Are National Parks Really Sustainable? A Case Study Of Waterton Glacier International Peace Park...

Colorado State University – Masters in Tourism Management – NRRT615 - Mike Watson

Are National Parks Really

Sustainable?

A Case Study Of Waterton Glacier International

Peace Park Canada

Mike Watson – October 19, 2014

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This case study takes a look at the sustainability and special status of the park as a whole; which is made of the Waterton Lakes National Park Biosphere Reserve in Canada, and a small portion of Glacier National Park in Montana.

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Colorado State University – Masters in Tourism Management – NRRT615 - Mike WatsonPark Background

In 1932 Waterton Lakes National Park (Alberta, Canada)

was combined with the Glacier National Park (Montana, United

States) to form the world's first International Peace Park.

Situated on the border between the two countries and

offering outstanding scenery, the park is exceptionally rich

in plant and mammal species as well as prairie, forest, and

alpine and glacial features (UNESCO, 2014).

Glacier National Park is managed under the authority of

the National Park Service Organic Act of August 25, 1916 and

related management policies. The park is owned by the

United States Government, on behalf of the American people.

It is managed by the NPS, a federal agency. As a national

park it receives the highest level of conservation

protection afforded by the federal law of the United States

(Parks Canada, 2009). Waterton Lakes National Park is

managed under the authority of the Canada National Parks Act

and the Parks Canada Agency Act, plus Parks Canada's Guiding

Principles and Operational Policies (Parks Canada, 2009).

Statement of Significance

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Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park has a

distinctive climate, physiographic setting, mountain-prairie

interface, and tri-ocean hydrographical divide. It is an

area of significant scenic values with abundant and diverse

flora and fauna (UNESCO, 2014).

Criterion (vii): Both national parks were originally designated

by their respective nations because of their superlative

mountain scenery, their high topographic relief, glacial

landforms, and abundant diversity of wildlife and

wildflowers (UNESCO, 2014).

Criterion (ix): The property occupies a pivotal position in

the Western Cordillera of North America resulting in the

evolution of plant communities and ecological complexes that

occur nowhere else in the world. Maritime weather systems

unimpeded by mountain ranges to the north and south allow

plants and animals characteristic of the Pacific Northwest

to extend to and across the continental divide in the park.

To the east, prairie communities nestle against the

mountains with no intervening foothills, producing an

interface of prairie, montane and alpine communities. The

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international peace park includes the headwaters of three

major watersheds draining through significantly different

biomes to different oceans. The bio geographical

significance of this tri-ocean divide is increased by the

many vegetated connections between the headwaters. The net

effect is to create a unique assemblage and high diversity

of flora and fauna concentrated in a small area (UNESCO,

2014).

Annual Visitation

According to the 2009 Report on the State of Conservation of

Waterton Glacier International Peace Park, the annual visitation at

Glacier in 2002 was 1,905,681. The trend in visitation

numbers at Glacier since inscription in 1995 has remained at

a relatively stable level. Numbers have ranged from a low of

1.68 million to a high of 1.90 million with no clear up or

down trend. Traffic counters are installed at 8 park

entrance locations in Glacier; numbers are reduced by

bicycles, non- recreation vehicles and duplicate re-entries

(a multiplier of 2.9 visitors/vehicle is applied at most of

these entrance sites). Visitation statistics and the

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methodology used to calculate for Glacier can be accessed on

the WEB at www.nature.nps.gov/stats. The visitation in

Waterton Lakes in 2002 was 406,081. Visitation since 1995

has increased about 6 per cent, with an apparent peak in

1999. Numbers have ranged from a low of 347,000 to a high of

425,000. A traffic counter is installed at one entrance

location in Waterton Lakes and the actual numbers of

cyclists and bus passengers are also recorded (Parks Canada,

2009).

