Parks Canada has plans in the works to build a group RV campground at the day-use picnic area at the Jasper Airfield.
The organization has said almost nothing publicly about the plans, but correspondence between Parks staff and the Jasper Environmental Association reveals that the organization is considering a campground at the airfield to meet the demands of “groups travelling together with a mixed array of camping units.”
In an email sent to JEA representative Jill Seaton Oct. 20, 2014, Visitor Experience Manager Pam Clark outlined Parks’ motivations behind considering the campground.
“Jasper National Park has been exploring options for developing a group RV campground, as part of the management plan commitment to improve the camping offer and ‘invest in infrastructure for first-time campers, recreational vehicles users and those seeking hassle-free camping,’” she wrote, adding that Parks has identified “the lack of and need for a group RV site to meet demands for groups travelling together with a mixed array of camping units.”
Clark’s email also stated that seven locations had been assessed as part of that process, and that the airport picnic site was the strongest candidate, “as it best meets the experiential, and the ecological and cultural integrity criteria.”
The site is a popular day-use picnic area in the summer, and in the past Parks has issued permits for groups to use the space for functions like weddings and parties.
According to the JEA, in 1999 and 2000 Parks made changes to the area that created more grassland. Large areas of mature and over-mature trees were burned, and to the south of the airfield, the “Jackladder” waterfront site was closed, after its access road was seeded.
In her email, Clark wrote that Parks identified the area for its proposed campground because “most other sites reviewed did not meet important ecological integrity and experiential criteria, including having the potential to create impediments for wildlife movement and displace wildlife from their habitat.”
Clark went on to write that Parks recognized it will need to take actions to eliminate vehicle access onto the grasslands surrounding the airfield and raise awareness about the importance of the grassland eco-site.
In an email dated Jan. 8, 2015, Parks’ Chief Executive Officer Alan Latourelle told the JEA that Parks Canada is “currently at an early conceptual stage of developing a detailed proposal internally with the involvement of subject area experts.”
He wrote that this is “routine practice,” and that Parks will “provide an opportunity for public feedback at the appropriate time.”
“The next step is to initiate and conduct an impact analysis under Parks Canada’s environmental impact analysis process. Once completed, the Agency will share the draft environmental impact analysis with interested members of the public and its Aboriginal partners.”
The exact timeline for that process remains unclear, and Parks did not provide a spokesperson to answer such questions by the Fitzhugh’s press deadline.
Trevor Nichols
[email protected]
