What's Wrong with This Picture?

JUNE 2015

What’s wrong with this picture? Editor: CONTENTS Ian Urquhart JUNE 2015 • VOL. 23, NO. 3 Graphic Design: Doug Wournell B Des, ANSCAD Printing: Features Association News Colour printing and process by Topline Printing 4 The Sky Shouldn’t Be The Limit: 24 Anna Caddel… Winner of AWA’s Cattle in the Castle Calgary Youth Science Fair Award

7 Ranchers and Wolves: A Better Way 25 AWA Kids’ Camp Preview 11 The Inside Scoop: Looking Back at 26 Another Tremendous Success: the 2014 Martha Kostuch Lecture AWA’s 24th Annual Climb and Run For Wilderness 14 An Ecologist’s Optimism On the Proposed Introduction of Bison to Wilderness Watch Banff National Park 16 Lessons from the Crowsnest Pass 28 Updates BearSmart Program Departments ALBERTA WILDERNESS 19 Between the lines: Grizzly Recovery ASSOCIATION 20 Former Senior Parks Canada 30 Reader’s Corner “Defending Wild Alberta through Officials Speak Out Against Lake Awareness and Action” Louise Ski Area Expansion Events Alberta Wilderness Association is a charitable non-government Thinking Mountains: 22 organization dedicated to the An Interdisciplinary Initiative Summer Events 31 completion of a protected areas donation, call 403-283-2025 or Cover Photo contribute online at AlbertaWilderness.ca. No, the cover photo isn’t a product of Photoshop. Jim Wild Lands Advocate is published bi- monthly, 6 times a year, by Alberta Lucas took this photo of cows Wilderness Association. The opinions resting during their ascent expressed by the authors in this of Whistle Mountain in the publication are not necessarily those South Castle Valley. Windsor of AWA. The editor reserves the right Ridge and Castle Mt. Peak are to edit, reject or withdraw articles in the background. and letters submitted. PHOTO: © J. LUCAS Please direct questions and comments to: 403-283-2025 • [email protected] Featured Artist: Philip Kanwischer Subscriptions to the WLA are $30 per Philip is a wildlife and fine art photographer based in Calgary Alberta. He studied year. To subscribe, call 403-283-2025 at The Alberta College of Art and Design and through the course of experimentation or see AlbertaWilderness.ca. and influence from the environments that surround him he has honed his style and process. The majority of his work is rooted in representations of the wild. As a conservationist much of his work is a commentary on human influence and the fragility of nature. His use of models subverts the vulnerability we traditionally associate with the animals we take for granted. An intimate interaction between the subject and the animal is cast, equalizing them. His process is to fully immerse himself in nature, forming a connection and understanding with his surroundings that can only be unlocked with time. Patience is crucial. Art cannot be rushed, just as nature cannot be rushed or controlled. He sees each image as a triumph and as capturing a magical moment that cannot be predicted or replicated, each interaction with an animal is highly personal. He elevates these photos post-production using Box 6398, Station D, intricate compositing to reinterpret a wild image. Ultimately he wants to convey Calgary, Alberta T2P 2E1 the beautiful land we live in and encourage people to have respect for the wild 403-283-2025 and its beautiful inhabitants. Please visit Philip’s website at philipkanwischer.com Toll-free 1-866-313-0713 www.AlbertaWilderness.ca AWA respects the privacy of members. Lists are not sold or traded in any manner. AWA is a federally registered charity [email protected] and functions through member and donor support. Tax-deductible donations may be made to AWA at Box 6398 Station D, Calgary, AB T2P 2E1. Ph: 403-283-2025 Fax: 403-270-2743 E-mail: [email protected] www.AlbertaWilderness.ca ISSN 1192-6287 Fair Questions

Familiar with Monty Python’s “Flying petroleum companies pay for their work More fair questions are raised by Jim Sheep” sketch? It’s the one where a passerby, on our public lands, Crown lands leased to Pissot in his report on a talk about the US noticing sheep in a rather peculiar location, ranchers. How much of this money should grizzly recovery efforts that Chris Servheen asks a farmer: “Why are they up in the trees?” ranchers get? Should any of the tens of delivered during May’s Black Bear Workshop “A fair question,” replies the farmer, “and millions paid in such compensation go into in Canmore. What should we learn from the one that in recent weeks has been much a Rural Conservation and Stewardship fund? American experience? on my mind.” It turns out that Harold, a Is it possible to ranch in predator-friendly Fair questions abound too in the open clever sheep, is responsible. Harold, you see, ways? That’s the question animating Carolyn letter reprinted here from former senior “realized the sheep’s life consists of standing Campbell’s examination of the pioneering Parks Canada officials about the Lake Louise around for a few months and then being efforts of Joe Engelhart and Louise Ski Area Guidelines; Niall Fink tells us eaten” – a pretty depressing realization for Liebenberg. What will it take to nudge this these questions were plentiful during the an ambitious sheep like Harold. Learning to vital Alberta industry in that direction? Thinking Mountains 2015 conference in fly is how Harold and his followers plan to In a similar vein Sean Nichols looks at Jasper; Brittany Verbeek offers a preview of escape the stew pot. the very successful BearSmart program in what this summer’s AWA kid’s camp will Escaping the slaughterhouse – I could the Crowsnest Pass. Can we manage bear invite the next generation of conservationists sympathize with such an explanation for behaviour in ways that reduce the number of to consider asking in their search for a more the mountaineering cattle featured on this bear kills, the number of bear relocations, the sustainable life. month’s cover. Alas, that’s not the case. As number of bear encounters, and the amount Here’s hoping that in the August issue we’ll Nigel Douglas points out in his article on of time spent dealing with bear complaints? be reporting on some fair answers to these cows in the Castle the cattle are in the alpine The Crowsnest BearSmart program speaks and other fair questions AWA has posed to because government allows it. The alpine very well to how we might better share the industry and government. environment is about as well adapted to cope land with wildlife. -Ian Urquhart, Editor with grazing cows as sheep are to flight. Why Last issue we introduced you to Lu Carbyn’s does the government allow cattle into the reservations about trying to reintroduce front range canyons of the Castle? Seems like bison into Banff National Park. This month a fair question to me. we offer you a more optimistic ecological My summary of former Progressive appraisal by Dennis Jorgensen who works on Conservative minister Ted Morton’s 2014 bison issues for the World Wildlife Fund and Martha Kostuch lecture invites you to the International Union for the Conservation consider asking a question or two about of Nature. Is bison reintroduction a good who gets to pocket the compensation fees idea? Tell us what you think. The Sky Shouldn’t Be The Limit: Cattle in the Castle

By Nigel Douglas

he Front Range Canyons of Draft South Saskatchewan Regional Plan: Castle Wildland Provincial Park southwestern Alberta’s Castle re- High Rock Wildland Peigan Provincial Park gion are special places; deeply-cut 5 4 3 2 1 Timber T Limit "B" valleys run in parallel from the high moun-

l d tains westwards out towards the prairies. m a n

Atlas PLRA 22 R X i v Hiking up one of the canyons takes you on e Chinook PRA XMcGillivray PLRA r Livingstone Range Chinook Provincial 8 Wildland a steady and continuous climb from the sub- Park Expansion 40 Provincial Park Coleman alpine valley bottoms, through increasing- Oldman Dam Provincial d Lake Crowsnest Coleman PRA Recreation Area RA ly-scattered trees until you emerge into the Lake PRA 510 Te nt Mt. X Blairmore glorious open vistas of the high alpine. PLRA 3A Cr Lundbreck ow s Falls PRA Castle Wildland n e Take a look at a map of the Castle Wildland s t 7 Provincial Park R i v Cowley e Provincial Park as proposed in the South Sas- r 3 katchewan Regional Plan (dark green on the map), and the eastern edge of the park shows Pincher Lynx Creek Flats Creek er a series of (paler green)“fingers” of land en- Public Land Riv le st Recreation Area a croaching into the protected Wildland. These X C 6 507 Lynx Creek PRA are the Front Range Canyons, which are all Castle Falls PRA Upper Castle Flats 775 subject to the lower level of protection afford- Public Land Recreation Area

ed by “Provincial Park” status. This lesser lev- X Castle River Bridge PRA 774 Beauvais Lake el of recognition to some extent reflects their Provincial Park Syncline 5 Syncline Provincial PRA Beaver Mines e PRA industrial heritage with oil and gas access Park Expansion Lak

roads carved deep into each canyon. But an- West Castle Wetlands other factor may be a history of over grazing ER B R which has served to diminish the canyons’ I T # I S Castle Mt. Resort 4 natural values, suppressing native flora and H replacing them with a host of invasive plants C O and placing a very heavy burden on these L U M crucial watersheds. B I For many years AWA has offered guid- A 3 Castle Wildland Castle ed backpacking trips into the Castle’s Front Conservation Provincial Park Area Range Canyons and dozens of visitors have had the opportunity to experience this WATERTON LAKES 2 breathtaking landscape. But though this NATIONAL PARK

land is all public land, long recognized for its New Conservation Areas Existing Conservation Areas and Recreation and Park Areas and Recreation and Park Areas City, Town wildlife, recreation, and watershed value, all Wildland Provincial Park Ecological Reserve (ER) First Nations Reserve Conservation Area Provincial Park Green Area is not wine and roses in the canyons. In the Provincial Park Provincial Recreation Area (PRA) White Area X Public Land Recreation National Park Hydrography southern canyons, particularly Spionkop and Area (PLRA) South Saskatchewan Region Alberta Township System Information as depicted is subject to change, therefore Yarrow, visitors are increasingly reporting the Provincial Highway the Government of Alberta assumes no responsibility for discrepancies at time of use. Base Data provided by Spatial Data Warehouse Ltd. damage caused by persistent overgrazing. © 2013 Government of Alberta Published: September 21, 2013 Author: Land-use Framework Branch

44 WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES Alpine plants manage to survive in harsh conditions, with icy temperatures, high winds and minimal soil cover. They are extremely sensitive to disturbance; while consci- entious two-legged visitors can avoid causing too much damage, cattle may exact a heavy toll. PHOTO: © N. DOUGLAS

In an October 13, 2014 letter to Alberta tributaries; and the pollution of this vital and valley bottoms in the Castle area (where Environment and Sustainable Resource De- water source. grazing occurs) have been altered to a mix of velopment (ESRD), AWA passed on the deep Wendy Ryan of the Castle Crown Wilder- non-native grasses, weeds and other invasive concerns expressed to us by our supporters ness Coalition has noted the same problems. plants, and native forbs and shrubs. Some na- who have visited the canyons. These con- “The overgrazing has probably been going on tive grasses are still present but are a minor cerns included: since SRD (then Sustainable Resource Devel- component in the community.” • The trampling of tree and plant life on the opment) first allowed cattle into the Front His report highlighted a number of prob- valley floor. “This was so bad that the his- Range Canyons,” she says. “The cattle enjoy lems associated with cattle grazing in the toric trail in many places in the upper part being up in the forested area of the canyons upper sub-alpine and alpine natural regions. of the valley is now indistinguishable from and up in the high alpine, getting away from They included: dozens of other “trails” through the trees the flies, bugs, and heat.” • Loss of native grass species. “Non-na- created by cattle.” Six years ago, in a 2009 report titled Live- tive plant species are detrimental to native • The presence of large amounts of cow stock grazing in the Front Range Canyons, plant communities because they displace dung throughout the valley. “Although botanist and AWA member Reg Ernst made desirable native species resulting in a loss having some dung is undoubtedly a nat- exactly the same point. “Because alpine and of wildlife habitat. For example, rough ural part of the ecosystem the problem sub-alpine systems did not evolve under in- fescue (Festuca campestris), the domi- seems to be that large numbers of cattle are tensive, season-long grazing,” he wrote, “they nant native grass species on climax plant returning to the same area year after year are particularly vulnerable to the damage communities in the Front Range Canyons, and are adding to the deposits faster than caused by a disturbance which they have lit- provides nutritious winter forage to a va- they can decompose.” tle or no defence against.” Reg observed that: riety of wildlife including elk and bighorn • The trampling of the banks and stream “Over many decades of cattle grazing, the sheep. Conversely, tame forage species bed of the main creek and some of its plant communities along all stream corridors make very poor winter forage because

WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES A5 after they senesce in mid to late summer, but there is little evidence that this code is sionally carried out on grazing leases, but they have very low nutritional value.” being applied on the ground. Theoretically, past assessments in the Front Range Can- • Loss of rare plants. “A large proportion of graziers are “required to apply sustainable yons seem to have made little difference to the rare plants in the Castle area are found grazing practices” on their lease,” with the the grazing problems noted by visitors to the in the upper sub-alpine and alpine natural requirement that “any rangeland grazing canyons. regions. These species are threatened be- system must consider how to balance live- AWA has long supported a cost/ benefit cause cattle grazing increases the density stock needs with the available forage supply analysis of grazing on public land, and in the and distribution of competitive non-native through proper stocking rates.” The code Castle in particular. The minimal amount of plants and because of the physical dam- highlights the importance of careful manage- income derived from leasing our public land age caused by hoof trampling, particularly ment of grazing in riparian areas: “Riparian in no way justifies the considerable cost of along riparian habitats where cattle have a areas where livestock may find succulent for- the damage to natural habitats and water- tendency to congregate.” age, drinking water and shade require extra sheds. If lease fees do not generate adequate • Invasive weeds. “Noxious and other effort to ensure good livestock distribution income to allow provincial staff to monitor weeds are particularly damaging to native and prevent potential negative effects…Graz- grazing adequately, then they should ei- plant communities because they have lit- ing leaseholders have a particularly critical re- ther be substantially increased, or grazing tle nutritional value, they are invasive and sponsibility to address any riparian area man- suspended until adequate oversight can be readily displace valuable native species, agement issues on their grazing lease.” introduced to ensure that future grazing is and because their inferior soil binding Rangeland health assessments are occa- truly sustainable. properties allow soil erosion to occur.” • Watershed damage. “Riparian areas receive a disproportionate amount of use by cattle and activity related to this use degrades the streamside environment and the local fishery.” Weeds and agro- nomics have poor soil-binding properties compared to native species. This means there is an increase in soil erosion which degrades the watershed and damages fish habitat. Most of southern Alberta depends on healthy mountain watersheds to provide water for both the urban and agricul- tural communities.” In theory, grazing cattle are supposed to be prevented from accessing the sensitive high alpine areas, but enforcement in the southern canyons is minimal. Drift fencing has been erected across the heads of the valleys in the past but it is rarely maintained, and overworked ESRD officials show little appe- tite for getting to grips with the issue. Ryan refers to the Spionkop valley as “an oasis… and a mess. Every time I have been up there, the cattle have trampled the entire area by the falls, and eaten every wildflower and plant by the water.” The cattle “travel up these valleys on old industry roads until they reach the end of the trail, and then stay up there all season.” In a November 2014 letter to AWA, ESRD Minister Kyle Fawcett pointed out that gra-

ziers on public land are required to stick to a Rare plants such as red and yellow monkeyflower, which grow alongside creeks, may suffer heavily from cattle Grazing Lease Stewardship Code of Practice, grazing. PHOTO: © N. DOUGLAS

6 WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES Ranchers and Wolves: A Better Way

By Carolyn Campbell, AWA Conservation Specialist

n the fall of 2014 I was lucky to were at times, without his knowing it. in New Zealand called Huntaways. They meet two Alberta ‘pioneers’ I have The members of that pack, habituated to don’t defend against predators directly, but I admired for some time. They’re not killing cattle, were almost all eventually shot they keep the cows closer together and are the homesteader-type pioneer, but pioneers or trapped. The last collared female paired essential in moving them from one area to in the sense that they raise large herds of up with a male from outside the area, and the next. cattle and sheep in wilder parts of Alberta, they became the alpha pair that re-estab- “Wolves will take advantage of opportuni- while taking deliberate actions to co-exist lished the Willow Creek pack. However, this ties. Yearling cows are curious, inexperienced with wolves. One lives in the rolling foothills time the terms were different. Joe watched and somewhat reckless. I try not to put them of southwest Alberta, the other adjacent to a their movements, was aware of den and ren- out on the far west pastures anymore, or at Wildland Provincial Park in the Peace coun- dezvous sites, and he managed cattle to min- least mix older, more experienced cattle in try. Their attitudes and actions are a pow- imize opportunities for predators. Although with them. Mother cows have better instincts erful inspiration for conservation-minded there are no radio collars on local wolves to defend themselves and their calves. I use ranchers and all who value our large wild anymore, he continues to keep a close watch cross fences to keep cattle in an area, or a few carnivores as part of what makes Alberta out for signs of wolves, bears and other wild- more riders would do the job if you want- special. life in the area. ed fewer fences. As we’re able, we’re using Joe Engelhart is a range rider who works “Having a human presence out on the land less 3-strand barbed wire and more 2-strand on the extensive public lands grazing leases is really important,” he told me. “I can reach electric on the closer fields, which is effec- of the Spruce Ranch Cooperative, south of all our lands in a long day’s ride.” Joe is out tive and better for wildlife.” Predation from Longview. The leaseholders count on him to on the ranges most days. He works with har- wolves has been very low, with only one con- keep watch on about 2,000 cow-calf pairs dy, high-stamina herding dogs developed firmed wolf livestock kill since 2008. and 500 yearlings. He continues the long, proud tradition of the professional cowboy, but with a 21st century outlook. He’s a steward for the health of grazing lands and stream corridors and does as much as possible to reduce wolf and grizzly conflicts with cattle. In 2003, a few years after Joe began working on the ranch, there were serious predation problems by the local wolf pack, named the Willow Creek pack: they lost 20 head of cattle to wolves. To put that in perspective, in a typical year they might lose 30 head to poi- sonous plants. But the stress to the livestock and the spike in predation was a problem they had to address. Biologist Charles Mamo, who had worked with other ranchers, came and collared some of the wolves. Joe learned how pack members used different areas, and Louise works with Sarplaninac livestock guardian dogs, which in her experience have the right mix of aggression he was fascinated by how close the wolves towards predators, calmness with humans, and bonding capacity with livestock. PHOTO: © C. CAMPBELL

WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES A7 Joe strongly believes that livestock-habit- The Alberta government sets the terms of a compensation program for livestock pro- uated, problem wolves have to be killed, ducers who have stock either killed or injured by bears, wolves, cougars or eagles. When but with measured and humane methods. a producer suspects a predator-caused incident, a fish and wildlife enforcement officer He values having a stable wolf pack in comes to investigate. If, in the officer’s opinion, the evidence points to a confirmed or prob- the area. As he sees it, random killing of able predator kill or injury, a claim is filed. For a confirmed predation, the producer is paid non-problem wolves could cause a splin- the average commercial value for the animal when it was killed, with a minimum payment ter pack to form or could bring in new of $400. For cattle less than a year old, a producer can choose compensation based on av- wolves that cause more problems. erage prices the following October for a 550 pound animal. For a probable predation case, There is no wolf bounty sponsored by the producer is paid 50% of the loss if a confirmed kill by the same species is found within 10 kilometres and within 90 days before or after the incident. In mid-2014, the Alberta the municipal government on the grazing government reported to rural municipalities that “during the last three years, total annual leases where Joe rides. However, at least compensation payments averaged $267,000 with 12 per cent of claims denied. Denied 10 rural municipalities in Alberta now pay claims could have resulted from ineligible livestock or predators and/or lack of evidence.” amounts from $15 to $500 per wolf killed There are no requirements to have predator deterrents in place. within their districts, on public lands up The Alberta Conservation Association traditionally funded all predator compensation to 8 kilometres away from grazing leases, payments from hunting and fishing license fees, but payments have risen in recent years or in some cases on traplines. The provin- due to cattle prices and predation incidents. In 2014-15, the federal government is pro- cial government has authority over wild- viding half of the program funding. life management, yet it looked the other way as this wave of new wolf bounties Alberta Wildlife Predator Compensation Program occurred since 2010. FOIPed documents Incidents and Payments obtained by AWA in 2011 revealed that Source: Alberta Conservation Association Annual Reports the provincial carnivore specialist advised internally that indiscriminate bounties are Wolf Grizzly Black Cougar Eagle Unidentified Total Bear Predator ineffective. Wolves have high reproduc- Claims tion and dispersal capabilities, and wolves that aren’t preying on livestock may be re- 2013-14 167 53 15 18 3 11 267 placed by wolves that will. Subsequently, 2012-13 74 17 10 14 3 4 122 fish and wildlife officers quietly told sev- 2011-12 176 20 16 12 0 4 228 eral municipalities that bounties were in- 2010-11 162 10 12 21 0 3 208 effective in reducing predation. 2009-10 127 10 7 8 3 19 174 Although there is little transparency about the scale of these bounties, AWA Compensation, has compiled records indicating that mu- 000$ nicipal governments have paid out over 2013-14 221 73 17 4 3 8 326 $315,000 to kill at least 1,100 wolves 2012-13 83 19 12 8 1 3 126 since 2010. Not surprisingly, there is no 2011-12 219 23 24 4 0 3 274 evidence that overall wolf populations or 2010-11 165 9 10 9 0 2 194 predation incidents have declined since 2009-10 107 15 4 5 1 12 144 bounties came into effect. There is also no information available about the harm- Note: Statistics Canada reports that between 2010 and 2014, the July 1 inventory of beef cattle on Alberta farms (cow-calf plus feeder-stocker operations, so excluding feedlots) was 4.3 million, give or take ful bykill to non-target species from use 100,000, and the July 1 inventory of sheep on Alberta farms was 200,000, give or take 5,000. of inhumane and indiscriminate snares that are baited to catch wolves. In 2013 Alberta’s predator compensation program and attractants. Through partnerships such and 2014, international wolf scientists (see inset) reduces livestock producers’ fi- as the Waterton Biosphere carnivore pro- with the International Union for the Con- nancial loss from predation. Like many in gram, many ranchers in the southern foot- servation of Nature (IUCN) called on the the southwest Alberta ranching community, hills have been Alberta leaders in programs Alberta government to replace its out- Joe supports somewhat higher payout rates such as secure storage and removal of stock dated, ineffective bounties with modern, to recognize rancher risks and loss. He also carcasses. But there are no requirements to evidence-based management. The reply supports adding stronger incentives for have these or other predator deterrents in from ESRD Minister Robin Campbell was producers to reduce predator opportunities place to qualify for compensation. to suggest the scientists take their issues