The People of Waterton

Watertonions have gathered from all over the world to

work and live in the park or nearby, but only about 30

people claim to live in the park year-round for their

permanent residence (MyWaterton.Ca, 2014). With the nearest

major city and airport more than 2 hours drive North to

Calgary, the problem of getting and keeping good help is

very difficult. The Improvement District (ID Council) works

on community projects and issues cooperatively with the

various community stakeholder groups, including Parks

Canada, The Waterton Chamber of Commerce and Visitor

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http://www.mywaterton.com/community-parks-canada.cfm

http://www.mywaterton.com/community-parks-canada.cfm

http://www.nature.nps.gov/stats


Association, The Green Team, The Waterton Park Community

Association, The Waterton Foundation. Unlike a municipal

governance model, such as those of Banff and Jasper, the ID

Council is under the jurisdiction of the Department of

Municipal Affairs of the Province of Alberta. The Council

members are elected from within the community. Elections

are held every three years on the third Monday in October.

All residents (resident and non resident leaseholders) are

eligible to vote for council members. Council meets the

third Friday of every month when required (MyWaterton.Ca,

2014).

Issues, Dilemmas and Concerns

The typical dilemma for park management is, how do we

balance Sadler’s (1990) three dimensional (economic,

environmental, and social) sustainability concept?

“Interviews with stakeholders in the Waterton area provide

insight into the difficulties that can arise when different

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stakeholders place different demands on the landscape”

(Chong, 2013).

Economic Dilemma

We know that tourists and taxpayers pay for, or

“sustain” the park. But it remains an ongoing dilemma as to

how that should be balanced out to secure lasting

sustainment of our national parks.

Senator Lisa Murkowski is Alaska’s senior senator,

serving since 2002. She is the ranking Republican on

the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and

the Senate Appropriations Interior subcommittee.

Asking taxpayers to pay for all of this is not a

solution, either, though it has also been proposed. In

theory, the federal government could dramatically ramp

up the National Park Service’s budget; we could provide

it with enough funding to clear its maintenance backlog

and stockpile more land every year. But in reality,

with our nation continuing to face steep deficits and

record debt, there is hardly space to make that happen.

Our fiscal issues should compel us not only to reassess

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the National Park Service’s current budget priorities,

but also to seek new and alternative funding for the

park system. Here are several ideas for how to

accomplish that — through small actions that could make

a big difference to the future of these vital

lands. When the federal government recently shut down,

our national parks became headline news, as public

access was temporarily and at times questionably

restricted. While many advocates have since begun to

tout public support for parks as a reason to create new

units and increase funding for the agency in charge of

them, they overlook the most significant threat to our

successful stewardship of these national treasures.

First, we should seek to expand private donations from

outside organizations and other friends of national

parks. Finally, we should explore the structure of

the recreational fee. Some parks charge entrance fees,

while others do not. This needs to be re-examined for

fairness — and to ensure that appropriate revenue is

being raised. (Sen. Lisa Murkowski, 2013)

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Environmental Dilemma - Factors Affecting the Property -

Development Pressures

The U.S. Department of the Interior and Parks

Canada published the following report for the World

Heritage Committee. The World Heritage Site nomination

identified external threats having the potential to

adversely affect park wildlife populations, air and

water quality and aesthetic values. These included:

logging and hydrocarbon exploration occurring along the

periphery and an open pit coal mine proposed near the

International Peace Park periphery. The nomination also

discusses bear mortality caused by grain spills on the

railroad tracks along Glacier’s southern border and it

discusses actions taken by the International Peace Park

in support of regional land use planning. Actions and

plans to address these factors include: Logging and

hydrocarbon development - Some of the land adjacent to

the International Peace Park is managed for multiple

use including logging and hydrocarbon development.

These lands include those managed by tribal (First

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Nations), provincial, state, crown, federal and private

owners. In the 8 years since inscription, logging and

hydrocarbon development on adjacent lands has remained

stable with the exception of a short-term increase in

salvage logging on lands adjacent to GLAC that were

burned in recent wildfires. International Peace Park

managers address logging and hydrocarbon development by

participating in the planning processes of the agencies

responsible for such lands and by participating in

ecosystem management initiatives as described in

section 3b1. Examples include providing technical

comments on proposed amendments to the Flathead

National Forest Plan (USA) and participation in the

provincial meetings regarding the development of the

Southern Rocky Mountains Management Plan for the South

East Kootenay region of British Columbia (Canada).

