Latest news with #Pacheedaht
Daily Mail
29-05-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Concerns for Canada's park closures for indigenous reconnection
Canadian nature lovers are outraged by a government decision to shutter beauty spots to the public so they can be used exclusively by native groups to 'reconnect' with the land. Outdoors enthusiasts have slammed the government of British Columbia for closing Joffre Lakes Park and its turquoise waters for more than 100 days in peak season to regular taxpayers. The same goes for the 24-hour closure of Botanical Beach on Vancouver Island to nonindigenous people, so members of the Pacheedaht First Nation could have it to themselves. Critics have taken to social media to slam the closures as unfair and 'apartheid, Canadian-style,' with native groups getting special treatment as everyone else is sidelined. The province's Ministry of Environment and Parks has called the closures part of a 'path of reconciliation' with native people. The controversy follows a blockbuster Canadian election that was overshadowed by US President Donald Trump 's push to make Canada a '51st state' of America. The vast country has been convulsed by its own culture wars after a decade of former prime minister Justin Trudeau's ultra-liberal rule. Caroline Elliott (pictured), director of the Public Land Use Society, a campaign group, slammed the closure of Joffre Lakes as unfair in a recent post on X that's been viewed 172,000 times and generated hundred of comments. 'It's divisive, it sets a terrible precedent, and it's just plain wrong,' Elliott says in the video. 'What it isn't is complicated. BC's parks belong to all British Columbians.' Angry social media users commented on the video, saying the shuttering was 'discriminatory,' and amounted to 'identity politics,' 'racial segregation,' and even an 'apartheid, Canadian-style.' 'These are provincial parks, not tribal reserves,' posted one user. 'Everyone pays for them. Everyone maintains them. Everyone should be welcome.' Joffre Lakes park has been closed in peak season so that the Líl̓wat Nation and the N'Quatqua First Nation can have exclusive access to its turquoise lakes, streams, and forests annually since 2023. Each year, the closures have grown longer, leaving some worried that one of the province's busiest parks would be shuttered to nonindigenous residents permanently in the future. The closure lasted for only 39 days in 2023, but grew to 60 days in 2024 and more than 100 days this year, says Elliott. The ministry in a statement to the Daily Mail said it was 'important to give time and space for the land to rest, while ensuring the Nations can use this space as they always have. We have built a strong relationship with the Lil'wat and N'Quatqua to make sure the natural and cultural values of the park are protected,' said the statement. 'We continue to work with the Nations to ensure opportunities exist for people to access the park in a responsible and sustainable way.' Back in 2023, the closure was not initiated by the officials – native groups unilaterally decided to deny access to other residents so they could practice their hunting and fishing traditions there. A statement from the group at the time said they were 'asserting our Title and Rights to our shared unceded territory to take this time to harvest and gather our resources within our territories.' During last year's closure, Líl̓wat Nation Chief Dean Nelson said the park was sacred to his community. 'We are striving to reintroduce our community to an area where they have been marginalized,' Nelson told CBC. 'The time and space created by these closures will allow our youth, elders and all Líl̓wat citizens to practise their inherent rights while reconnecting with the land.' The day-long closure of Botanical Beach park on Vancouver Island and its beloved tidal pools on May 25 has also raised concerns. In a statement, the parks department said the area was once home to the Pacheedaht, but that the area's growing popularity made it 'challenging' for members of the group to access it. Elsewhere in British Columbia, federally run recreation areas have also been closed to the public, with authorities also citing cultural concerns. They include parts of the Gulf Islands National Park Reserve and Parts of Pacific Rim National Park Reserve. Elliot's campaign group says the closures set a worrying precedent. In the case of Joffre Lakes park, native groups have only asserted land rights, but they've not been established in court, she says. The hiking enthusiast said it was worrying that 'mere assertion of title confers the right to prohibit public access to public spaces. What would prevent more closures like this, not just in other parks, but in relation to any other public lands?' she added.
