Garibaldi Protected Area Complex Conservation Assessment March 2019 Prepared for Garibaldi Protected Area Complex Conservation Assessment Citation: Wright, P. Confluence ~ Conservation Science and Practice. 2019. Garibaldi Protected Area Complex Conservation Assessment. Report prepared for BC Parks. Cover Page Photo Credit: Iain Robert Reid Table of Contents Why assess the conservation status of protected areas? ........................................................................... 1 Why Start with Complexes? .................................................................................................................... 2 Methods ..................................................................................................................................................... 3 The Garibaldi Complex ................................................................................................................................ 4 State of the Complex .................................................................................................................................. 6 Context, Design and Connectivity ........................................................................................................... 6 Changing Climates means Further Challenges ........................................................................................ 9 Garibaldi Provincial Park ........................................................................................................................... 15 Ecological/Natural Heritage Values ....................................................................................................... 15 Threats Assessment .............................................................................................................................. 18 Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Conservation Values ........................................................... 20 Mkwal’ts Conservancy .............................................................................................................................. 25 Ecological/Natural Heritage Values ....................................................................................................... 25 Threats Assessment .............................................................................................................................. 28 Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Conservation Values ........................................................... 30 Golden Ears Provincial Park ...................................................................................................................... 33 Ecological/Natural Heritage Values ....................................................................................................... 33 Threats Assessment .............................................................................................................................. 34 Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Conservation Values ........................................................... 36 Pinecone Burke Provincial Park................................................................................................................. 39 Ecological/Natural Heritage Values ....................................................................................................... 39 Threats Assessment .............................................................................................................................. 41 Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Conservation Values ........................................................... 43 Recommendations .................................................................................................................................... 46 Conclusions ............................................................................................................................................... 50 Appendix A ................................................................................................................................................ 51 Appendix B ................................................................................................................................................ 53 Sources ..................................................................................................................................................... 56 List of Tables 1. Conservation Values and Ecological Condition in Garibaldi Park .........................................16 2. Garibaldi Park Internal and External Threats .......................................................................20 3. Mkwal’ts Conservation Values and Ecological Condition .....................................................25 4. Mkwal’ts Internal and External Threats ...............................................................................29 5. Golden Ears Conservation Values and Ecological Condition ................................................34 6. Golden Ears Internal and External Threats ...........................................................................35 7. Pinecone Burke Conservation Values and Ecological Condition...........................................40 8. Pinecone Burke Internal and External Threats .....................................................................41 9. Summarized Rankings from Management Effectiveness Evaluations ..................................48 10. Staffing Estimates for Garibaldi Complex .............................................................................49 List of Figures 1. Protected Areas Management Effectiveness Framework ....................................................1 2. Canadian Protected Areas Are Small ....................................................................................6 3. Glacial Retreat in Garibaldi Provincial Park and Stave Glacier .............................................11 4. Biogeoclimatic Zone Projections ..........................................................................................13 5. Disappearing Climates, Novel Climates and Potential Biotic Refuges ..................................14 6. Garibaldi Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Conservation Values ...........................21 7. Mkwal’ts Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Conservation Values ...........................31 8. Golden Ears Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Conservation Values ......................36 9. Pinecone Burke Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Conservation Values .................43 List of Maps 1. Park Complexes ....................................................................................................................2 2. Garibaldi Complex in Context ..............................................................................................5 3. Effective Habitat in the Garibaldi Protected Area Complex .................................................7 4. Regional Landscape Resistance ............................................................................................8 5. Connectivity Corridors to Adjacent Protected Areas ...........................................................9 6. Percent of Glaciated Watersheds ........................................................................................10 7. Garibaldi Complex Habitat and Occurrence Records for Species of Concern.......................17 8. Invasive Plant Reports ..........................................................................................................18 9. Human Footprint Adjacent to Garibaldi Provincial Park ......................................................19 10. Mkwal’ts Conservancy Conservation Features ....................................................................26 11. Mkwalt’s Forest Harvesting .................................................................................................28 Garibaldi Complex Conservation Assessment Why assess the conservation status of protected areas? Parks and protected areas are designed to The global Convention on Biodiversity commits protect the ecological values of Canada’s signatories (including Canada) to not only terrestrial, aquatic, marine and cultural sites significantly increase designation of terrestrial while providing incredible opportunities for and marine protected areas by 2020 but to recreation. In British Columbia, there are more ensure these areas are “effectively and 8 than 1000 areas designated as Provincial Parks, equitably managed” . More specifically, it commits signatories to evaluate and improve Protected Areas, Conservancies or Ecological the effectiveness of protected areas Reserves. Across Canada, there are a number of management. In 2018, the Canadian National initiatives aimed at enhancing and developing Advisory Panel on achieving Canada’s networks of protected areas. While increases in conservation vision recommended that all quantity of area protected is important, the Canadian protected areas jurisdictions complete scientific literature shows that it is the quality of management effectiveness evaluations for protected areas that matters more than 100% of their areas by 2030. In 2018, BC Parks quantity1. made a commitment to begin this initiative through the Ministry of Environment and Growing concern about the effectiveness of Climate Change Canada Service Plan starting protected areas in meeting objectives such as with a conservation assessment of the Garibaldi 2–5 biodiversity conservation has led to initiatives Complex. to examine protected