Open pit coal mining: In the early 1980’s, a strip

mining operation was proposed in the Province of

British Columbia, close to Glacier's western boundary.

This development would have included two large open pit

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coalmines on Cabin Creek, a tributary of the Flathead

River, which forms a boundary of the park. Canada and

the United States agreed to refer the issue to the

International Joint Commission (IJC). The Commission

was charged with studying the issue and reporting back

to the two national governments. The Commission’s 1989

report, based on 4 years of study, advised that the mine not proceed

because of the uncertainty of mitigation and potential for long-term

degradation. The IJC also emphasized the need for a bi-

national initiative to develop sustainable management

strategies for the whole watershed (U.S. Dept of the

Interior, Parks Canada).

What does the study above published for WHC mean for the

park? Tourism dollars are needed to supplement the

government funding for the national parks. If we don’t

protect the natural resources there will be no tourism.

People living around protected areas expect the park to

serve as a magnet for tourists. Is tourism marketing the

park’s responsibility for the region? Local expectations are

often too high with short-term expectations. For instance, a

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study at Bieszczady NP in Poland in 2003 showed that local

businesses expected an increase in domestic and

international visitors to the park since its verification in

2002. Obviously unrealistic, such expectations led to local

dissatisfaction and disillusion with PAN Parks (Cottrell &

van der Donk, 2008).

Social - Housing Dilemma

The Community of Waterton and Parks Canada conducted a

sustainable housing study in 2010 to determine availability

and affordability for park workers and community residents,

below is the published report, clearly unfinished with no

follow up, the details are accessible at

http://mywaterton.ca/_cabinet/8/Community_AffordableHousingStudy2011.pdf

This Study is being accomplished in coordination

with Parks Canada and other Stakeholders in the

community. The study was started in the fall of 2010

and continued through the summer of 2011. The Housing

Study is designed to identify the current and future

staff housing needs of the community and to assess the

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viability of various models and strategies to meet

those needs. The study included

1. Online surveys targeted to each of three key groups:

business owners/employers, local residents and

employees;

2. Background research to identify and evaluate:

-Current staff housing needs in the community;

-Barriers and opportunities to new staff housing

development based on current legislation and

planning policies; and

-Staff housing “best practices” that might provide

appropriate examples or strategies to follow.

3. Key person Interviews with local stakeholders to

learn more about what you see as being the key barriers

and opportunities to new staff housing development as

well as hear feedback on the "best practices".

All reports will be public and posted to the resources under

the Improvement District resources page (Parks Canada and

mywaterton.ca, 2010). Unfortunately the sustainability

study was not finished or followed up on by the community,

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as the park officials didn’t enforce the housing study to be

published for their benefit (Parks Canada and mywaterton.ca,

2010). Despite the unfinished sustainable housing study,

the Waterton Park Community Association (WPCA) is committed

to sustainability:

MISSION

"Enhancing the Waterton Lakes National Parks experience"

VISION

"The Waterton Park Community Association provides recreational, educational,

cultural and social opportunities for our community and its visitors."

VALUES

· Preservation and sustainability of the community/Park experience

· Peace, tranquility and natural beauty/ecological integrity

· Transparency/openness/communication/ accountability

· Strong sense of Community

· Welcoming attitude/Good neighbor policy

· Co-operation and partnerships with Parks and groups that share

our values

Is the Park’s Tourism Sustainable?

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Yes it is. A balance has been attained in the park with the

three dimensions (economic, environmental, social) of

sustainability (Sadler & Dalal-Clayton, 2014). Regular and

periodic monitoring of the park’s key indicators for

conservation and sustainability takes place between the U.S.

and Canada (Parks Canada, 2009). How does this make the

park sustainable?

Two reasons;

1) The Report on the State of Conservation of

Waterton Glacier International Peace Park spells out the

sustainability plan of action in Section 7c with a 5-10

year timeline for Canada and a 1-20-year timeline for

all of the park sustainment goals (Parks Canada, 2009).

2) Visitor numbers alone speak to its sustainability.

But parks get shut down for economic reasons due to

funding and also for safety reasons such as forest

fires and bear attacks, so to answer this question more

effectively it will be helpful to refer to the Pan Parks Research

Network in Europe.

