List of British Columbia Provincial Parks

The Canadian province of British Columbia maintains, inter alia, 643 Provincial Parks ( as of March 31, 2013), which nearly 21 million visits ( million nights around 2.5 million day visitors and approximately 18.2 ) can be recorded per year. Thus, the province has to Canadian national parks, the largest park system in the country. The provincial parks in British Columbia are managed by the state park headquarters BC Parks. The park management has to perform their duties on a budget of around 48 million C $ ( about 31 million C $ from tax revenues and approximately 17 million visitors from C $ charges ).

History and Administration

As the first Provincial Park Strathcona Provincial Park was established in 1911. Numerous other parks came over the next 100 years be added continuously.

BC Parks is subordinated to the Ministry of Environment of British Columbia and is responsible for the identification, preservation and management of a system of nature reserves, provincial parks and recreation areas throughout the province. Overall, BC parks are under 1030 protected areas. Almost 14 million hectares of Crown land are thus protected, which in turn corresponds to approximately 14.4 % of the area of the province.

Specifically, these are:

• 643 Provincial Parks 627 Class A Parks
• 2 Class B Parks
• 14 Class C Parks

In the last reporting period 2012/2013 30 protected areas have been restated, of which no fewer than 17 new parks in Class A. Overall, the protected area thus increased by about 878,000 hectares.

The Provincial Parks are intended for the protection of the natural environment, information and recovery of the population and education and scientific research. In the Provincial Parks distinction is made between three different categories. Park of the Class A crown land, which helps protect the environment among others. An economical use of the park is possible here if the rights were already helping the establishment of the park and do not affect the park in its recreational value. Some useful forms such as commercial forestry, mining or hydro extraction are excluded. Parks Class B differ in that will allow here compared to parks Class A a wider range of activities, provided they are not detrimental to the recreational value of the park. The Parks Class C differ from the parks of the other two classes fundamentally the fact that they are always by local organizations ( municipalities, cities, companies, ... ) operated. These parks are generally only small parks, local leisure facilities, usually picnic areas, deploy, and often connect to urban areas.

The Ecological Reserves protect the environment through preservation of general and special ecosystems and their flora and fauna. Ecological Reserves are used for long -term research and education and are open to a limited extent the general public.

Reserves category conservancies serve specific purposes: ( a) the protection and conservation of their biological diversity and the natural environment; ( b ) the preservation and maintenance of social, ceremonial and cultural use of the First Nations; ( c ) the protection and preservation of their recreational value for the population. Here is a limited economic use possible.

In protected areas category Protected area is normal crown land in which only certain uses are excluded (eg system of Forst-/Industrie-Straßen, construction of pipelines, power lines or communication facilities such as transmission towers ). What use is excluded, is determined by the competent authorities on the basis of the "Environment and Land Use Act".

The jurisdiction of BC Parks is mainly controlled by the Park Act, the Ecological Reserve Act and the Environment and Land Use Act.

Provincial Parks

Occasionally deviates in the column area in hectares specified size of the park on the indication on the park's website. In this case, reference is made to the specified size of the park at GeoBC because here is called the legal basis for the establishment of the park and its size.

Marine Provincial Park

Occasionally deviates the specified size of the park of the specification from the park's website. In this case, reference is made to the specified size of the park at GeoBC because here is called the legal basis for the establishment of the park and its size. The size specification for water area includes the intertidal zone.

Memorial Provincial Park

Former Christie Memorial Park was dissolved in 2013 and the area transferred to the jurisdiction of the District.