National parks in Canada

Location of the national parks

In Canada there are 47 national parks , by the government agency Parks Canada are managed. Another park, the South Okanagan-Similkameen National Park, should become a national park in 2010, but the final decision is still pending. There are also other national water protection areas, such as in the Upper Lake .

As early as 1885, the Canadian government provided land for public parks, which later became Banff National Park. Similar to the United States of America , the parks were originally created for the recreation and enjoyment of the population. In 1930, Parliament passed an ordinance with the National Park Act to put the areas under protection.

Until the 1970s, national parks were not set up according to a system or plan, but were distributed relatively arbitrarily. Under the responsibility of Jean Chrétien , work began on developing a plan according to which the regions in which a national park is to be established will be selected. The National Parks System Plan divided Canada into 39 regions. Parks are currently only set up in 29 of the regions. No parks have yet been established in ten regions, but some regions are represented above average (e.g. the Rocky Mountains or St. Lawrence Lowlands regions, each of which has five national parks). In the long term, each of the regions should be represented by at least one park.

To visit, especially to the areas of the national parks released for nature tourism, you usually need a paid permit ( English Permit ), which can be purchased for day trips ( English Daily Pass ) or for a whole year ( English Parks Canada Discovery Pass ) . Additional services such as camping or the right to light a fire may have to be paid extra.

In Canada, reserves are national parks in which the indigenous peoples have special rights and, for example, are allowed to hunt or fish. In some cases, parks also carry the additional reserve if its final limits or the terms of use can only be determined after the clarification of outstanding or unresolved claims, usually by First Nations .

List of national parks

Surname	view	Province / Territory	founding	surface	Visitors (2017-18)
Akami-Uapishkᵁ-KakKasuak-Mealy-Mountains-National Park		Newfoundland and Labrador	2015	10,700 km²
Aulavik National Park		Northwest Territories	1992	12,199 km²	24
Auyuittuq National Park		Nunavut	1976	20,500 km²	709
Banff National Park		Alberta	1885	6,641 km²	4,181,854
Bruce Peninsula National Park		Ontario	1987	270 km²	428,988
Cape Breton Highlands National Park		Nova Scotia	1936	950 km²	333,746
Elk Island National Park		Alberta	1906	194 km²	528,647
Forillon National Park		Quebec	1974	240 km²	173.880
Fundy National Park		New Brunswick	1948	206 km²	368.965
Georgian Bay Islands National Park		Ontario	1929	12 km²	44.010
Glacier National Park		British Columbia	1886	1,349 km²	787.968
Grasslands National Park		Saskatchewan	1981	906 km²	18,296
Gros Morne National Park		Newfoundland and Labrador	1973	1,805 km²	238,540
Gulf Islands National Park		British Columbia	2003	33 km²
Gwaii Haanas National Park		British Columbia	1988	1,470 km²	3,316
Ivvavik National Park		Yukon	1984	10,168 km²	119
Jasper National Park		Alberta	1907	10,878 km²	2,425,878
Kejimkujik National Park		Nova Scotia	1974	381 km²	60,649
Kluane National Park		Yukon	1972	22,015 km²	29,743
Kootenay National Park		British Columbia	1920	1,406 km²	531.009
Kouchibouguac National Park		New Brunswick	1979	239 km²	188.185
La Mauricie National Park		Quebec	1970	544 km²	338,530
Mingan Archipelago National Park		Quebec	1984	150 km²	39,039
Mount Revelstoke National Park		British Columbia	1914	260 km²	787.968
Naats'ihch'oh National Park		Northwest Territories	2012	4,850 km²
Nahanni National Park		Northwest Territories	1976	4,766 km²	1,302
Pacific Rim National Park		British Columbia	1970	500 km²	1,131,418
Point Pelee National Park		Ontario	1918	15.5 km²	522.199
Prince Albert National Park		Saskatchewan	1927	3,875 km²	299.168
Prince Edward Island National Park		Prince Edward Island	1937	22 km²	695.025
Pukaskwa National Park		Ontario	1978	1,878 km²	14,114
Qausuittuq National Park		Nunavut	2015	11,000 km²
Quttinirpaaq National Park		Nunavut	1988	37,775 km²	33
Riding Mountain National Park		Manitoba	1929	2,973 km²	423.146
Rouge National Urban Park		Ontario	2015	18 km²
Sable Island National Park		Nova Scotia	2011	34 km²
Sirmilik National Park		Nunavut	1999	22,200 km²	494
Terra Nova National Park		Newfoundland and Labrador	1957	400 km²	46,668
Thousand Islands National Park		Ontario	1904	9 km²	88,520
Torngat Mountains National Park		Newfoundland and Labrador	2005	9,700 km²
Tuktut Nogait National Park		Northwest Territories	1996	16,340 km²	4th
Ukkusiksalik National Park		Nunavut	2003	20,000 km²
Vuntut National Park		Yukon	1995	4,400 km²
Wapusk National Park		Manitoba	1996	11,475 km²	162
Waterton Lakes National Park		Alberta	1895	525 km²	568,807
Wood Buffalo National Park		Alberta / Northwest Territories	1922	44,802 km²	4.162
Yoho National Park		British Columbia	1886	1,313 km²	712.046

1. ↑ together with Mount Revelstoke National Park
2. ↑ together with Glacier National Park

Provincial parks in Canada

In addition to the national protected areas, Canada has several hundred provincial parks (referred to as parc national in the province of Quebec ) and territorial parks in the northern territories. These are often of a size and equipment that equals that of national parks (e.g. Wells Gray Park in British Columbia), e.g. Sometimes there are also smaller areas that are particularly worthy of protection. Some of these parks also have campsites, often areas for daytime use. The administration of the provincial and territorial parks is in the hands of the respective provincial or territorial government.

Web links

• Parks Canada (Official website of the National Park Administration) (English / French)
• National parks in Canada ( English, French ) In: The Canadian Encyclopedia .

Individual evidence

1. ^ National Parks System Plan 1997. Government of Canada, accessed August 6, 2020 . 
2. ^ Government of Canada Parks Canada Agency: National Parks, Park Reserves, & Marine Conservation Areas - Parks Canada Attendance 2017-18. June 4, 2018, accessed July 1, 2019 .