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In 2005, the Research Network began to take this task

seriously and created a methodology to measure the

social, cultural, institutional and economic impacts of

PAN Parks on the region around certified parks, and is

referred to as the Analysis of Perceptions and

Attitudes (APA) (previously referred to as a Cost

Benefit Analysis (CBA)). A sustainability framework

provides the theoretical lens to guide the research

process (see Figure 1). Figure 1 shows the key

dimensions important in following a holistic approach

to sustainable development (Cottrell & van der Donk,

2008).

Source: (Cottrell & van der Donk, 2008)

As you can see in Figure 1, the relationship between the

park (substitute PAN Parks with Waterton/Glacier) and the

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four areas; economic, social, institution, environment is

interdependent. The success or failure of one area affects

the other areas success as a whole. Sustainability of the

park’s tourism is directly and proportionately related to the

success of the sustainment of the parks’ natural resources. The

park has effectively provided a solution, which is

accomplished most effectively by the creation of a

biosphere.

Located in the southwestern corner of Alberta, the

Waterton Biosphere Reserve [WBR] is one of only 16

biosphere reserves in Canada. The WBR area encompasses

some of the most spectacular and ecologically diverse

landscapes in the Canadian Rockies and prairie

grasslands. The Waterton Biosphere Reserve includes a

protected 505 km2 core area in Waterton Lakes National

Park, but extends well beyond the national park to

include a buffer zone of surrounding private ranch, farm

and residential land, and a broad transition zone that

supports many people in a wide range of economic

activities. Over the last 30 years, volunteers working

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http://www.pc.gc.ca/fra/pn-np/ab/waterton.aspx

http://www.pc.gc.ca/fra/pn-np/ab/waterton.aspx

http://unesco.ca/en/home-accueil/biosphere/biosphere%20reserves%20in%20canada-%20reserves%20de%20la%20biosphere%20au%20canada

http://unesco.ca/en/home-accueil/biosphere/biosphere%20reserves%20in%20canada-%20reserves%20de%20la%20biosphere%20au%20canada


on behalf of the Waterton Biosphere Reserve have

supported our communities in many practical ways, by

providing funding and support for projects, forums, and

research that addresses local land management concerns.

Biosphere reserves are recognized internationally for

demonstrating practical approaches to balancing

biodiversity conservation and sustainable human use of

the land. Designated in 1979 by UNESCO [United Nations

Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization], the

WBR fosters and encourages a sustainable, community-based

regional economy, with quality biodiversity, landscape

and social values (WBR, 2014). In the United States,

most of the 47 biosphere reserves (the most in any one

country) include a national park or other federally

protected land as a core area, surrounded by the

necessary managed buffer zone and transition zone.

Biosphere reserves in the United States include

Yellowstone National Park, Glacier National Park (which

adjoins Canada's Waterton National Park, itself part of

the biosphere reserve), the Everglades, the New Jersey

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Pinelands, and the Mojave and Colorado Deserts.

Worldwide, there are 368 biosphere reserves in 91

countries (WBR, 2014).

Solutions and Recommendations

1) Direct contact between local stakeholders and park

management is necessary for the Sustainable Tourism

Development Strategy’s (STDS) to work effectively.

All stakeholders feel better informed and more

committed to achieving the set goals, and the

process contributes to the feeling of having a say

in the decision making process (Cottrell & van der

Donk, 2008).

2) The sustainable housing study that was started by the

Waterton Park Community Association (WPCA) should be

finished and updated as planned and submitted to

Parks Canada (Parks Canada and mywaterton.ca, 2010).

3) Education - The World Heritage Values aimed at

schools should be expanded and broadened to the

entire Alberta School District and the Montana

public school districts from K-12. The park is

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already visiting colleges nearby with their

sustainment programs for the appropriate college

majors with a focus on local park sustainment (Parks

Canada, 2009).

For Glacier: The following list comes from (Parks

Canada, 2009).

