chaired by Parks Canada's Assistant Deputy Minister, assessed how the department would address these recommendations and how they would be incorporated into the park management plan.

Other developments that have contributed to this management plan include:

• amendments to the National Parks Act (1988);
   
• Canada's Green Plan (1990);
   
• the Town of Banff Incorporation Agreement between the governments of Canada and Alberta (1990);
   
• the Strategic Framework to Sustain the Integrity of Ecosystems (Parks Canada 1992);
   
• Biodiversity Convention (1992);
   
• Parks Canada: Guiding Principles and Operational Policies (1994);
   
• the Banff-Bow Valley Study Round Table Summary Report (1996);
   
• Banff-Bow Valley: At the Crossroads (1996) - the Banff-Bow Valley Study's Summary and Technical Reports; and
   
• the Banff-Bow Valley Study Implementation Advisory Group.

These initiatives, legislated changes and studies, have strengthened Parks Canada's commitment to preserving park resources in a way that integrates ecological, social and economic values.

1.2 The Town of Banff

The Town of Banff, administered by the federal government for more than a century, was incorporated as an Alberta municipality in 1990. Although the Town is administered much like comparable communities elsewhere in Alberta, it remains subject to the National Parks Act and regulations. The federal government is the ultimate authority on questions of planning, land use, development, and environmental issues. One restriction is that the Town cannot expand beyond legislated boundaries.

In keeping with the Incorporation Agreement, the Assistant Deputy Minister worked with the Mayor of the Town of Banff to address the recommendations in the Banff-Bow Valley Study that relate to the town.

1.3 Jasper, Kootenay and Yoho National Parks

Banff National Park shares its boundaries with Jasper National Park in Alberta, and Kootenay and Yoho National Parks in British Columbia. These four parks are an important core protected area of the greater Central Rockies Ecosystem and, along with three adjacent provincial parks in British Columbia, make up the UNESCO Rocky Mountain World Heritage Site. Plans will be completed for these parks utilizing appropriate key directions arising out of the Banff National Park Management Plan.