An increasingly important issue in today's world is sustainability. Since the start of the Industrial Revolution approximately 250 years ago, humans have had a huge impact upon the Earth’s natural environment. We now realize that unless we change our approach towards resource use and pollution, the Earth will be damaged beyond repair. These concerns have led to considerable research into sustainability.

The concept of sustainability refers to the use of the Earth’s resources in such a way that future generations may enjoy the same resources that we do. Sustainable use of resources would ensure that your children and their descendants will be able to have such things as clean air to breathe, forests to harvest, fish to catch, clean water to drink and good soil to plant crops in. It also would mean that no species would become extinct.

There are many different approaches that governments can follow as they strive to achieve sustainability. In 1885 the government of Canada began to show an interest in sustainability when it established Banff National Park. The park was established to protect an important resource, the mineral hot springs. Since that time, not only has Banff expanded, but the Canadian National Park system has grown to 39 terrestrial parks and 2 marine parks.

In the 1970s Parks Canada decided its long term goal was to create at least 1 park in each of Canada’s 48 natural regions. Thirty-nine of these natural regions are on land (terrestrial) and 9 are marine environments. Twenty-five of Canada’s terrestrial natural regions are presently represented in the national park system. Ten new parks have been announced, and these will represent 9 additional natural systems. This means that at least 5 additional terrestrial parks must yet be selected and at least 7 additional marine parks are needed.

Many Canadians think of our National Parks as wonderful spots to vacation, but they are much more. The Parks Canada Mandate shown below, refers not only to the tourism aspect of our parks, but also states that the parks are to ensure the ecological integrity of the natural environment for future generations.

Parks Canada Mandate:

On behalf of the people of Canada, we protect and present nationally significant examples of Canada’s natural and cultural heritage, and foster public understanding, appreciation and enjoyment in ways that ensure the ecological and commemorative integrity of these places for present and future generations. (Source: Parks Canada Web site – http://parkscanada.pch.gc.ca)

In this activity you will first examine and learn about the entire Canadian National Park system. Then you take a more detailed look at the national parks of the Atlantic provinces. At the end of the assignment, you will take an even more detailed look at one of Nova Scotia’s 2 national parks and also decide where a third park in Nova Scotia might be placed.

This activity will use a series of maps available on the Atlas of Canada Web site at: atlas.gc.ca

1. Print an outline map of Canada, available at atlas.gc.ca and select: Explore Our Maps » Reference Maps » Canada Outline » Coastlines and Boundaries of Canada Map

• Show the approximate size and position of each of Canada’s National Parks on the map. Be certain to include the marine parks.

To locate the parks, go to the Atlas of Canada Web site and select: Explore Our Maps » Reference Maps » Canada » National Parks Map

• Label each of the parks.

a. In what regions of Canada are the largest national parks?

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b. What are some possible reasons for the largest parks to be in areas other than the Atlantic provinces?

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2. One of the main purposes of the national parks is to ensure the survival of various life forms that are at risk of becoming extinct. With this in mind, compare the map you have drawn with the Species at Risk Map.

To access the Species at Risk Map, go to Explore our Maps and select Environment » Ecology » Threats to Ecosystem » Species at Risk Map. If you need to zoom into specific areas, click on the area of the national park that you are looking for or go to the Zoom to Region menu in the upper right corner, scroll down and select the desired province/territory.

• What do the following national parks tend to have in common in terms of species at risk?
  Kejimkujik, Kouchibouguac, La Mauricie, Georgian Bay Islands, Riding Mountain, Grasslands, Prince Albert and Elk Island

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3. Many people believe that the national park system is more important today than it ever was. Explain 2 different reasons to support this idea. Think in terms of the changing urban/rural make up of our population and the changing state of our environment.

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4. Most Canadians support the idea of national parks. We generally appreciate that large blocks of land, and thousands of species, are preserved and protected for our use and enjoyment, and for future generations. The creation of parks however, has caused some problems. For a variety of reasons, not everyone approves of these large blocks of land being converted to parks.

a. In some instances, people approve of the basic principle of creating parks, they simply suffer from the Not In My Backyard (NIMBY) syndrome. Explain what the NIMBY syndrome is.

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b. Why might these people not want a park in their backyard? How might it change their lives?

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c. Other problems may result from the parks being too successful. One of the goals of our national parks is to allow Canadians and others to visit these areas and to see the various natural areas of our country. Our national parks now host approximately 25 000 000 visitors each year. What problems would too many visitors cause?

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d. Large resource based businesses such as forestry or mining companies are sometimes upset with the creation of a park. How might the creation of a park cause problems for these types of businesses.

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e. There have been situations in the past where the federal government created parks in areas where people lived. Why would this have resulted in problems? (What if they let the people stay? What if they forced them to leave?)