· Winter ecology program for local schools – daily

snowshoe trips in spring and fall offered by

Glacier National Park staff

· Presentations by Glacier staff in local schools,

including those on the Blackfeet Indian

Reservation (First Nations)

· Glacier Institute environmental education

classes held within Glacier National Park

· Development of a science education program

called “Work House” regarding the natural and

human aspects of Glacier National Park developed

for use in Native American (First Nation)

classrooms.

· Establishment of a Crown of the Continent

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Learning Center at Glacier National Park that

includes a strong outreach component to local

schools as well as in-park learning opportunities,

teacher workshops, computer lab, and student

internships.

For Waterton Lakes:

· Waterton Lakes National Park offers both in-park

and classroom-based programs for local and

regional schools on a variety of topics

· Teachers’ guides are available that provide

background information for educators as well as

suggestions for pre- and post-visit activities

· The Waterton Resource Guide is a complete source

of reference materials about the park; it is

available in both official languages and in three

different versions for educational use

· Waterton Lakes National Park's website is

designed to provide educators with quick and easy

access to information about the park’s natural and

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cultural history, maps, recreational information

and links to other related resources.

Conclusions

As stated in section 7b of the Report on the State of

Conservation of

Waterton Glacier International Peace Park, Waterton-Glacier

International Peace Park is embedded in a larger regional

ecosystem called the Crown of the Continent Ecosystem. Both

parks contribute to social, economic and ecological values

in this larger ecosystem (Parks Canada, 2009). The combined

efforts of the Waterton Park Community Association (WPCA),

the United States and Canada are effectively managing the

ecological integrity of both parks, despite the impact from

internal and external pressures. Samantha Ostrowski

features the park in her academic paper for Amherst College.

Chapter 1. From the Waterton-Glacier International

Peace Park: Catalyzing Favorable Conditions

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Were it not for reservations and animal parks… the Age of Mammals

would be

hurr (Chong, 2013)ying to its close.‖ – E.G. Boulenger, Director of the

British Zoological Society,

Wild Animal Reserves,‖ New York Times, October 15, 1933

Ultimately, the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity will

strengthen

Friendly relations among States and contribute to peace for humankind.‖

– Preamble to the Convention on Biological Diversity (Ostrowski,

2010).

References:

Most of the words, concepts and ideas used in this paper belong

to these references. If mistakes in citing sources exist it is

purely unintentional. Arrangement of the ideas and emphasis is

mine.

Chong, K. S. (2013). Cases in Sustainable Tourism: An Experiential Approach to Making Decisions. Routledge.

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Colorado State University – Masters in Tourism Management – NRRT615 - Mike WatsonCottrell, D., & van der Donk, M. (2008, January). How to Perform an Analysis of Perceptions and Attitudes. Pan Parks Lessons Learned Series (4), p. 11.

MyWaterton.Ca. (2014, October). Pure Experience Waterton Lakes National Park. Retrieved October 19, 2014, from http://www.mywaterton.ca/improvement-district-4.cfm?gid=30

Ostrowski, S. (2010). Cooperation, Contestation, and Conservation: An Analysis of Peace Parks. Amherst College, Department of Environmental Studies. Amherst College.

Parks Canada. (2009, April 15). Retrieved October 19, 2014, from ParksCanada: http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/docs/rspm-whsr/rapports-reports/r10.aspx

Parks Canada and mywaterton.ca. (2010). Retrieved October 24, 2014, from http://mywaterton.ca/_cabinet/8/Community_AffordableHousingStudy2011.pdf

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, (.-A. (2013, December 3). We need new ways to fund our national parks. The Hill .

U.S. Dept of the Interior, Parks Canada. Periodic Report on the Application of theWorld Heritage Convention Section II Report on the State of Conservation of Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park. World Heritage Committee.

UNESCO. (2014). Retrieved October 19, 2014, from World Heritage CentreUNESCO.org: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/354

UNESCO. (2008). Waterton Biosphere Video. (U. M. eServices, Producer) Retrieved October 19, 2014, from http://www.unesco.org/archives/multimedia/index.php?s=films_details&pg=33&id=2054#.VEkgs74wjzI

WBR. (2014). Retrieved October 19, 2014, from Waterton Biosphere Reserve: http://www.watertonbiosphere.com

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