Image Credit: CFJC Today

By Elisabethe Arseneau

Sound Off

SOUND OFF: Kamloops nature park closure punishes responsible users, does not decrease risks

Aug 9, 2023 | 10:49 AM

IT IS WITH GREAT DISAPPOINTMENT to the majority of Kamloops residents that the city has chosen to close nature parks due to drought. And unfortunately, it’s a decision made without evidence that will negatively affect quality of life and mental health for Kamloops residents.

The fact of the matter is, this is a knee-jerk reaction, not based in evidence. Users of Kamloops nature parks are almost universally responsible, cognizant residents — hikers, dog-walkers and mountain bikers. In all of Canadian history, there is not a single wildfire thought to be started by mountain bikers. In the United States, there have been one or two incidents allegedly attributed to this, but they are disputed without clear proof. ATV or motorized recreation is a completely different risk, and these are not allowed within nature parks regardless, yet even this is not banned anywhere else in the province.

Presumably, the biggest risk is people smoking and dropping cigarette butts — or even intentionally starting fires. However, when is the last time anyone saw a mountain biker riding a trail with a cigarette in hand? The answer is pretty clear, and the story on CFJC Today about a fire started behind the West End shows what the real risks are. Not recreational park users.

There are however, as some of us have undoubtedly seen, those who engage in irresponsible behaviour. In fact, previous fires this year have been started on city streets and in dumpsters. But this order does nothing to affect that and represents a very different user group than those hiking in Kenna Cartwright or biking in Peterson Creek.

More concerningly, these activities are integral parts of living in Kamloops and removing these activities, given all the travails that the fires bring upon us, risks impacting the mental well-being of thousands of residents. Outdoor activity is recognized to be an important contributor to mental well-being, and as we all saw with the COVID lockdowns, removing social activities in times of stress results in unintended, negative consequences. Opening the Sandman Centre for walking three times a week is also not a reasonable substitute.

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Further, the in-city bans risk forcing residents to seek out trails and paths outside city limits, which they are not familiar with and which actually increases safety risks as a result. Let us not forget the biggest risk fires to the City of Kamloops right now come from fires outside city limits.

No other BC city has enacted restrictions such as Kamloops despite fire risk province wide. Despite the fire risk province wide, there is no provincial ban on back country use, where risks are greater given the distances from fire departments. And while we are in a drought situation, let us not forget that Kamloops is effectively a desert and every summer all trails and brush are extremely dry as any biker or hiker could tell you. This is something users understand and respect, year after year.

This order, like the order in 2021, unnecessarily penalizes responsible, law-abiding citizens. To do this with no consultation, at the start of a long weekend, with kids off school, friends and family visiting, and almost no notice, is heavy-handed and poor governance. Those who are going to act irresponsibly are not going to respect this order. Instead of sending city staff to threaten tickets to families on mountain bikes or seniors walking their Golden Retrievers, those same staff could patrol parks to ensure responsible use.

While we all understand the significant risk the current drought poses, city staff, council and the fire department should focus on education, not punitive measures.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.