8 WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES To reduce opportunities for wolves in the rolling foothills landscape, Joe puts the older, more experienced cows rather than curious yearlings out on the further pastures. PHOTO: © C. CAMPBELL to the municipalities. To date, the Alberta 600 ewes with their lambs, and 50 cattle. widely. Adult guardian dogs remain with government cites the substantial overall “Ranchers own a lot of real estate and need the flocks and swiftly deter any wolves or Alberta wolf population as its rationale for to be prepared to share their lands,” Lou- coyotes who test boundaries. As evening dodging its responsibility to redirect wolf ise told me as we walked out to a pasture. approaches, Louise or her husband work predation concerns into effective deterrent “I have a responsibility to create areas on with border collies to bring the sheep into and management practices. our ranch where wildlife, including pred- electric-fenced night corrals, and guard- In northwest Alberta, Louise Liebenberg ators, can exist. I also have a responsibility ian dogs remain with the flock all night. and her family have built the Grazerie, a to keep our cattle and sheep safe.” During calving season, the guardian dogs thriving sheep and cattle ranching busi- Reducing attractants and deterring pred- are ‘on duty’ out in the field with expect- ness, using a comprehensive approach ators is a cornerstone of their operations. ant mother cows to ensure that any preda- to deter wolf and coyote predation. They Lambing takes place in heated pens in a tors keep their distance. had grazed sheep in the Netherlands and large barn. The Grazerie removes all car- Her choice of livestock guardian dog moved to Canada in search of wilder casses and other attractants to an on-farm is the Sarplaninac. This breed originates open spaces. They own 460 acres (about composting area they have constructed. from mountainous Macedonia in former 200 hectares), half of which is open, half Out in the fields, active human pres- Yugoslavia, where shepherds and dogs still of which is forested and bushy close to a ence and the constant watch of eight to work closely together to keep their flocks Wildland Provincial Park; they rent anoth- ten guardian dogs establish a strong de- safe from wolves and bears. In her expe- er 800 acres (or 300 hectares) of hay and terrent. The sheep are managed to stay rience, this dog breed combines the right pasture land. The Grazerie raises about closer together rather than scattering level of aggression towards larger preda-

WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES A9 tors, calmness around human handlers, it. In five years, Louise has lost one ewe are a lot of conservation-minded ranch- and a strong capacity for bonding with and three lambs to predation. “And that ers out there, and this can help plant that sheep. Louise now raises pups to renew was my fault, I had locked my dogs up in seed, that they don’t have to fear making the Grazerie’s guardian dog ‘corps’, and another part of the ranch. The coyote of the change.” for other producers. When I visited in au- course is an opportunist.” Louise believes that killing a wolf that tumn 2014, the pups born early that year The Grazerie is the first ranch in Can- has been habituated to constantly prey were in with the rams. ada to be certified Wildlife Friendly and on livestock is justified, but it should be “I am predator friendly, but my dogs Predator Friendly. Louise maintains a fas- the last option to use, not the first. She are not. They are there to ensure that the cinating blog about ranch life, including was one of the very few who spoke up wolf or coyote realizes it isn’t worth the how their predator deterrence is applied publicly against her municipality’s wolf trouble, and moves on.” The Grazerie year round. She doesn’t believe the desig- bounty. In her view, the funds would be is in a rural municipality that has had a nation provides an economic benefit, as much better spent helping producers wolf bounty of $300 per adult wolf since their products are too far from special- with incentives to reduce the root causes 2011. As a result, coyotes are the more ized markets to command a premium. of predation. “Why couldn’t municipal common predator in the immediate vi- But she values the Predator Friendly cer- governments use those funds to assist cinity now. In late 2013 a large coyote tification as a useful way to start conver- ranchers to change, by sponsoring the made the wrong choice, entering a night sations with other ranchers on co-exist- cost of livestock guardian dogs and on- corral and her dogs quickly dispatched ing responsibly with predators. “There farm composting facilities?” she asks. Louise is a strong advocate for ranching. Her challenge to AWA and other conservation groups is to become vis- ibly stronger allies of ranchers on public lands, to support practical steps that improve livelihoods as well as the environment. In central Idaho’s Sawtooth National Forest, a partnership of ranchers, three levels of government, and local wolf advocates has worked for six years, amidst wolf pack ranges, on effective non-lethal methods such as guardian dogs and electric fencing. One hundred thousand sheep and lambs have grazed across this project area, yet fewer than 30 sheep have been killed in the six years. A three-year South African scientific study of 11 farms, published in 2014, found that adopting non-lethal predator control yielded significant cost savings to livestock producers. The co-authors suggest the “use of [lethal] controls is influenced by the attitudes of farmers and their neighbours as much as by any realized economic advantages.” Joe Engelhart, Louise Liebenberg, and other conservation-minded ranchers are at the forefront of these changing attitudes in Alberta. By seeking responsible government wildlife management, and by highlighting their success, AWA hopes many other produc-

Joe works with hardy Huntaway herding dogs to keep the cattle he manages relatively close together and to ers will join them if practicing predator move them between fields. PHOTO: © C. CAMPBELL friendly ranching.

10 WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES The Inside Scoop: Looking Back at the 2014 Martha Kostuch Lecture

By Ian Urquhart

know…this report on Dr. Ted We were kin in perhaps a important politician’s time for one very simple rea- Morton’s November 2014 Mar- sense. We grew up in spectacular natural son – that’s where the votes are. Those I tha Kostuch Lecture was almost settings, Morton in Wyoming and me in are the issues Alberta voters care most as long in coming as the major land- southeastern B.C. We loved the outdoors about and so they’re what MLAs and use legislation passed by Ed Stelmach’s and doing the things teenage boys of our cabinet ministers focus most of their at- Progressive Conservative government generation with those inclinations did: tention on. The successes he identified in 2009. Morton ushered that law, the hunting, fishing, hiking, and camping. in his talk were realized because they Alberta Land Stewardship Act (ALSA), While we probably don’t share many didn’t cost much, were funded by some through the legislature. The former political “heroes” one we both admire is other source, or were funded by wind- minister recounted to a full house at Teddy Roosevelt, the 26th President of fall resource revenues between 2005 and Hillhurst Cottage School last November the United States. Roosevelt led America 2008. Sometimes they also were issues how he regards that law as one import- into the Progressive Era and made stew- where political leadership – exercised ant success of his tenure as Sustainable ardship of natural resources a hallmark by Morton and/or Premier Stelmach – Resource Development Minister. of his eight years in the White House. played a vital role. Morton, who was SRD Minister for His experiences in the American West just over three years beginning in 2006, helped shape his commitment to nat- Successes gave AWA members something of an ural resource stewardship, to trying to The former Minister counted the OH insider’s account of his time in one of ensure that the condition of natural re- Ranch and the Alberta Land Steward- Alberta’s key “conservation” ministries. sources passed on to the next generation ship Act among what I would call the He recounted the challenges he faced, was at least as healthy as it was when major landscape policy successes of his the successes he had, as well as the chal- the current generation was entrusted time in SRD. ALSA was a policy initia- lenges and opportunities he thinks are with it. Such progressive conservatism tive that sprouted out of the Progressive part of Alberta’s conservation landscape. hasn’t fared well in the history of Alber- Conservative leadership race in 2006. It I was optimistic when Ed Stelmach ap- ta politics. Morton, seeing himself as a arguably was the Stelmach government’s pointed Morton to the SRD portfolio in Roosevelt conservative, tried to bring single most important land-use initiative December 2006. Morton was kin. We those stewardship sensibilities to his job and grappled with the perennial pres- both have PhDs in Political Science and as Minister. sures the contemporary Alberta land- I admired his intellect. Charter Politics, scape faces from population growth and the book he co-authored in 1992 with SHE, Leadership, and industrialization. Morton was very com- his University of Calgary colleague Rain- Revenues mitted to seeing the Progressive Conser- er Knopff, remains an important contri- In Morton’s experience many of the vatives respond to those pressures. His bution to understanding the Charter of challenges facing the conservationist leadership, the Premier’s support, and Rights and Freedoms and its place in agenda are financial ones. Conservation beliefs that the administrative and eco- Canadian politics and society. I taught policy initiatives run into strong polit- nomic costs of the initiative wouldn’t be constitutional law and politics and es- ical headwinds when they try to com- too severe helped to ensure its passage pecially admired its balance, the fact he pete with SHE – social program, health, through the legislature. and Knopff kept in check their antipathy and education spending. SHE spending The OH Ranch story struck me as a par- to the Charter and the negative changes consumed more than two-thirds of the ticularly powerful example of how, even they associated with it. Stelmach era budget and even more of a during the Progressive Conservative

WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES 11A dynasty, committed political leadership could trump Energy – the 800-pound gorilla in Alberta policy-making circles. Morton saw what a jewel the OH Ranch, west of Longview, was when he hunted elk there in the 1980s. Doc Seamans, owner of the ranch, agreed to put conservation easements on the portions of the ranch he owned if the Alberta government would designate the ranch’s grazing leases as a Heritage Ranchland. Morton very much wanted to turn this 4,277-hectare property into a conservation victory. “My biggest obstacle,” he recounted, “was the Minister of Ener- gy and the bureaucrats in Energy. They were afraid that if you put this Heritage Rangeland status on the Crown land that would put restrictions on future oil and gas development, and it would.” Accord- ing to Morton Premier Stelmach was a PHOTO: © J. QUIROZ vital ally when it came to overriding En- AWA members and other readers of minister used the phrase “unjust enrich- ergy. The Premier was concerned about Wild Lands Advocate may recall the ment” to describe what Alberta’s finan- his political support in southern Alberta phrase “cowboy welfare” from a previ- cial compensation system delivers to a and saw conserving the OH Ranch lands ous Kostuch lecture delivered by Bob small number of leaseholders. Morton as a measure that could bolster his pop- Scammell (see the December 2011 issue sits on the board of the Alberta Land ularity in that part of the province. The of WLA for a discussion of Bob’s lec- Institute and he gave his audience a fact the financial costs to the treasury of ture). Bob’s focus was on what he called preview of what he claims a forthcom- creating this Heritage Rangeland were the “public lands crisis” in Alberta; ing Institute study will conclude about unknown made the decision even more the province’s grazing lease system for surface disturbance payments (Morton palatable. Crown/public lands and its resemblance told his audience that the study would in some respects to a system of cowboy be released by early 2015. It still hasn’t What of the Future? welfare was critical to Bob’s analysis. appeared. Dr. Vic Adamowicz, the re- Financing Conservation Among other points, Bob maintained search director for the Alberta Land In- With “Cowboy Welfare” that some grazing leaseholders receive stitute, says the study will be released Loot unjustified financial windfalls courte- some time this fall.). Looking ahead, Morton sees a political sy of the provincial government. The According to Morton, forty-five percent terrain dotted with conservation chal- windfalls come as the financial compen- of grazing leaseholders don’t receive lenges and opportunities. Population sation cheques petroleum companies surface disturbance payments for oil and growth and economic growth remain write for their activities on your Crown gas wells on the lands they lease from prominent challenges there. New pe- lands. These payments go directly to the province. In fact, he claims only a troleum exploitation technologies such leaseholders, not to the government. He very small percentage of leaseholders, as hydraulic fracturing may accentuate believed these payments should go into two percent, collect a staggering 50 per- some conservation challenges in parts of the public purse, nor private pockets. cent of all the oil and gas well surface the province – such as water availability If a leaseholder’s cattle operations were disturbance payments. To underline this and allocation in southern Alberta. The damaged by oil and gas activity then the point he gave his audience the example possibility of continued budget deficits rancher could approach the government of one leaseholder with more than 800 may make funding new conservation for a fair share of those payments. wells on those public lands. That lease- programs more difficult since AWA’s pri- Although Morton never referred to holder collected more than $1.2 million orities still have to compete with health, Bob’s remarks, his lecture strongly sup- in disturbance payments. To add insult education, and social programs. ported Bob’s conclusions. The former to this situation the former Minister said

