B.C. is creating a new permitting hub for adventure tourism operators to help them navigate the network of authorizations they need to run their businesses.
The plan would initially include heli-ski, cat-ski (tracked-vehicle-based backcountry skiing), heli-assisted guiding, and snowmobile tour operators, but later be expanded to other adventure tourism companies.
Due to the size of land tenures involved in these operations, the permitting review process can be complex and involve multiple ministries.
But environmental groups are hesitant about the expansion of ski tenures without a corresponding commitment to increase information sharing to aid in wildlife habitat protection.
“[Operators] can step up to the plate and share data and be better at mitigating impacts with wildlife, particularly things like caribou and wolverine,” said Eddie Petryshen of the conservation group Wildsight. “We know there are potential impacts there, and there are also ways to mitigate those impacts.”
The new plan would provide one-window permitting for operators to engage with a team of government officials to review applications through a new “adventure tourism hub.” This is similar to the model the province uses for housing and electrification projects.
Dave Butler, who represents the industry group HeliCat Canada, appeared alongside several government ministers to make the announcement. He said his members are required to navigate a “complex pathway” to obtain tenures, and this is a “practical and welcome” solution.
He also says this will help ensure the balance of environmental and economic outcomes.
Water, Lands and Resource Stewardship Minister Randene Neill acknowledged that the government faces a dichotomy as it attempts to promote economic growth while protecting the environment.
“It’s tricky,” she said. “It’s not a simple process.”
She hopes this hub will ensure that the people evaluating a company’s permit application have a deep understanding of the region and issues involved.
Petryshen wants the province to create a data hub and require HeliCat to share flight data to aid research into the impact on caribou herds.
He says studies have shown that during the COVID-19 pandemic, when heli-skiing was shut down, these endangered caribou herds expanded their range.
Many of the areas favoured by backcountry ski operators are also the high elevation zones relied on by caribou and wolverine.
As a resident of the Kootenay region, Petryshen said he is well aware of the economic importance of these operations to local communities, but that there is a point at which local environments and other recreationalists are impacted. More data would help determine where this limit is.
“In a lot of places, we are at the point where we need to start questioning whether we’re exceeding thresholds for sensitive species,” he said.