Unit 2

Natural Attractions

Alberta Education Outcome

Lesson 8: Impact Regulations

"I felt my lungs inflate with the on-rush of scenery - air, mountains, trees, people. I thought, 'This is what it is to be happy.'" ~ Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar


Each year, Alberta parks receive more than 8.5 million visits. Many of these parks facilities were built in the 1970s for a population that has since doubled in size. Some facilities are now at or exceeding capacity and some no longer meet current environmental, health, and safety standards. The Government of Alberta has begun to address the most critical needs, and from 2004 - 2009, it committed close to $200 million to upgrade park infrastructure.

Also, the kinds of outdoor experiences tourists are seeking have changed. Campgrounds now need to accommodate large trailers, designate trails for access to off-highway vehicles, and include facilities with minimal physical, social, and financial barriers.

Ministerial Orders have been introduced to monitor fees for services and provide for temporary park closures, travel restrictions, liquor bans, and other restrictions.


Digging Deeper

There are three main pieces of legislation that provide legal direction and guidance for managing Alberta's park system. Click on the hyperlinks below to see the entire legislation:


Provincial Parks Act


Wilderness Areas, Ecological Reserves, Natural Areas & Heritage Rangelands Act



Willmore Wilderness Park Act

The Provincial Parks Act has a number of regulations that provide guidance around specific activities and restrictions in provincial parks, wildland provincial parks, and provincial recreation areas.




Provincial Parks (General) Regulation

This regulation provides guidance around specific activities and restriction in provincial parks, wildland provincial parks, and provincial recreation areas. Specific information related to fees, prohibitions, visitor conduct, fires, vehicle use, pets, camping, and day use activities is detailed.



Provincial Parks (Dispositions) Regulations

This regulation provides the guidance necessary to carry out the terms of any agreement such as the construction, operation, maintenance of facilities, and services to the public located in or used in respect of parks or recreation areas. The regulation also outlines terms for granting dispositions for activities and projects including mining, drilling, pipelines, agriculture, sand and gravel removal, summer cabins and utilities provision.




Provincial Parks (Section 7 Declaration) Regulations

Under Section 7 of the Provincial Parks Act, and through the Provincial Parks (Section 7 Declaration) Regulations, the Minister may declare any provision of the Act or associated regulations to be applicable to land outside a park or recreation area as if it were part of a park or recreation area while honouring pre-existing rights (eg., surface mineral extractions) on the land.