12 WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES he could guarantee this leaseholder paid Alberta pay the government “X amount Morton spoke more prescriptively than a small fraction of this amount per year of dollars to raise their cows on Crown Saher did. The former Minister sees the in grazing fees to the government. This land and they collect five and ten times Saskatchewan model as one that Alber- is precisely the type of situation Bob X in surface disturbance payments from ta should adopt. It’s a model he believes Scammell asserted was at the centre of companies that drill wells or put pipe- the Alberta Land Institute study will the public lands crisis he feels character- lines there.” show would generate approximately $40 izes contemporary Alberta. Or compare Morton’s example above million per year. These funds should be While we wait to see if the Alberta Land of the gross disparity between lease fees dedicated to promoting conservation Institute confirms Morton’s charges paid to the people of Alberta and sur- and stewardship issues in rural Alberta. please consider the July 2015 analy- face disturbance payments handed over Given his view of how concentrated the sis and report presented by Merwan to leaseholders with what the Auditor benefits of the current regime in Alberta Saher, Alberta’s Auditor General. That General estimated. With respect to 54 are – where very few grazing leaseholders report describes the same sort of situ- leases covering 10 percent of the Crown secure the lion’s share of access compen- ation pointed to by Scammell in 2011 land leased for grazing he concluded: sation – Morton believed the policy shift and Morton in November 2014. “Some “They received about $2.7 million more towards the Saskatchewan approach is leaseholders receive significant com- in access compensation fees than the politically feasible. If you agree with his pensation for allowing operators onto $326,000 they paid in lease rents to the suggestion that compensation payments leased public land,” the Auditor General province.” for accessing Crown lands should be de- wrote, “or from selling or transferring Both Saher’s report and Morton’s lec- voted to conservation and stewardship their lease to another leaseholder. In ture compare Alberta’s system with the purposes – as his AWA audience last some cases the amount of surface com- grazing lease system in Saskatchewan. November did – then let’s hope the new pensation paid to leaseholders…is many Saher notes that in Saskatchewan, unlike government will address this dimension times the amount of the rent they pay on in Alberta, surface lease rentals are paid of Alberta’s public lands crisis. a grazing lease.” (my emphasis) Com- to the government, not to leaseholders. pare those words to the former Minis- In the 2014-15 fiscal year Saskatchewan ter’s claim that a relatively small num- collected $11.5 million in surface lease ber of grazing leaseholders in eastern rentals; Alberta didn’t collect a penny.

Featured Artist Philip Kanwischer

Unity Falling

WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES 13A An Ecologist’s Optimism On the Proposed Introduction of Bison to Banff National Park

By Dennis Jorgensen, Vice-Chair IUCN North American Bison Specialist Group

n a time in which the greatest chal- be the focus of such restoration efforts. species conservation movement and was lenge to conservation is the 6th The near extermination of the North a success by most measures of that era. I mass extinction in the history of American bison in the late 1800s was a However, the modern science of genetics life on Earth, I’m surprised when some concerted effort to eliminate the species has revealed that the predominantly small dedicated conservationists argue that a for political and economic gain. It reduced bison populations in North America have native species should not be reintroduced a species that once numbered tens of mil- steadily lost genetic diversity and, there- because they would thrive and proliferate lions of animals to an estimated 1,000 fore, species health and resilience. In or- to the point of requiring management to Wood and Plains bison in North America der to secure the recovery of the species regulate their abundance. As someone who in 1886. Today, one might ask “why do bi- as wildlife there is a need to identify sites works to conserve and restore species, if son need to be restored anywhere” when of sufficient scale to restore bison popula- I could have my choice of wildlife man- bison now appear ubiquitous in North tions to more than 400 adult bison and, agement problems, it would be this one: America as a result of the rise of the bi- preferably, more than 1,000 adults. successfully reintroducing a species to the son livestock industry. This industry has Establishing several large herds of bison point where we must manage their num- increased bison numbers to approximately to secure the recovery of the species might bers to limit their abundance. What a rare half a million in North America. However, sound easy given that today the grasslands and wonderful problem to have in an era wild Plains bison that exist with a mandate of North America support approximate- where we fight daily just to hold onto the to be managed as wildlife in North Amer- ly 89 million cows managed as livestock. incredible diversity of species that time ica number only 20,000 animals in 62 Surely, there is enough grass to go around and evolution have yielded. Despite the herds. .Seventy-five percent of those herds to establish sufficiently large herds of wild century-long absence of bison managed consist of fewer than 400 individuals; one- bison to secure their recovery. However, as wildlife in the greater Banff ecosystem, third have fewer than 50 members. the very success of the livestock industry bison were once one of the most wide- The American Bison Society, established in replacing bison with cows and becom- spread large mammals in the history of in 1905 by Theodore Roosevelt and Wil- ing the dominant land use on grasslands North America. To suggest, as Dr. Carbyn liam Temple Hornaday, felt their job was throughout North America, is the reason it did, that they would now be an invasive done and that recovery was achieved has become difficult to identify sites where species is just plain wrong in my opinion. by the 1930s when 20,000 Plains bison there is a willingness to consider “tolerat- It amounts to blaming bison for being the were being managed as wildlife. This So- ing” the reintroduction of bison. In most last of North America’s large ungulates to ciety represented the birth of the modern cases, in most places, the discussion is a non-starter and it’s absolutely necessary to consider other alternatives. Generally speaking there are two alternatives that become immediately apparent for future bison restoration efforts: Nation- al Parks and protected areas located within the historic range of Plains bison, and tribal lands where Aboriginal communities embrace bison as central to their culture and future prosperity. National Parks have Bison in Custer State Park, South Dakota. PHOTO: © CHARLES R. PETERSON both a role and a responsibility to assess

14 WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES the critical part they can play in conserv- nent of a bison reintroduction and that of the last refuges for new and significant ing and restoring species that once existed success will eventually require culling, the progress in the recovery of bison, should within their boundaries. Despite the chal- potential for strategically erected fences, refuse them is troubling and difficult to lenges and, in some cases, the controversy and the establishment of agreements with reconcile with the hope and inspiration associated with the management of a spe- adjacent landowners and managers regard- that success in such an endeavour could cies like bison, conservationists prize Na- ing steps that will be taken if bison leave hold for the conservation movement as a tional Parks for their goal and mandate of the boundaries of the park. There was a whole. Living near Yellowstone National being a haven for wildlife species to exist. time when National Parks were considered Park I recognize that the remarkable suc- There are many proponents in the com- islands of conservation within a sea of al- cess of bison recovery in the park has con- munity of Banff of restoring bison to the ternative land uses, but we have entered an tributed to daunting management chal- landscape. Such an expression of local era in which it is increasingly recognized lenges. But I can also attest to the fact that support is a rare situation among prospec- that the success of conservation rests upon it has produced one of the greatest wildlife tive restoration sites in North America and community-based conservation efforts in spectacles in the world. Bison restoration I believe this opportunity must be seized. which neighbours are viewed as partners in Yellowstone serves to demonstrate the Reintroducing bison to Banff National Park in gauging and managing challenges and value of conservation to millions of people won’t exclude opponents or ignore practi- success. each year and develops new advocates who cal questions of wildlife management. This As a Calgarian working towards the re- might not otherwise give conservation a process would benefit from a community covery of bison as wildlife in the United second thought. That’s why this ecologist consisting of proponents and opponents States, I believe it is important for AWA is optimistic about the proposal to reintro- and creates fertile ground for a balanced members and their fellow Canadians to duce bison to Banff National Park. discussion in which actual costs and chal- recognize just how rare and pivotal the lenges will be considered. decision to restore bison in Banff could be Dennis Jorgensen is the Program Offi- Both proponents and opponents must be for the future recovery and health of the cer, Bison Initiative Coordinator, World realistic. They should acknowledge that species and the ecosystem. For conserva- Wildlife Fund-US, Northern Great management will be a necessary compo- tionists to suggest that National Parks, one Plains Program

Bison Crossing the Lamar River, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming. PHOTO: © CHARLES R. PETERSON

WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES 15A Lessons from the Crowsnest Pass BearSmart Program: Work with the community, work with the bears By Sean Nichols, AWA Conservation Specialist

hen Fish and Wild- of garbage and attractants, the Crows- how this is everyone’s community.” life district officer John nest Pass BearSmart program is proactive Pool enthusiastically relates how over W Clarke got involved with about getting out and monitoring the time calls are coming in faster and how the Crowsnest Pass BearSmart program bears themselves. Bears in the vicinity of it has become not just the volunteers nine years ago the program had a hand- the municipality are radio-collared and but the entire community who excited- ful of bear-proof bins to its name and a monitored, their movements tracked day ly phone in sightings. She describes how couple of volunteers. But there was little and night. BearSmart patrols staffed with the mentality of bear management has organizational direction and no-one real- program volunteers are active around the changed and improved over time: once ly seemed to know how to employ these clock so that when calls come in, they the attitude was that bears should be ei- resources. are already prepared and able to respond ther left alone or shot. Now the commu- One of Clarke’s first actions after join- more quickly. nity possesses a sense of ownership over ing the program was to enlist the help of On the other hand, if the bears are stay- the bears themselves and many people in Christy Pool, who was brought on board ing out of trouble and away from problem the Crowsnest are able to identify indi- as the program’s Field Supervisor and areas, the BearSmart team wants to know vidual ursine residents in the valley. Volunteer Co-ordinator. so that they can keep it that way. The fo- It is not only the people but also busi- Since that time the program has evolved cus then is not on keeping bears far away nesses and local government that have into one of the most successful, effective, from humans, but only far enough away all come on board the BearSmart band- and well-received BearSmart programs to avoid conflict. Through the program wagon. The BearSmart team has taken an in the province. Earlier this year it was Alberta Fish and Wildlife established active role in working with the municipal selected as a finalist in Alberta’s annual a network of “red zones” around town. government; the latest bylaws include a Emerald Award competition. As long as the bears stay out of the red section on attractants and garbage. Team “John just took the program and ran with zones, they are generally left alone. “After members also work alongside local emer- it,” recalls Pool. She relates how, early on, all,” explains Pool, “we live in the moun- gency and first responders such as the Clarke saw the need for such a program in tains and the bears live here too.” fire department and RCMP. BearSmart the community and was committed to do volunteers were on-hand to help out fol- what it took to make it work. Priority 2: Include the lowing recent years’ flooding and were Pool is quick to credit not only Clarke, community able to identify and call in gas leaks and but all of the volunteers and the com- Community buy-in is the other essential other potential issues. munity as a whole for the success of the component of the program. This is gen- program. Two of the biggest differences erated through ample volunteer opportu- Priority 3: Include the she cites between the Crowsnest Pass ex- nities, as well as education, community volunteers perience and that in other communities events, involvement of school classes, The volunteers, not Clarke and not Pool, in Alberta involve working with the com- and other forms of engagement. Pool is really form the core of the program. The munity, and perhaps surprisingly, work- adamant that success only comes when program has integrated well with the ing with the bears. communities take ownership of programs community, not least because of the di- like BearSmart. “They can see that we ar- versity of BearSmart’s many volunteers. Priority 1: Include the en’t only out there speaking on behalf of Students, retired military personnel, bi- bears the bears,” she explains, “but that we ac- ologists, paramedics, stay-at-home moth- Rather than focusing solely on matters tually care about the bears. They can see ers – all manner of people have signed up