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1. Fill in the chart below based upon the national parks located within the Atlantic provinces. The first 4 categories of information can be found at the Atlas of Canada Web site atlas.gc.ca in the Explore Our Maps section in the left menu panel: Reference Maps » Canada » Political Divisions (interactive) Map. Zoom In to the Atlantic region to see the national parks in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador. Click on the Get Info from Map button above the map, then click on the national parks on the map. A table will appear showing the information for the first four sections. There is also a link in the table to the specific park’s Web site and allow you to find information for the Best Known For category.

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National Parks Located within the Atlantic Provinces

2. Prince Edward Island is the only Canadian province or territory that does not have at least 2 national parks. Why do you think this is the case?

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3. Read the article Next, a marine park : New Brunswick’s West Isles could be the first from Canadian Geographic, February/March 1985. The article suggested that in the mid 1980s, many people believed that the West Isles area was very close to being designated as a marine park.

a. What was it about the West Isles area that made it very attractive to park planners?

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b. What were some of the obstacles that Parks Canada had to overcome in order to make the West Isles area into a park?

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4. Nineteen years after the article was published West Isles is still not a marine park. Read the short article Marine Protected Areas within the Bay of Fundy available at: www.fundyforum.com/archives/archive5/message523.htm to find out one person’s opinion on why the park was never established.

• Very briefly explain why the park was not established.

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Nova Scotia’s Kejimkujik National Park is one of only 3 national parks designated as a priority site in terms of species at risk. The Blanding’s Turtle can be found in the park, and Parks Canada is particularly concerned about this reptile. The number of turtles is relatively small and they are found in relatively few locations. Therefore, as a priority species, both the park and the turtles are receiving special attention from Parks Canada.

1. Return to the Kejimkujik National Park Web site by returning to the Political Divisions (interactive) Map using the link from Get Info from Map window. Once at the park site select Parks Canada’s Species at Risk Web site. Then select Priority Species from the left menu bar, and finally select the Blanding’s Turtle from the left menu bar.

• What is special about Nova Scotia’s Blanding’s Turtle and what is Parks Canada doing to save them?

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2. Selecting a New National Park for Nova Scotia

As you know, there are already 2 national parks in Nova Scotia. One is located in northern Cape Breton Island and the other is located in southwestern Nova Scotia. In this part of the activity you will be responsible for examining 4 possible sites for a new national park in Nova Scotia.

The map below shows the location of both Cape Bretons Highlands National Park and Kejimkujik National Park. It also shows 4 possible locations for a new park. (These are not 4 potential sites chosen by parks Canada, they are sites chosen purely for the sake of this simulation activity.)

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The Location of Both Cape Bretons Highlands National Park and Kejimkujik National Park

One of the criteria that Parks Canada uses to select sites for national parks is notability of the lifeforms and/or landscape of an area. They should be special, or in other words, not found in many other areas. By designating an area such as this as a national park, the lifeforms and/or landscape have a much greater chance of being preserved. There are other factors that parks Canada must also consider.

• What are 2 other factors that Parks Canada might consider prior to selecting a site for a new park? Briefly explain why these factors would be significant.

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3. Make a larger version of the chart below on your own paper. Use the Atlas of Canada maps listed to assist you in filling in the chart. For the Proximity to Halifax, Proximity to other parks, and the Population Density (are there many people living in the area) categories, you will have to use other sources, and you will have to decide how to interpret and use the information. The 2 existing parks are included in the chart, so you can easily keep track of what special features are protected in these parks.

If you are not certain what particular map from the Atlas of Canada is showing, you can click on the Read more about this map link located in the small text box on the map or at the end of abstract.

Fill in the chart in the manner that is best for you. You may wish to simply indicate a number for a particular variable for some categories (for example, 8 to 15 species at risk), and/or describe or list the variable for another category (for example, Till Blanket and Till Veneer).

To find the information you need for this activity, return to the Atlas of Canada Web site at atlas.gc.ca. In the Explore Our Maps section, select Environment » Land » Land Cover Map. Using the Zoom to Region pull-down menu above the maps select Nova Scotia. If you need to zoom in more in order to see a specific site, click on the desired spot on the map.

Follow the pathways listed below for each of the other 4 maps.

• Environment » Land » Surficial Materials Map
• Environment » Land » Plant Hardiness Zones Map
• Environment » Ecology » Ecology Components » Rare Plant Diversity Map
• Environment » Ecology » Threats to Ecosystem » Species at Risk Map

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Park Chart

a. Once you have filed in the chart, examine and analyze the information in it. Decide which of the 4 sites you believe would be the best one for a new national park. In addition to selecting what you believe is the best site, provide an explanation of why you made the choice that you did.

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There is no one right answer to the question of where the next national park in Nova Scotia should be. You may not agree with your classmates for various reasons. You might believe that 1 category is more important than another, or you might believe that the park should be far away from Halifax (the major source of population in Nova Scotia) while your classmates believe it should be close to the major population source. Make your decision based upon your beliefs, and be certain to justify your choice.

Once the rest of the class is through, spend some time in a small group discussing each other's choices. Explain to the other members of your group why you selected the site that you did.

b. Did anyone in your group convince you to change your decision? If so, what was it that made you change your mind?

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