| Chapter 5. The Need for Active Management and Restoration |
| (5-1) We recommend that Parks Canada formally reaffirm that active management is an important part of conserving ecological integrity in all national parks. Active management can be used as a fundamental conservation tool as long as the following conditions are met ... |
Parks Canada currently pursues active management where necessary and where resources permit. For example, Point Pelee and Jasper have been addressing invasive alien species and many parks participate in species reintroduction programs under the RENEW (Recovery of Nationally Endangered Wildlife) program. The current policy states that when park ecosystems have been seriously altered by human activities and natural processes alone cannot achieve restoration objectives, intervention may be warranted. |
DONE. The new Canada National Parks Act states that "maintenance or restoration of ecological integrity...shall be the first priority..." in park management. Active management is the cornerstone of the implementation strategy that has been prepared for government consideration as part of the normal budget process and is embedded in the revised Parks Canada Guide to Management Planning. The extent and timing of increased active management measures are subject to the availability of new funding. |
| (5-2) We recommend that, in appropriate parks, Parks Canada actively manage to restore fire, within an adaptive management framework, to 50 per cent of the long-term average, using the following means ... |
A national fire management program is already in effect in national parks. To date, Parks Canada has achieved 10 percent of long-term historical average. |
UNDER WAY - FUNDING. Measures to address this recommendation have been included in the implementation strategy that has been prepared for government consideration as part of the normal budget process. The extent and timing of implementation of these measures are subject to the availability of new funding. |
| (5-3) We recommend that Parks Canada be active in species restoration and that Parks Canada must have the required new resources. |
Parks Canada is a full and active participant in CESCC (the Ministerial-level Canadian Endangered Species Conservation Council), RENEW and COSEWIC (the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada), and in the efforts, led by Environment Canada, to further develop the national strategy for the recovery of species at risk. Current species restoration efforts are undertaken on a park-by-park basis in the context of park management plans. An Agency-wide program is being developed to respond to system-wide issues involving species at risk. |
UNDER WAY - FUNDING. In August 2000, Parks Canada was allocated $14.1 million over five years to carry out its responsibilities in the context of the Accord for the Protection of Endangered Species in Canada and the proposed Species at Risk Act. Eighteen new positions will be staffed. Initial projects will focus on leading or participating in the development of recovery strategies for all threatened or endangered species that occur in national parks, implementing recovery actions for a number of endangered and threatened species, and public education and awareness for species-at-risk issues. This is Phase 1. Additional resources will be required to fully achieve protection of species at risk. |