16 WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES BearSmart on the Doorstep: One key to the success of the Crowsnest Pass BearSmart Program is raising community awareness. Pictured here are Christy Pool (l) and Lisa Kinnear (r). PHOTO: © J. CLARKE to volunteer. again and again. Pool once again credits monitoring and education aspects are A common thread among all the volun- the sense of ownership volunteers have key of course. But volunteers also teach teers is the search for the opportunity to in the program. BearSmart officers work courses and pick apples and cut down pursue passionately something they be- with volunteers to ensure they can take apple trees (with permission) to reduce lieve in. “It’s why many of them moved part in every aspect of the job. Before even attractants. They perform assessments to the Crowsnest Pass to begin with,” starting, volunteers undergo many hours for people who are unsure and want to explains Pool. “They wanted a peaceful, of training: bear safety, proper monitoring, know, for example, why bears are attract- beautiful community to live in, and part and talking to people about bears are all ed to their yards. They offer school talks of that is the wildlife aspect.” skills the volunteers learn. Then for their where they demonstrate how culvert traps Passion is certainly necessary. A volun- first season (running from April through work: when there’s a bear in a culvert trap, teer shift monitoring bear movements may November) volunteers are attached to a volunteers come in to talk to students, run through the night, starting at 7:30 pm mentor – often another more experienced to demonstrate what happens to a bear and not ending until 4 or 5 the following volunteer – to take them through the job. caught in them and why. This removes morning. After all, as Pool shrugs, “the an- After a year of training, according to Pool, the students’ curiosity about traps so they imals make their own schedule.” it’s pretty clear who’s actually committed don’t get caught in one themselves. “Lots But the volunteers’ passion breeds a will- to the program. of safety stuff,” says Pool. ingness to show up and repeat the shifts And there are many jobs to do – the

WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES 17A Not 20 metres away, Koda quickly had a An evening of excitement Alberta Fish and Wildlife’s Crows- Last year was easily the busiest summer second bear up an adjacent tree. She was nest Pass BearSmart Program consists in the program’s history. In 2014 there the only one who had noticed. of local certified volunteers that are were 33 black bears in town and six griz- It wasn’t long before the entire neigh- used to assist in managing two spe- zlies, all of which kept the volunteers go- bourhood was out in the street, with the cies of bears within the Crowsnest ing “24/7.” Another Fish and Wildlife offi- RCMP in attendance, looking at the two Pass area. cer was brought in to support the program bears up in two trees in the same yard. Over several years community proj- and the phones wouldn’t stop ringing. Everyone, public and volunteers alike, ects have been in place aiming at The weather was hot and dry last sum- had a really good learning experience managing bear behaviour and coexis- mer and, with their usual berry patches all and new volunteers “thought it was the tence between wildlife and humans. dried up, the bears had to go somewhere coolest thing.” Goals of the program include: to eat – that often ended up being inside Program volunteers logged over 1,175 • Reducing the number of bear the town limits. hours – 49 twenty-four hour days – during mortalities, One evening while Clarke was driving that busy season. • Reducing the amount of time down the street his bear dog, Koda, alert- Busy or not, it’s all been a satisfying expe- spent on bear complaints, ed him to a bear in the vicinity. Clarke rience for Clarke and Pool. It’s especially • Reducing the number of bear stopped the vehicle, opened the door and gratifying to see how the community has relocations, Koda quickly ran out, treeing a bear in a come around. • Reducing the number of bear matter of seconds. After a radio call, a few Pool claims this has been one of the funda- encounters with the public, and other volunteers came by to help. As the mental lessons learned from the experience: • Identifying travel corridors used volunteers were observing the treed bear, “When you include the community in a cer- by the resident bear population. with officers making plans to sedate and tain goal, and it’s something being done as a process it, Koda suddenly ran off. whole, they feel like they have a full under- “It serves as a good reminder,” recalls standing of the program.” The connection Pool, “that when there’s one bear in the between programs and government is cru- vicinity, always look for more.” cial. “Partnership is important.”

BearSmart in the Field: One key to the success of the Crowsnest Pass BearSmart Program is the fieldwork of Koda, John Clarke’s Karelian Bear Dog. PHOTO: © J. CLARKE

18 WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES Between the lines: What America’s grizzly bear recovery expert said – and did not say – about Alberta’s (ho-hum) attempts to recover the Great Bear

By Jim Pissot, MSc, Director, WildCanada Conservation Alliance

t always takes a very long with the US Fish and Wildlife Service until spoke five years ago at the Society for Con- time.” they all finally agreed to work together un- servation Biology conference in Edmonton, “I Dr. Chris Servheen knows a der the Interagency Grizzly Bear Commit- he emphasized the need to restrict vehicles, thing or two about grizzly bear recovery. tee. Plenty of time, effort and money were close roads, and provide secure habitat for Or, maybe, 34 things (one for each year he spent to understand and address the con- grizzlies. Implicit in his emphasis was the has been working to recover the great bear cerns of ranchers, farmers, communities, recognition that Alberta was failing even in the US Northern Rockies). Servheen and others in and adjacent to the grizzly to come close. When questioned about Al- currently is the coordinator of the grizzly recovery area. berta’s recovery efforts this year, Servheen bear recovery strategy for the United States Servheen noted that preventing conflicts praised the efforts of good provincial men Fish and Wildlife Service. At the centre of proved much more productive than deal- and women in the field. Many of us in the Servheen’s three-decade experience is a ing with them after the fact. So, working audience noted that he acknowledged field clear conclusion. Managing humans is a lot with ranchers and other landowners, the efforts without commenting on the quality more difficult than managing grizzly bears. recovery team helped to remove livestock of leadership from Edmonton. There is no And “managing” humans is what grizzly carcasses, provide electric fencing (for bee question that, to date at least, Alberta’s griz- bear recovery is all about. He spoke to par- yards and other attractants), pen vulnerable zlies have not enjoyed support from min- ticipants at the May 2014 Western Black livestock at appropriate times, and distrib- isters, MLAs or the office of the Premier. I Bear Workshop in Canmore about the US ute roadkill and other carcasses in protect- hope that will change under Premier Not- grizzly bear recovery strategy. ed areas far from livestock operations. ley and Minister Phillips. In 1975, US grizzlies were listed as Grizzly bear recovery is succeeding in But Dr. Servheen left us on a hopeful note. “threatened” in the lower 48 states, where the U.S. because four strong legs support Grizzly recovery appeared close to hopeless there were fewer than 700 bears and only the American institutional table. First, on- when he began 34 years ago. Then institu- 136 in Yellowstone National Park (“fewer going research provides needed biological tional legs were built under the recovery ta- than 700” … sound familiar?). The reasons and contextual data. Second, the popular ble. Bears began to respond slowly to good for the listing included range reduction, visibility of grizzly recovery, and a reluc- management. The recovery team worked to habitat conflicts (due to livestock, logging, tance to be tagged with failure, generated reconcile human needs with grizzly recov- and road-building), illegal killing, and iso- the necessary political will at and support ery. Long-term, constantly steady, efforts lated population (sound familiar?). Recov- from the very top of government agencies. began to pay off. Recovery always takes a ery under Dr. Servheen’s direction (guided Third, key departments, organizations, and very long time. by legal requirements and public consul- individuals came to the table as a team. Meanwhile, here in Alberta, we have tation) emphasized reducing grizzly mor- Finally, public support was cultivated pushed for a very long time just to suspend tality (especially females), habitat security through reliable information and consis- the hunt and launch grizzly bear recov- (particularly by closing “roads” and restrict- tent messaging from the recovery team,and ery. But we have good bear data, there is ing motorized access), reducing conflicts – most importantly – the team’s success in progress with willing ranchers in the foot- (largely with ranchers and recreationists), meeting the needs of people living in the hills, and provincial BearSmart efforts are and eliminating attractants (focusing on region. According to Servheen, the failure moving forward. So let’s imagine where community garbage dumps). of any single leg will cause the recovery ta- we’ll be 34 years from the beginning of our But the multiple federal, state, and local ble to collapse. own recovery plan. 2041 is not that far off. agencies were unaccustomed to conserva- Without these legs Alberta’s recovery Grizzly bear recovery is possible. And, of tion cooperation and reluctant to partner table has collapsed. When Dr. Servheen course, it’s worth it.

WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES 19A Former Senior Parks Canada Officials Speak Out Against Lake Louise Ski Area Expansion If you blinked you missed it. The “it” here would be what Parks Sean Nichols assessment of these guidelines. Below you can see Canada likes to call its “public engagement” process regarding what former senior officials from Parks Canada felt about these guidelines for the development and use of the Lake Louise Ski guidelines in an open letter they wrote to the federal environment Area. Three weeks…that’s how much time Canadians had to minister…it’s far from flattering. comment on the guidelines, guidelines developed, in private, by - Ian Urquhart Parks Canada and Ski Lake Louise. Later in this issue you’ll read

Open letter to Canada’s Minister of the Environment

June 19, 2015

Honourable Leona Aglukkaq Minister of the Environment House of Commons Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6

Re: Lake Louise Ski Area Guidelines for Development and Use

Dear Minister:

As former senior national park staff, we are writing to ask you to stand up for the ecological integrity of Banff National Park and reconsider the proposed massive expansion of the Lake Louise Ski Area. The scale and scope of the proposal are unprecedented in a national park and at odds with the park’s purpose. The current ski hill proposal doubles the already large, on-hill skier capacity and increases the developed area by over 30%. It doubles parking, doubles the number of ski lifts, builds new lodges, and constructs water reservoirs for snow making. It supports the cutting down of white-bark pine, a species at risk. Despite this, Parks Canada is calling this proposal a “significant environmental gain”, an astonishing as- sertion contradicted by evidence. While there will be a reduction in the overall lease areas, these areas could not have been developed anyway merely because they were within the lease boundary. There is no real ecological gain and may be real ecological losses if fully implemented. The current proposal is acknowledged by Parks Canada to be in violation of the Canada National Parks Act, because it would expand the already-large ski area into legally-designated wilderness areas outside the current lease. The proposal is to amend the Act to allow more development in a designated wilderness area inside Canada’s premier national park. Banff is one of the oldest national parks in the world and a World Heritage Site, which Canada has pledged to the world to protect for its outstanding universal value. We wonder why the Parks Canada Agency charged with upholding and implementing the National Parks Act is championing a proposal to disregard it. The rationale given in the national Ski Area Guidelines for considering a lease reduction to be something that can be considered a “net environmental gain” is that the lands released will be protected as designated Wilderness and protected from the risk of future development. The fact that these site guidelines propose to take land already protected as Wilderness, that were never part of the ski area lease, and allow a lift, warming hut and glading to take place puts the lie to that assurance. As such, approving these site guidelines would create a shocking precedent that undermines the logic behind the Ski Area Guidelines and essentially makes all Wilderness vulnerable in future. We consider this to be extremely bad policy and a betrayal of assurances given to the Canadian people when the Canada National Parks Act was amended to provide for designated Wilderness and, again, when the national Ski Area Guidelines were approved. The science used in the Strategic Environmental Assessment of the Lake Louise proposal is outdated and incomplete. Because of a reduction in the Park’s science capacity, much of the information is old and the environmental assessment is not based on the collection of new site-specific information. We do already know that the existing ski hill development has significantly reduced the area’s mountain goat population; this was documented in the 1983 final report of the park’s Biophysical (Ecological) Land Classification. We do not know if the small remaining goat population can survive any new impact, and the site guidelines offer no thresholds or targets against which success or failure at restoring or maintain goat populations can be measured. We do know that the planting of the existing ski runs has created unique vegetation types that attract grizzly bears. We do not know what the impact of attracting bears to highly visited Lake Louise is on bear habituation and interactions with other areas in the park. Are Lake Louise bears the ones getting killed on the railway or becoming

