Another big ski resort is being proposed for sensitive wildlife habitat in the kootenays.The proposed Zincton Resort is a massive ski resort development that would cover 55 square kilometres of the Central Selkirk mountains between Kaslo and New Denver and borders Goat Range Provincial Park. The proposed resort (Proposal Link) passed the first stage of review from the BC Mountain Resorts Branch, and is now in the public comment period phase until November 23.
Irreversible Impacts on WildlifeThe resort proposal risks severing a crucial connectivity link and impacting core habitat for grizzly bears. Intensive all-season usage will displace grizzlies from important huckleberry dense habitat vital for inland grizzly bears. Resorts and resort towns are known to be bear sinkholes that attract and ultimately lead to their demise.
The area is also habitat for sensitive species active during the winter including wolverines and mountain goats, and endangered mountain caribou before being extirpated. The proposed resort is within an area that is amongst the highest wolverine density areas in the West Kootenay. The project will result in habitat loss for females in particular, who avoid high levels of human activity. Mountain goats are also well documented to be highly sensitive to human disturbance, especially in the critical winter months.
Adding a +1,200 person/day resort will greatly increase traffic volumes on the Highway 31A corridor and could result in the loss of wolverine connectivity across Highway 31A.
Simply put, an all-season resort is a net loss of habitat for some of BC’s most iconic species. No habitat, no wildlife.
Loss of Access to Public LandThese public lands are used by backcountry enthusiasts for various activities including recreation, hunting, trapping, and gathering. The Zincton proposal would impact the current access indefinitely. As commercial tenures expand across the province, backcountry recreationists are continually facing conflicts with tenure owners in prime recreation areas. A cumulative effects assessment and regional recreational plans can help alleviate these concerns.
Land-based reconciliationThe governments of Canada and British Columbia have committed to truth and reconciliation with Indigenous people. The Zincton resort proposal lies within piq kiʔláwnaʔ, an important traditional use area named after the rare white grizzly. Consent for this significant change in land use has not been provided by First Nations.
Enough is EnoughThe Central Selkirk Mountains are the most heavily-tenured adventure tourism area in BC. Intensive backcountry development and recreation are already stressing sensitive wildlife populations. The proposed area overlaps with two existing tenures: Retallack cat skiing and Stellar Heliskiing and there are more pending tenure applications in the works. More development in the backcountry will intensify human encroachment on this landscape. The cumulative impacts on the ecosystem and socio-economic impacts to the small rural communities in the area have not yet been assessed.
The province’s Mountain Resorts Branch process is flawed and considers developments in a one-off review process. Modern land use planning needs to consider cumulative impacts on the land, water and wildlife.
Please take the time to speak up and protect our wild public lands, waters, and wildlife.
Submit your comments (File 4406015) to the Mountain Resorts Branch public engagement portal open until November 23, 2021.
comment.nrs.gov.bc.ca/applications?clidDtid=4406015&id=61718b9cd7260600227912f0#details
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If you live in Nelson-Creston or Kootenay West, take it a step further and email your local MLA:
Brittny Anderson, Nelson-Creston –
brittny.anderson.MLA@leg.bc.caKatrine Conroy, Kootenay West MLA – Minister of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development –
Katrine.Conroy.MLA@leg.bc.caSUBJ: Zincton Resort
British Columbia BHA
www.backcountryhunters.org/
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Topic: Huge Ski Resort proposed for the Kootenays (Read 1329 times)