National Post
22-05-2025
- Politics
- National Post
FIRST READING: Non-Indigenous visitors being turned away from B.C. public parks
Article content First Reading is a Canadian politics newsletter curated by the National Post's own Tristin Hopper. To get an early version sent directly to your inbox, sign up here. Article content Article content TOP STORY Article content In what critics say is a template of things to come, B.C. has begun closing public parks to non-Indigenous residents citing 'cultural concerns.' Article content This week, the B.C. government announced that Botanical Beach — a popular spot along the Juan de Fuca Marine Trail — would be closed for 24 hours over the May 24 weekend 'to provide time, space and privacy for members of the Pacheedaht First Nation to harvest marine resources and reconnect with an important part of their territory.' Article content Article content This follows on a series of similar closure of Joffre Lakes Provincial Park, one of the busiest recreational spots in the province. Article content Article content From April 25 until May 16, non-Indigenous usage of the park is banned, and 'more temporary closures are anticipated' reads an April 25 bulletin by B.C.'s Ministry of the Environment and Parks. Article content The closures are to 'provide time and space for members of the Líl̓wat Nation and N͛Quatqua to reconnect with the land and carry out cultural and spiritual practices,' it reads. Article content The first, in 2023, occurred when the nearby Líl̓wat and N'Quatqua First Nations unilaterally barred public access to the park for more than five weeks. Article content 'In this time of reconciliation, Lil'wat Nation and N'Quatqua First Nation are asserting our Title and Rights to our shared unceded territory to take this time to harvest and gather our resources within our territories,' read a statement telling the B.C. public they would be barred access to the park from Aug. 23 'until National Truth and Reconciliation Day' (Sept. 30). Article content Article content When the Joffre Lakes closure was given official government sanction in 2024, B.C. Environment Minister George Heyman notably stressed that the action would not be a template for future closures of parks to non-Indigenous users. Article content Article content 'There is no universal policy,' Heyman said at the time, adding that Joffre Lakes was only being closed because of a 'distinction-based approach.' Article content In a statement to National Post, the B.C. Ministry of Environment and Parks said 'these temporary closures represent a critical step forward on the path of reconciliation and an important building block for future conversations on shared stewardship, park management and access.' Article content In addition to the Botanical Beach and Joffre Lakes shutdowns, B.C. has also seen a series of federally run recreation areas closed to public usage, with authorities also citing cultural concerns.
CBC
29-01-2025
- Politics
- CBC
B.C. extends deferral of old growth logging in Vancouver Island's Fairy Creek watershed, again
The British Columbia government has once again extended an order deferring old-growth logging in the Fairy Creek watershed on Vancouver Island. The deferral was initially made in 2021 at the request of local First Nations and against the backdrop of ongoing protests and arrests, which have been cited as among the largest in Canadian history. It has already been extended in the past, with the most recent deferral set to expire on Feb. 1., 2025, at the request of the Pacheedaht First Nation, whose territories encompass the entire watershed. Forests Minister Ravi Parmar says the B.C. NDP government is continuing talks with the Pacheedaht in order to "build a strong, robust and sustainable forest sector for the next 100 years." The deferral protects just under 12 square kilometres of timber on Crown land within the watershed. When it announced the initial deferral in 2021, the province said the postponement to old-growth logging would allow Pacheedaht titleholders time to build resource-stewardship plans for their lands. Almost 1,200 opponents of old-growth logging were arrested at Fairy Creek after an injunction preventing interference with harvesting operations was issued and then extended in 2021, prompting then-B.C. Green Leader Sonia Furstenau to call the protest the largest act of civil disobedience in Canadian history. The B.C. Prosecution Service has since withdrawn contempt charges against several of those accused of violating the injunction and is expected to drop more charges after a B.C. Supreme Court judge ruled RCMP made arrests without properly informing demonstrators of the injunction's details. The protection of Fairy Creek was part of the most recent co-operation agreement signed by the B.C. NDP and B.C. Green Party in December, following last year's provincial election.