20 WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES involved in human-wildlife conflicts? We know that grizzly bears are normally active in daylight hours but, at the Lake Louise ski resort, choose to move into open areas only after summer use ends each day. Yet the site guidelines propose to extend summer operating hours further into the evening hours and establish no targets or thresholds for displacement of wary wildlife. There are many other issues not addressed in the strategic environmental assessment. For example, there is no mention in the assessment of the World Heritage values that need to be protected, nor of cumulative impacts of existing ski area developments. The proposal supports large-scale development outside the existing lease, under licenses of occupation. Specifically the areas of the West Bowl and Hidden Bowl are Wilderness areas outside the ski area’s lease. They are important wildlife areas, and as legally required, should not be developed for commercial skiing. There are some excellent ideas in the ski hill proposal that can help manage some of the existing ecological problems in the Lake Louise area. The movement of the summer lodge higher up the mountain to avoid conflict between humans and bears is important for bears, although it might also reduce habitat quality for mountain goats. Similarly, ideas to strengthen the Whitehorn wildlife corridor are welcome. These are the ideas that a ski operation should strive for in a national park best practices that should already be required, not part of a “significant environmental gain.” In any case, they are good ideas in an overall plan that is ecologically negative. This proposal was developed in private between Ski Lake Louise and Parks Canada. We completely understand that it is in the commercial interest of Ski Lake Louise to ask for as much development as possible. We do not understand why Parks Canada would choose to become a proponent of this project without involving other stakeholders in the planning process - especially when some of the expansion proposals such as new development in Hidden Bowl will certainly reduce the quality of experience for existing users who travel from all around the world to experience undeveloped wilderness in the Skoki corridor. The scenic, noise, wildlife displacement and other impacts on quality visitor experiences would likely not have been discounted and placed secondary to the commercial interests of the leaseholder if representatives of other interest sectors had been involved in discussions earlier. The current process allows for a 3 week public comment period to comment on two major documents, the 86 page Lake Louise Ski Hill development Guidelines and the 170 page Strategic Environmental Assessment. These documents must be considered against the Banff Management Plan, the National Ski Areas Guidelines and Canada National Parks Act — both the letter of these laws and policies but also very much against their spirit and what they purport to offer all Canadians, not just ski resort patrons. Such a short comment period is not consistent with a desire for real public engagement, nor is it consistent with Parks Canada’s once-acclaimed reputation for meaningful consultation. More significantly the planning approach used here consists of “decide, announce and defend” and is not in keeping with meaningful engagement on the globally significant public values of Banff. So we ask that you set aside any further consideration of expansion of the ski resort beyond its current boundaries and suspend the seemingly inexorable approval of these ski hill guidelines. This suspension would allow for the opportunity for meaningful workshops with stakeholders and the public on what a good plan for the area would include. The current plan is simply an enormous ask from a private development interest, an assault on policy and legal protections that the people of Canada should be able to count on, and lacks perspective and balance. We would be pleased to discuss this important matter with you, and look forward to your response.

Sincerely, Stephen Woodley, PhD Former Chief Ecosystem Scientist, Parks Canada Kevin Van Tighem, Former Superintendent, Banff National Park, Parks Canada Nikita Lopoukhine, Former Director General, National Parks, Parks Canada Former Chair, World Commission on Protected Areas, IUCN Bruce Amos, Former Director General, National Parks, Parks Canada Theirry Bouin, Former Field Unit Superintendent at Fundy and La Mauricie National Parks Tom Kovacs, Former National Director, Natural Resources Conservation, Parks Canada Raymond Alègre, Ex-Directeur, Gestion du Portefeuille des Investissements, Parc Canada George Mercer, Former Jasper National Park Wildlife Specialist Murray McComb, Former Chief of Planning Studies, Parks Canada Gary Sealey, Former National Director Visitor Activities, Parks Canada Bert Crossman, Former Chief Park Interpreter, Kouchibouguac National Park

WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES 21A Thinking Mountains: An Interdisciplinary Initiative

By Niall Fink

he evening of May 5th , while modeling of glacial mass to the Blooms- “Interdisciplinary collaboration enriches results poured in across the bury aesthetic of George Mallory, the Ev- my own scholarship,” explains ecology T province and a new premier erest hero who famously declined to ex- professor David Hik, who, like Slemon, prepared her victory speech, one-hun- plain his attraction to the mountain with was key in conceiving and developing the dred-and-twenty people from as far away an infinitely quotable answer: “Because it’s event. For two decades, Hik has helped as Tajikistan and New Zealand packed a there.” No question got off quite so easi- bring “artists in residence” into his field conference room in Jasper and shut off ly at the conference. Dozens of papers on camps in southern Yukon. One of these their phones. They had gathered on Treaty class, masculinity, postcolonial politics, artists, Elena Johnson, released a book of 8 territory to think mountains. Elder Emil the history of science, and mountain aes- poetry, Field Notes For the Arctic Tundra, Moberly spoke the blessing, commencing thetics made a very compelling case that with Gasperau Press this spring. “As an the second “Thinking Mountains” confer- no mountain is ever just “there”—and, as ecologist I am trained to see mountains in ence. The moniker is inspired by Robert many at the conference would be quick to terms of biophysical processes,” says Hik. Bateman, who delivered the inaugural point out, it is doubtful that Mallory even “But I am not limited to that perspective. keynote at the first conference in 2012. gave this answer anyway. Mountains are It is always enlightening to see how others Bateman explored what “thinking like a far from simple. see the same things and experience field mountain” means in a future that would The range of perspectives was extraordi- research, through different lenses.” have been difficult for Aldo Leopold to nary. At a packed plenary on the second The Canadian Mountain Studies initia- conceive of when he coined the phrase morning, glaciologist Jeffrey Kavanaugh tive, the organization behind Thinking in 1949. “Mountains are at the centre of painted an alarming picture of glacial re- Mountains, was launched just five years many of the most pressing issues concern- treat and rising sea levels in the coming ago. Slemon, Hik and mountaineering his- ing the environment and sustainability,” century; an entire session was devoted to torian Zac Robinson had discovered that a says Stephen Slemon, a professor of En- the projected and current impacts of re- surprising number of faculty members at glish and one of the conference’s key or- treating glaciers on ecosystems and hu- the university were mountain specialists ganizers. man communities. Other presentations within their different fields. They gathered Spread over four days, Thinking Moun- explored how citizen science created the input, and eventually brought together tains 2015 featured more than one hun- discipline that gives us these models; still an informal gathering of academics at the dred presentations, workshops, and ple- others, the emergence of a fascination with University of Alberta Faculty Club in the naries on subjects ranging from numerical glaciers as more than just “remote oddi- Fall of 2010. The meeting they organized ties with little geological significance.” that fall was a “casual, come-one-come- In Thomas Wharton’s novel Icefields, a all gathering” to talk about research, says fictional glacier retreats across the novel, Robinson. The turnout exceeded any shaping human dramas and histories with its movement.

22 WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES expectations. “Everyone was excited to core curriculum. an interest in mountains. Mountain Stud- meet,” Robinson says. “Everybody was ac- A major step toward that vision was un- ies 101 will be the first course of its kind tually keen to talk to each other, and in veiled at Thinking Mountains this year. anywhere in the word. significant sorts of ways. We all realized Mountain Studies 101 is a new Massively “Our vision is that students at every lev- that afternoon that, collectively, we had Open Online Course (MOOC) that pro- el can come to the University of Alberta something special.” vides an interdisciplinary introduction to to study mountains from across the disci- Interdisciplinary “mountain studies” the mountain world, drawing from envi- plines,” says Slemon. programs exist at several US colleges but ronmental science, earth sciences, arts, the Canadian Mountain Studies Initiative and humanities. When finished, in 2016, Niall Fink received his MA from the is the first of its kind in this country. In the course will be available for credit at University of Alberta in June 2015. addition to connecting researchers, the the University of Alberta. Its learning He is an all-around mountain enthu- Initiative aims to make “mountain stud- materials will also be available for free to siast and writer. ies” part of the University of Alberta’s anyone with an internet connection and

Featured Artist Philip Kanwischer

Current Taking a stand

Perched Swoon

WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | FEATURES 23A Anna Caddel… Winner of AWA’s Calgary Youth Science Fair Award

Helen Jull presented Anna Caddel with AWA’s “Wild Alberta” award at the 2015 Cal- gary Youth Science Fair for her project on how urban development affects wetlands. In a very thoughtful letter to AWA Anna wrote that this was her first science fair and her first award. Congratulations Anna!

Louise Guy Poetry Wilderness Pass your boondock smile another shimmer of sun, Contest 2015 woodpeckers knock I share it Winner and we enter with the trees wilderness of firs AWA is very pleased to announce that Ben Murray of Edmonton won the 2015 backpack sweat forget what’s left Louise Guy Poetry Contest. His poem is and stiffened limbs, behind, nothing now reprinted below and we hope you enjoy a day wandering but breath of bear it as much as our judges’ did. in wonder sun’s sigh bark eternity under green canopy, under eye of tonight’s moon our tracks pace we rest yesterday’s moose, we walk upon pine needle beds its shaggy shadow arms open, we embrace listen: quiet only woods a visible forest can make, our whispers of stars rustling leaves By Ben Murray

24 WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | ASSOCIATION NEWS AWA Kids’ Camp Preview

By Brittany Verbeek, AWA Conservation Specialist

I’m sure many of you have heard of “na- edgeable presentations to their parents learning about wildlife, wetlands, grasses, ture-deficit disorder,” a phrase coined by and AWA staff at the end of the week on a and how humans and grazers impact native Richard Louv in his 2005 book Last Child in theme chosen and researched by them. The grasslands. Camp activities will include craft the Woods. Over the years, AWA has hosted campers were one impressive group; they making, special guests, outdoor activities, talks on the subject as well as written about have continued to take their conservation field trips, and wilderness projects. We have it in Wild Lands Advocate. The term refers messages to their schools and an occasional several returning campers as well as some to people, especially children, spending less visit to the AWA office! brand new to the program. I’m excited to time outdoors. This disconnect from nature A large focus of this year’s program will be spend time and get to know them all, and has resulted in many behavioural and health on grassland ecosystem education through will be sure to report back in a fall Wildlands problems. Richard Louv provides evidence activities and hands on experiences. AWA Advocate issue with more photos and a sum- of the relationship between this disconnect campers will become little ‘prairie fairies’ mary of the two awesome weeks! and the rise of child obesity, increases in attention-deficit disorder, and increases in logged hours on household computers and televisions. To me, the good news about this kind of growing epidemic is there’s a fairly simple solution that does not require medi- cation or doctor visits.

