An environmental activist is slamming a plan to allow a private tour company to build an interpretive glacier boardwalk in Jasper National Park, saying Parks Canada is failing to fulfill its conservation and protection mandate.
The multimillion-dollar project received the go-ahead Thursday by Environment Minister Peter Kent.
Eric Herbert-Daly of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society said the project isn't a good fit with the mountain wilderness park.
"The truth is Parks Canada's primary mandate is to protect the ecological integrity of our parks. It has got to be the highest level of conservation in the country that we have." Herbert-Daly told CTV News Channel.
"The truth is we don't know a lot about what the impacts to wildlife like mountain goats or big horned sheep will be...we know they travel through the park and we know they get threatened by things that are above them and we believe this type of threat has not been fully assessed."
The project will be operated by privately-owned Brewster Travel Canada, which has completed a two-year environmental assessment with Parks Canada. Kent said on Thursday that a public consultation process also took place, involving open houses and talks with aboriginal groups.
"Brewster Canada is a model corporation in Canada's mountain national parks," he said in Ottawa.
The company's "Glacier Discovery Walk" comprises a 400-metre trail with a glass-floored observation deck extending 30 metres into the Sunwapta Valley near Highway 93.
Once finished, the boardwalk is expected to be a large tourist draw and become an "iconic" destination for visitors, Kent said.
However, Herbert-Daly said the approval has gone ahead too quickly and once the project is completed it will be too late to go back.
"You can't assess this after the project has been built, you can't suddenly say 'Oh, actually there is an impact, let's take this project apart," he said.
"And the truth is we don't really know and there hasn't been enough study of this and the precautionary principal tells us we shouldn't go ahead when we're not sure."
Herbert-Daly said his organization respects Brewster and the work the company does to help visitors experience the mountains. However, they fundamentally disagree with the glacier walk concept.
Brewster defends project
Michael Hannan, president of Brewster Travel Canada, said the company has done its due diligence to ensure the project meets all necessary requirements.
"We are dedicated to sustainable development with every experience that we deliver, we've gone through a very comprehensive process over the past two years with Parks Canada, we've completed an environmental assessment that's been public for months now," he told CTV News Channel.
The project was delayed nine days ago after the park's superintendent, Greg Fenton, asked for more time to review the large number of comments the project has received.
Brewster's plan has been criticized as a step toward the privatization of Canada's national parks. While Parks Canada will retain ownership of the site, Brewster will operate the project.
