Wildland Zones

B.C. flouting Canadian, international standards on protected areas, says report

B.C. flouting Canadian, international standards on protected areas, says report

The B.C. government claims it protects nearly 20 per cent of the province's land base as sanctuaries for biodiversity, but a new report says it has abused a key designation to “falsely inflate” its progress. The report, which was jointly produced between the environmental law group Ecojustice and the B.C. chapter of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, examined Old Growth Management Areas, Wildlife Habitat Areas, and Wildland Zones. Together, they account for nearly all of what the province claims as “other conserved” areas, a designation B.C. uses more than any other province in Canada.