Tories open Kananaskis for more development

Scott Harris, AFL Staff

A draft plan released by the Provincial Government is calling for new commercial development in Kananaskis Country, just months after the area hosted the 2002 G8 Summit.

The plan for the Evan Thomas Provincial Recreation Area, located at the heart of the Kananaskis Valley, calls for expansion of the Nakiska ski hill, summer use of the hill, and new commercial developments in the area.

It also calls for the expansion of current commercial facilities, including the golf course and the Delta and Kananaskis Lodges, the site of last June’s G8 Summit.

The Evan Thomas area is one of the most important ecological regions in Kananaskis Country, and is home to bighorn sheep, elk, wolves and grizzly bears, all of which may be impacted by increased development in the area.

Only seven months ago, conservation groups in Alberta, including the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society and Wildcanada.net, warned that the international exposure brought to the area by the G8 Summit would lead to pressure for development in the valley.

"The Castle Wilderness, the Bighorn Wildland and Kananaskis Country are critical for protecting Alberta’s watersheds, wildlife, recreational opportunities, as well as shoring up our existing ecotourism efforts," Dave Poulton, Executive Director of the Calgary/Banff Chapter of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society said at the conclusion of the G8 Summit.

"More development in these areas, as a result of the exposure from the G8 meeting, could devastate Alberta’s environment."

While praising the Federal Government for not building any new structures in the Kananaskis Valley for the Summit, conservationists now accuse the provincial government of moving in the opposite direction for Kananaskis.

"The Federal Government took extraordinary measures to make sure immediate impact of the Summit was minimal, but it seems the Provincial Government is taking advantage of international exposure to open Kananaskis up to more development in this sensitive and ecologically important area," says Poulton.

In May of 1999, Premier Ralph Klein announced that there would be no further large scale development in the area, but now justifies the new plans by citing public demand for hotel accommodations.

Government statistics show that at least 1.4 million visitors per year visit this small area, a number that increases by 8% per annum. Despite this, conservations point to the government’s own figures which show that occupancy rates hover in the 55-58% range.

"There has been a constant pressure from a faction within the Alberta Government to commercialize Kananaskis, and that faction is taking full advantage of the circumstances following the G8," Poulton says.