Get kids outdoors and in nature! Come hang out at AWA’s Wilderness De- fenders Kids Day Camp. The camp’s vision is to foster the campers’ appreciation for nature and to inspire youth into action towards helping protect our wild water, wild lands, and wildlife. Our goal is to ensure a safe, fun atmosphere while instilling a love of being active and outdoors. The learning comes naturally - as if through osmosis - in a fun, interactive, hands-on setting. It is also meant to encourage independent thought and intel- lectual curiosity while at the same time cul- tivating relationships and team cooperation. We are about to launch our second annual kids camp this July and August. Last year’s week-long pilot program was a tremendous success with eight wonderful campers. Every camper made amazingly knowl-

WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | ASSOCIATION NEWS 25A Another Tremendous Success: AWA’s 24th Annual Climb and Run For Wilderness By Sean Nichols, AWA Conservation Specialist

A trumpet fanfare by local musician Chris “The 24th climb and run for Wilderness of the tower, raising awareness and mon- Morrison and a few words from City of Cal- has been without a doubt the most exciting ey – $105,000 and counting – for the con- gary Councillor Gian-Carlo Carra and Dr. and rewarding Earth Day Celebration we servation of Alberta’s wildlife, wild lands, David Swann, candidate for Calgary Moun- have had the honour to present. Our new- and wild waters. Event supporters West tainview kicked off the 24th annual Climb est element, the power hour, was an out- Direct Courier and The Carbon Farmer and Run for Wilderness bright and early on standing success and we continue to spread have teamed up to plant a thousand trees a perfect spring day. The more than 1,200 this event’s reach around the world,” says in northern Alberta, one for every person participants included ten elite athletes from AWA Executive Director Christyann Olson. who reached the top! across the world competing in the Tower- “We could not realize this success without This year the AWA and the Calgary Tower running World Cup, babies in backpacks, the Calgary Towers amazing staff and the were proud to celebrate the addition of an Calgarians from all walks of life taking part more than 100 volunteers that bring a vi- exciting new component to the event – the a fun Saturday family event, as well as dig- brancy that is Calgary.” power hour! This elite event challenged nitaries including Vice-Consul Lee Wilbur For the past 24 years the Climb and Run competitors to see how many circuits of the from the U.S. Consulate General and long- for Wilderness has been celebrating Alber- tower (up the stairs and back down) they time climb supporter Richard Guy, who ta’s wild water, wild lands and wildlife. This could complete in one hour. The Climb turned 98 this year. year 1,000 people ascended the 802 stairs and Run for Wilderness power hour is the

26 WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | ASSOCIATION NEWS only event in Canada to be recognized as Climb for Wilderness having been held on berta Expo – plenty of music, games and a Premium Event qualifying for the Tow- Earth Day in 1992. Since then the day has entertainment, and cultural aspects such as errunning World Cup, the worldwide ac- grown from a simple ascent of the tower a poetry competition and a mural painting knowledged ranking for stair racers. The to incorporate 5 athletic events including competition that have turned the stairway power hour attracted participants from a 1km road race, a family-friendly “fun of the Calgary Tower into the “tallest art across Canada, the United States and even climb”, a four-hour endurance climb, a gallery in the west” with nature themed team challenge, and now the power hour. murals all the way up the tower’s 802 stairs. Germany. Winners Görge Heimann (the #8 Teams in the team challenge ranged from There were also more than more than 30 ranked tower runner worldwide) and Ve- corporate teams including teams from Sun- booths transforming the base of the tower ronica Stocker each took home a first prize cor, Tetra Tech EBA, and four teams from into the wild and imaginative experience of $US 500. Cenovus Energy, to family fun-climb teams that is the Wild Alberta Expo, where every- This elite component added an appealing such as “The Winded Whiners” and “The one young and old was able learn about all new dimension to an event that is already Young and the Breathless.” the groups working hard to protect Alber- long-established in Calgary, with the first There was also an eco-fair – the Wild Al- ta’s wild spaces and wildlife.

WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | ASSOCIATION NEWS 27A Updates

Drones in Canada’s In June 2014, the US National Park Service ment by Parks Canada. For them to have National Parks took the step of banning UAVs in national been developed in any case would have Look up! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s… sur- parks, save for their use under the auspices implied questionable future actions on the prisingly close to the ground and making a of a special use permit. AWA would like to part of Parks, ones that would run contrary lot of noise! see a similar step taken by Parks Canada. to that agency’s core mandate of maintaining There’s no denying the recent surge in pop- - Sean Nichols ecological integrity. ularity of stunning videos and other forms of Make no mistake about it. The land pro- photography taken from Unmanned Aerial Proposed Lake Louise Ski posed for removal from the leasehold is in- Vehicles (UAVs, also known as “drones” or Area Expansion: A shell deed – as is claimed – ecologically valuable “quadcopters”) as they swoop through the game 34 years in the alpine habitat for sensitive species includ- air on their flybys of cities and other land- making granted you mere ing grizzly bears, wolverines and mountain scapes. days to respond goats. But so too are the areas proposed for But like with any technology, inappropri- After 34 years, Parks Canada released draft addition to the resort and developed as “ski- ate or excessive use of UAVs may be harm- development guidelines for the Lake Louise able areas” (complete with at least one or ful. Few studies have examined specifically Ski Area. It then gave you three weeks to two new ski lifts). the effects of drone noise on wildlife. How- comment on them. I’m writing this as if you Parks Canada’s approach to these develop- ever, the decibel levels of UAVs can be sig- still had time to participate in the public en- ment guidelines screams “entitlement.” The nificant and comparable to levels that have gagement process. I think this style under- entire document is based on the assumption been demonstrated to be harmful. This pres- lines well just how insufficient and ill-con- that the ski area operator has a “right” to ents a serious problem especially when you sidered the Parks Canada approach to this develop on the site. Of course they have no consider that many drones could be used in very significant development was. such thing, rather AWA reminds Parks Can- a single area and they could fly close enough Read through them and you may be ada that the prerogative to develop should to wildlife to frighten them. We know that tempted to see them as an impressive feat be properly regarded as a privilege conferred drones have disturbed herds of bighorn of “bait-and-switch.” We’ve seen this story on the operator by virtue of being grandfa- sheep in Zion National Park in Utah. before, most notably with the Marmot Ba- thered into the park management plans. Part of the drone problem also stems from sin Ski Area in Jasper National Park. The the diverse array of UAVs available on the proposed guidelines still may be viewed at What are the tradeoffs? market. Drones come in a wide variety of dif- http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/pn-np/ab/banff/plan Parks Canada has to claim there are im- ferent models, all with different capabilities, /gestion-management/lakelouise.aspx portant environmental gains here. With- flight modes, altitude potentials, and noise By swapping a number of wilderness areas out that claim there’s absolutely no shred levels. There is currently no general regu- in and out of leasehold territory, Parks Can- of support for the development guidelines. lation governing this emerging technology. ada claims to have realized “environmental The agency writes: “The four substantial en- According to Parks Canada, they currently gains” that then are used to justify exempt- vironmental gains make it possible to con- consider UAVs to fall under regulations gov- ing the leaseholder from the Ski Area Man- sider the following exceptions to the Site erning aircraft, which would be sufficient agement Guidelines. The result? It looks to Guidelines.” (my emphasis) Parks Canada’s to prevent them from disrupting wildlife. me like significantly expanded activities and 2006 Ski Area Management Guidelines, the While AWA hopes Parks Canada’s opinion developed area. governing policy document for the manage- is on firm legal ground this approach may Somehow a 30 percent increase to the ski- ment of ski areas in all mountain national invite litigation. able area and a 92 percent increase to the parks, clearly dictates that exceptions to the With the exploding popularity of UAVs number of daily visitors count as an “envi- guidelines can only be granted “if there are and UAV-based photography, AWA would ronmental gain.” Impressive. Substantial Environmental Gains.” like to see regulations enacted now to spe- The Lake Louise Ski Resort hopes to be cifically address this technology and how it Environmental gains? granted several exceptions in return for may be used. The problem is that many of the claimed those gains. They are: UAV-based photography has great poten- gains don’t necessarily actually exist. They • a 356 hectare expansion to the skiable tial to showcase the beauty of parks and consist of undeveloped and largely un- area in the West and Hidden Bowls (these wilderness areas, when performed sparing- touched land being removed from the ski hectares lie outside the current lease and ly and responsibly. However it also could area’s leasehold. This land would not have contain habitat arguably as valuable as be very damaging to those same parks and been subject to unfettered development; it what the leaseholder would relinquish) wilderness if UAV use becomes a free-for-all. still would have been subject to manage- • 111 hectares of added skiable area within

28 WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | WILDERNESS WATCH the current leasehold; Call now – operators are derness team crossed the finish line in style • expanded summer use; standing by! at the 51st Calgary Marathon on May 31. • a new summer-use lodge; Okay, I should call this section “Don’t Call Composed of AWA board members, staff, • two new ski lifts; Now – Operators Aren’t Standing By Any- members, family, and friends, the team got • additional parking capacity (expanded more.” The procedural approach Parks Cana- together on that warm spring morning to from 1,176 spaces to 3,256 spaces); and da took was very, very wanting. If you’d been show some spirit, get some exercise, and • a near doubling of the lift capacity (from able to read this before the deadline came and raise money for Alberta’s wilderness. 6,000 skiers per day to 11,500 skiers went here’s what I would have said… Raise money they did: collectively the per day). Also an egregious procedural problem team raised over $5,000 through fundrais- AWA has serious apprehensions about with the draft guidelines is the consultation ing efforts, with proceeds going to AWA. A many of those proposals. We are always process. A long-range plan for the ski area fabulous incentive prize, donated by team concerned about expanded summer use was released in 1981, with an expectation member Kevin Van Tighem, helped the in any ski resort and, in this case, the vast- that permanent development guidelines fundraising along. Anyone who donated ly expanded year-round capacity is equally would soon follow. They didn’t. $50 or more had their name entered into a problematic. The proposed Hidden Bowl So we’ve been waiting 34 years for some draw for a stay at Kevin’s wilderness cabin development is especially concerning; it is action on developing guidelines. Now they along with a hike into the magnificent Bob a wilderness area outside the sight lines of are suddenly released – without any warn- Creek Wildland. Out of the 47 qualifying the current ski hill and should remain un- ing or advance notice – and the public has donors, Leanne Willoughby of Benalto was developed. a mere three weeks to read and digest the the lucky winner! It is particularly distressing that there are 89-page document and to respond. After a Along with Kevin, the various team mem- no specific mitigation measures required 34 year hiatus the public gets a measly three- bers ran a collective 269km, competing in (beyond the development of a strategy that week consultation period. By the way, three four different events including the 10k run, “addresses concerns”) for the additional traf- weeks is the absolute minimum required marathon, ultra marathon, and the kids’ fic along the resort access road. This road period according to Parks Canada policy. marathon. The latter was contested by two itself cuts through and disrupts sensitive Then there are the open houses. There are team members, Michael and Annika Pugh, wildlife habitat in the form of the White- three of them. They meet for seven and one- with Annika being the youngest member of horn Wildlife Corridor – the draft guide- half hours in total. If you don’t live in or the AWA team at 5 years of age. lines claim to protect this area. There is a can’t travel to Calgary, Banff, or Lake Louise Congratulations to Annika, Kevin, and all contingency for “measures to manage visitor you’re out of luck. the team members and a special thanks to all access and maintain vehicle disturbances at Frankly, this is insulting. It gives a strong the donors who raised funds to help protect levels below 30 vehicles per hour” on the ac- impression that the entire plan is a fait-ac- Alberta’s wild lands, wild waters and wildlife. cess road. However, this would only apply compli waiting to receive the rubber-stamp - Sean Nichols in the event the operator chooses to extend of approval. We do not see any rational operations even further than those nominal- ecological need for this sudden rush to ly delineated by the draft guidelines. These bring this into existence after decades of visitor/vehicle access measures should be re- waiting,and are arguing for a more lengthy quired no matter what. consultation period. For goodness sake, give There are also plans to reconfigure the the public ample time to consider the guide- existing developments to bring summer lines. In the meantime, AWA will be submit- use out of the lower elevations that are fre- ting our response, including those concerns quented by grizzly bears and to improve outlined above. snowmaking processes to reduce water In the absence of any revision to the con- withdrawals from local watercourses during sultation period, feedback will be accepted low-flow periods. until midnight on June 21. AWA encourag- These are positive steps as far as they go, es the public to voice their concerns during and AWA generally supports them. We this short window of opportunity. believe all activities (not just summer use) - Sean Nichols should be moved to higher-elevation areas and likewise that water withdrawals should be reduced at all times of year, not just AWA’s Runners for during low-flow periods. Water flows in the Wilderness Turn in Pipestone River and Corral Creek provide Strong Finish at Calgary important ecosystem function even during Marathon spring floods and other times of higher flow. Sporting distinctive bright yellow shirts, Runners for Wilderness Team Members the ten members of AWA’s Runner’s for Wil- PHOTO: © C. OLSON

WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | WILDERNESS WATCH 29A Reader’s Corner

Robert Boschman and here that questions of economic and environmental died from E. coli. Not all forms of E. coli are toxic. Mario Trono (ed.), Found justice are intricately connected to our answerabil- But a strain such as E. coli O157:H7 is exceeding- in Alberta: Environmental ity for degrading the environment. Environmental ly toxic to humans. Boschman uses his traumatic family experience (thankfully his girls recovered Themes for the Anthropocene stewardship, and environmental justice, would be (Waterloo: Wilfrid Laurier University relatively simple if individual communities, indus- completely from their infection) to highlight just Press, 2014). tries and nations were amenable to changing their how fictional the nature-culture dichotomy has Reviewed by Dr. Herb Kariel plan trajectories through ecological space and time become. The threat posed by this “natural” toxin where new scientific findings suggest a different is very much exacerbated by some of the practices Dr. Herb Kariel, more sustainable way. But a commitment to indus- in the beef industry. This is a position the industry retired Professor trialization and commercial growth will deny that in the U.S. has fought against. It argues that the of Geography, toxin is natural and therefore consumers just need University of Calgary, possible future. and AWA Board They echo what has become a common observa- to cook their beef properly. Our activities, our cul- Member Emeritus tion of the federal Conservatives’ style of governing. tures, nurture some aspects of the natural world Prime Minister Harper has prevented the free-flow and cripple or destroy others. This is an informa- of scientific knowledge from reaching the public The oil sands figure significantly and not surpris- tive, important, and since it may interfere with that commitment to eco- ingly in this collection. Geo Takach opens the Bitu- timely book. Its six- nomic growth. The problem there is that this com- minous Sands section with an essay examining the teen chapters (plus in- mitment’s view of the future is restricted to futures video battle between government/industry, on the troduction) are orga- markets, not to ecological futures. This introduction one hand, and independent filmmakers/activists, nized into six parts: Found in Alberta, Bituminous and the remainder of the collection insist this orien- on the other. The bituminous sands or in politically Sands, Policy and Legal Perspectives, Wilderness, tation must change. correct terms- the oil sands – provide a significant and Shared Horizons. Let me start out by saying Lorelei Hanson opens the Found in Alberta sec- share of Alberta’s budget revenues (19 percent in the this book of essays resulted from a conference held tion with an essay on land trusts. It explores the 2012-13 budget). Optimists suggest the bitumen at Mount Royal University in 2010. It generally fo- social human-nature interaction enabled and pro- royalty will deliver huge amounts of money for the cuses on people’s impact on and relationship with moted by the private property ethic central to land Alberta government in the future. Exploiting the the environment. The context is Alberta and the trusts. They are non-profit organizations and a new sands also requires excavating, two tons of earth and focus is the current geological age – the Anthropo- form of privatized conservation that may protect using six to eight barrels of water in order to pro- cene. The Anthropocene is the age where human conservation values on private land through fee duce one barrel of synthetic crude oil. None of the activities constitute the dominant influence on our simple purchase, property management, and the water is returnable to the water shed. Refining the environment. It’s impossible to do justice to the acquisition of partial rights or interests in the land crude generates about three times more greenhouse substance of these essays in this review but I will through mechanisms such as conservation ease- gases per barrel than conventional oil refining and try to give you a very small taste of what you’ll find ments. Land trusts have existed for many years each day oil sands operations burn enough natural when you pick up this collection by briefly com- but have grown with the enthusiasm for neo-lib- gas to heat six million homes. Alberta’s environmen- menting on some, not all, of the contributions. I’m eral, market-driven “solutions” to problems. There tal reputation, and by extension Canada’s, is under sorry this brief review does not cover more of this are currently 170 organizations involved in private siege and the international public relations battle of book’s worthy chapters. land conservation. The Federal government’s Eco- images is escalating. The Introduction “Alberta and the Anthropocene” logical Gifts Program, launched in 1995, enables Takach uses the idea of place branding in his offers brief synopses of the essays that follow it. It people to receive tax credits for donating outright article. This involves presenting a favourable also deals with greenhouse gas levels and the fact title or an interest in properties. It’s regarded as key shorthand image of a place and what one actor or they have risen to far above their pre-industrial- to the rapid expansion of this type of conservation another wants it to be known for. It’s an age-old ization levels. The proof of this rests in the records mechanism. The principle behind these trusts is idea that some might simply call propaganda. It’s from bygone atmospheres preserved in sea ice. The that individuals can use private property in ways becoming increasingly central to the global econ- Anthropocene also has produced an increased rate that are economically and ecologically profitable. omy, networked as it is, in which jurisdictions of extinction of animals and plants. For example: as These land trust organizations in Alberta vary in compete aggressively for a limited pool of people, carbon dioxide from the atmosphere has dissolved size and their ability to manage the land and ac- and investment/tourism dollars. In Takach’s study into the oceans the acidity of those waters has in- quire new land. They also vary according to their place branding is a duel between ideas of how Al- creased. The global coral reef system likely cannot transparency and their ability to respond to local berta should be perceived. Economic and environ- be saved - a very sad reality. Crucially, market forc- communities. mental images clash with respect to the tar sands. es, increased population growth, and technological Robert Boschman’s article on E. coli is sparked In 2008 the provincial government launched a change have accelerated the Anthropocene. The by very personal, nearly tragic circumstances. His three-year, $25 million dollar campaign to rebrand editors, Robert Boschman and Mario Trono, assert young daughters were infected and could have for the province. The core image was of a place

30 WLA | June 2015 | Vol. 23, No. 3 | DEPARTMENTS where people have the “freedom to create, spirit to encourage and foster a greater sense of environ- is discouraging. Wilderness advocates have won few to achieve.” This was intended to counter the per- mental citizenship in Alberta. By environmental cit- substantive victories and have been most successful ception of Alberta as a producer of dirty oil that izenship the authors mean “a sense of belonging to in securing procedural outcomes – forcing an envi- activists and independent filmmakers conveyed. a larger community.” As the project team developed ronmental assessment or disclosing access to infor- T.R. Kover’s essay asks the question: Are the oil their efforts to engage citizens on the subject of cli- mation. Fluker wonders if the reluctance of the law sands sublime? Do they conjure that mixture of dis- mate change they realized how important problem to preserve wilderness might not be rooted in the turbing and alluring essential to the sublime? Kover solving and capacity building were at the local level. combination of government indifference to wilder- is unsettled by the prospect that Edward Burtynsky’s People wanted information about what they could ness and framing wilderness as public policy. This photographs of the oil sands could constitute the do to reduce their carbon footprints. This led to in- combination gives indifferent officials tighter con- sublime. They may lead us to apathy, to evading re- creased attention to how to shift Alberta’s energy use trol over what matters so much to advocates such sponsibility for the environmental destruction of ex- habits in more renewable directions and revitalize as AWA. He invites us to reconsider the normative, ploiting the oil sands. Surely the feelings one might rural communities. the “should be,” dimension of the law and how it take from Burtynsky’s photographs would be much The last essay to be considered here is Shaun has helped to define our relationship to wild spaces different than our reaction if we were in the position Fluker’s contribution to the section entitled Wilder- and species. to witness the smashing of the boreal face-to-face. ness. In “Defending the Wild” Fluker examines how This invitation sits at the ideational centre of “Fostering Environmental Citizenship,” by Lysack, wilderness advocates, be they individuals such as thjs collection. It is part of the book’s broader and Thibault, and Powell, traces the history of “Alber- his client Mike Judd or organizations like AWA, use important call for Albertans to rethink their place ta Acts on Climate Change,” one project designed the legal system to pursue their interests. The record in nature. Summer Events

Backpack Trip: Bighorn Trip and Trail Monitoring (1) Tuesday July 14, 2015 – Friday July 17, 2015 Join AWA on a multi-day volunteering / backpacking trip to the Bighorn Wildland and be a part of the trail monitoring work we are undertaking as part of our Bighorn Wildland Recreational Monitoring Project! The area we will be going to is near the Ram Falls Provincial Park in the Upper Clearwater / Ram PLUZ of the Bighorn Wildland. This will be a 4 day / 3 night trip (depending on weather, on how fast we go, on how much monitoring work there is, etc.) and involve ~35km of mostly easy walking including many creek crossings; there are optional more challenging side hikes if people are up to it. It will involve a volunteer component that will include visual monitoring and recording, photographing, and measuring of conditions with timestamp / GPS, etc. Training is provided for all of the volunteer tasks. Difficulty rating: Moderate (not steep but long) Cost: $50 Pre-registration required: (403) 283-2025 Online: www.GoWildAlberta.ca/hikes

Backpack Trip: Bighorn Trip and Trail Monitoring (1) Backpack Trip: Bighorn Trip and Trail Monitoring (2) Friday August 14, 2015 – Sunday August 16, 2015 Join AWA on a multi-day volunteering / backpacking trip to the Bighorn Wildland and be a part of the trail monitoring work we are undertaking as part of our Bighorn Wildland Recreational Monitoring Project! The area we will be going to is near the Ram Falls Provincial Park in the Upper Clearwater / Ram PLUZ of the Bighorn Wildland. This will be a 3 day / 2 night trip (depending on weather, on how fast we go, on how much monitoring work there is, etc.) and involve ~35km of mostly easy walking including many creek crossings; there are optional more challenging side hikes if people are up to it. It will involve a volunteer component that will include visual monitoring and recording, photographing, and measuring of conditions with timestamp / GPS, etc. Training is provided for all of the volunteer tasks. Difficulty rating: Moderate (not steep but long) Cost: $50 Pre-registration required: (403) 283-2025 Online: www.GoWildAlberta.ca/hikes

Hike: Hand Hills with Tim Schowalter Sunday July 26, 2015 Join Tim Schowalter on a wander about this knob and kettle landscape, one of the few remaining northern fescue intact grasslands in Alberta. Its unique plants and animals will make for a lovely day of observing and learning. Difficulty rating: Moderate Cost: $20 AWA members, $25 non-members Pre-registration required: (403) 283-2025 Online: www.GoWildAlberta.ca/hikes

For a complete list of AWA hikes and tours go to: gowildalberta.ca/product-category/hikes-tours/ 31 Return Undeliverable Canadian Addresses to:

Alberta Wilderness Association Box 6398, Station D Calgary, Alberta T2P 2E1 [email protected]

Canadian Publications Mail Product Sales Agreement No. 40065626 ISSN 485535