Parks Canada appears to be defending Brewster Travel Canada’s proposal for a multi-million dollar commercial glass-floored viewing platform over Sunwapta Valley on the Icefields Parkway.
Critics say it’s inappropriate for the federal agency to defend a private company’s proposal before it has even been approved, but Parks officials say they issued a news release to ‘set the record straight.’
Officials say they wanted to clarify statements in an online petition, which they say were inaccurate, particularly over privatization of public lands and an international company profiting off national parks.
“We felt there was some misinformation in the petition upon which people are basing their decision on whether to sign it or send a separate email,” said Greg Fenton, superintendent of Jasper National Park.
“We felt it important to provide the facts and tell a little bit more of a full story than what’s on that website. We felt statements of privatization and profiting were not totally accurate in the context of what’s being proposed.”
The controversial petition, on the Avaaz website, initially contained some inaccuracies, such as that the plan would give the company the right to charge entry into Jasper National Park. Petition organizers this week said they regretted the mistakes and made changes to the petition.
However, there were statements in the petition Parks Canada claimed were fiction, but they are actually more philosophical statements than factually incorrect.
Parks Canada is being criticized for issuing the news release amid concerns it is biased and appears to set the stage for approval of the development. A decision on the project is expected by the end of the month.
Opponents say Parks appears to be steering away from key issues of concern, which they argue is that the development is unwanted by the public, unnecessary and inappropriate.
Ben Gadd has voiced strong public opposition to the development and said it’s disappointing the Avaaz petition contained inaccuracies, but even more disappointing that Parks went to great lengths to defend the proposal, rather than let Brewster defend its own development.
“I have never seen a statement like this in the form of a press release from a government agency that’s supposed to impartially protect our national parks so obviously biased in favour of a private interest,” said Gadd.
“It is really too bad there’s errors on the petition, but what’s doubly too bad is that Parks Canada came out swinging on this, trying to point out the errors, and therefore, defacto defending the proponent.”
Michael Hannan, the Banff-based president of Brewster Travel Canada, could not be reached for comment by deadline, but has said the project will enhance the area at the Tangle Ridge viewpoint.
“The portion that we are talking about remains a free viewing point that’s actually enhanced with interpretative signage,” he recently told CTV. “I don’t think that is being privatized at all. I think it’s being improved by the private sector.”
The original petition was started by a Jasper environmental group in mid-December to ask the Harper government to turn down the Glacier Discovery Walk proposal.
That petition did not contain factual errors, but had philosophical statements against a multi-national company (Brewster is owned by Viad Corp.) wanting to build a commercial tourist attraction in a Canadian national park.
The petition was taken over last week by Avaaz. By the Outlook’s deadline, close to 130,000 people had signed it.
Brewster’s proposal consists of a 300-metre walkway overlooking Sunwapta Valley, with a glass-floored lookout platform projecting almost 30 m out over the valley.
At present, the viewpoint is a 500 m long pullout on the west side of the Parkway, with public access and parking for about 60 vehicles.
Under the proposal, access will be via free public shuttle buses from the Icefields Centre about 6.5 kilometres to the south, or an 800 m walking path from Tangle Falls.
From there, the public would pay an admission fee to go on the guided interpretative walk and platform.
Public parking would be available outside operating hours and off-season.
Green Party leader Elizabeth May waded into the debate this week.
“I was shocked to learn that a private American company would be allowed to privatize a viewpoint in Jasper National Park,” she said.
“This project sets a damaging precedent of using our parks for profit and in the process putting sensitive species at risk.”
But in the news release, Parks says the the proposal “meets a vision for the Icefields Parkway to provide visitors with quality experiences and learning opportunities” to connect them to the park.
