Residents in the oilsands province want more land set aside for conservation, even if prioritized over industrial or resource extracting development, according to a new survey.
Bow Valley residents participated in a provide-wide environment survey that showed 88 per cent wanted more land set aside for wilderness protection.
Out of 1,300 surveyed throughout Alberta in seven regions, approximately one hundred of those were in the South Saskatchewan region, which includes Kananaskis Country and the MD of Bighorn.
The phone survey asked adults aged 18-64 in April/May 2015 about their outdoor values towards recreation, public lands and wilderness conservation.
“This study is the most comprehensive review of outdoor recreation in Alberta in certainly the last 25 years,” said Joe Pavelka, eco-tourism and outdoor leadership professor at Mount Royal University.
The survey, conducted by the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, said the information collected could be used in Alberta’s land-use planning process in both recreation planning and designation of protected areas.
In the South Saskatchewan region (SSR) portion of the survey, three-quarters said they participate in outdoor activities and 88 per cent want the government to set aside more wilderness where human activity is minimal.
Ninety-one per cent in SSR believed it is important to protect wilderness because these areas contribute to better air and water quality, while 83 per cent wanted wilderness areas left in their natural condition, even if these areas aren’t visited or beneficial to humans.
The SSR was “very predictable” in its results, said Pavelka, who was a volunteer advisor for the survey.
“We are highly influenced by the Bow Valley … we tend to like areas that are more wilderness, and lower on the motorized recreation,” said Pavelka.
“We have a population that’s highly motivated to go out and recreate. It makes sense to invest in those areas and amenities because you are serving local populations as well as international populations.”
The most popular activities in the SSR didn’t include off highway vehicles (OHV) and are more prone to activities such as hiking, camping, bicycling, skiing/snowboarding and snowshoeing.
“Care and attention has to be given to those elements of our quality of life,” said Pavelka. “I think politicians need to understand we like to recreate in the outdoors.”
Thirty-three per cent said there are too many places for on-land OHV such as motorbikes and ATVs, while 32 per cent think there aren’t enough areas for motorized water recreation activities such as boating and waterskiing.
In more northern parts of the province, such as the Upper Athabasca region, it is “much different,” with more OHV-based activities valued.
From a tourism point of view, Pavelka said the survey results “speaks very well” to developing more opportunities for outdoor recreation.
“What we sell to the rest of the world needs to be something that we also value,” said Pavelka.
At the Delta Lodge in Kananaskis, visitors are mainly coming to enjoy the outdoors in non-OHV recreation, said Glenn Iles, director, sales and marketing.
“I would suggest very, very few (if any) of our guests are coming out to do any sort of motorized sport such as ATV or snowmobile. It is simply not available to do in the area,” Iles said in an email.
One statistic that surprised Pavelka was the Alberta-wide thought towards protecting land.
Ninety-four per cent of Albertans surveyed believe that protecting water, plants and animals should be a priority over industrial or resource development in wilderness areas.
“I was expecting SSR to say, ‘yes’ and anything in the north to be much less,” said Pavelka. “I’m surprised, pleasantly, it was so clear across the board.”
