Man's Impact on the Western Canadian Landscape 9780773595453

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Man’s Impact on the Western Canadian Landscape

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Man’s Impact on the Western Canadian Landscape by J. G. Nelson

The Carleton Library No. 90 P u b lis h e d by M c C le lla n d a n d S te w a r t L im ite d in a s s o c ia t io n w ith th e In s titu te o f C a n a d ia n S t u d ie s , C a r le t o n U n iv e r s ity

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T H E C A R L E T O N L IB R A R Y A se rie s o f C a n a d ia n re p rin ts, new title s, and new c o lle ctio n s o f so u rc e m a te ria l re la tin g to C a n a d a , issu ed u n d e r th e e d ito ria l su p erv isio n o f th e In stitu te o f C a n a d ia n S tu d ies o f C a rle to n U n iv ersity , O tta w a.

l/ ' DIRECTOR O F T H E IN STITU TE

D av id so n D unton G E N ER A L EDITOR

M ich a e l G n aro w sk i EX ECU TIV E EDITOR

Jan ies M arsh EDITO RIAL BOARD

B. C a m ia n B ickerton (H istory) D en n is F o rce se (.Sociology) D avid B. K night (G eo g ra p h y) J. G e o rg e N euspiel (Low) T h o m as K . R ym es (E co n o m ics) D erek G . Sm ith (A n th ro p o lo g y) M ich ael S. W hittin g to n (P o litica l S c ie n ce )

© M c C le lla n d a n d S te w a rt L im ited . 1976 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

T h e C a n a d ia n P u b lish ers M cC le lla n d and S te w a rt Lim ited 25 H o llin g e r R o a d , T o ro n to 374. 0-7 7 1 0 -9 7 9 0 -5 P rin te d a n d h o u n d in C a n a d a

Table of Contents List o f Figures P reface

vii

xiii

Introduction:M an’s Im pact on L andscape

1

1 Man and L andscape in the W estern P lains o f Canada

19

2 S o m e C o m m en ts on the C a u ses and E ffects o f Fire in the Northern G rasslands A rea o f C anada and the N earby U nited S ta tes, Ca 1 7 5 9 -1 9 0 0 3 C h an gin g E ffects

33 Fauna

of

the

Northern

P lains

Area:

Im ages

and

44

4 S u ffield M ilitary R eserve C on troversy

69

5 C an ad a’s N ational Parks: Past, P resent, Future

78

6 M an, Birds and M am m als o f P acific R im N ational Park, B .C .: Past, Present and Future

103

7 C anadian N ational Parks and R elated R eserves: R esearch N eed s and M anagem ent

140

8 S o m e B ackground T h ou gh ts on E nvironm ental Impact S tatem en ts

165

9 A C ritique o f the E nvironm ental Im pact S tu d y , Trans-C anada H ig h w a y , M iles 0 - 7 .8 , B a n ff N ational Park B ib liograp h y

187

178

List of Figures Fig.

1. P lains A rea

18

Fig.

2.

66

Fig.

3. Suffield

70

Fig.

4.

N ational P ark s o f C an ad a

90

Fig.

5.

N ational P ark s and Fo rest R eserv es

92

Fig.

6.

P acific R im N ational Park

102

F ig.

7.

W ild life H ab itats

124

F ig.

8.

B ou n d ary C h an g e s for P h ase 3 P acific R im N ational Park

130

Fig.

9.

F acilities D ev elo p m en t in B a n ff N a tio n al P a rk . 1930

161

Fig.

10.

F a cilities D ev elo p m en t in B a n ff N ational P ark . I960

162

Fig.

11.

F a cilities D ev elo p m en t in B a n ff N ational P a rk . 1971

163

Fig.

12. C o rrid o r A ltern ativ es

G rasslan d A sso ciatio n s and Soil Z ones

183

F o r S h ir le y .

" W e cro ssed the B o w R iv er a little above th e m o u th o f th e E lbow , fin d in g a g o o d f o r d a t th is place. T h e view f r o m th e h ill on th e north side o f th e Bow . when we reached it a t the beg in n in g o f S e p te m b e r. 1875. a m a z e d us. B efo re us la y a lovely valley, fla n k e d on th e south b y rolling hills. T h ic k w oods b o rd e re d th e b a n k s o f both s tre a m s; to th e w est low ered th e m o u n ta in s w ith their sn o w y p e a k s ; b e y o n d the E lbow stre tc h e d a n o th e r wide valley, a n d hea vy tim b e r f u r t h e r west along th e Bow. B u ffa lo in large b a n d s g ra z e d in th e valleys, but o f m a n we sa w a t f i r s t no sig n ." S ir C e cil D enny. T h e L aw M arch es W est (T o r o n to , 19 3 9 1, p. 83.

Preface T H E opportunity to publish this co llectio n o f e ssa y s arose in the spring o f 1 9 7 4 , prim arily as a result o f the interest and en cou ragem en t o f P rofessor D avid B . K night, D epartm ent o f G eograp h y, Carleton U n i­ versity. T h in gs have b een rather rushed, but I want to thank him very m uch for urging m e on. T hanks are due a lso to the m any other p eop le w h o helped m e in differen t w a y s o v er the years. M an y o f these persons are m entioned in the Introduction. S o m e such as N ick R o e , n ow d oin g graduate work at U .B .C .; Ray E ngland, n o w resident in M anitoba, but form erly a grad u a te student at C a lg a ry ; and L a r iy C o rd es, c o lle a g u e , and field co m p a n io n , are co -a u th o rs o f som e o f the p ap ers. T here have been m any helpers and friends w ith w hom 1 have talked on num erous o c c a sio n s, am on g them H arvey B u ck m aster, Chad D ay and D ick Butler. 1 h ave learned m uch from m y c o lle a g u e s in the N ational and P rovincial Parks A sso cia tio n , notably G avin H enderson, A1 F ram e, and Robin Fraser. M uch a ssistan ce also cam e through G overn m en t, in the form o f inform ation from Jean C hretien, M inister o f Indian and Northern A ffa irs, John G ord on , form erly S en ior A s sis­ tant D ep u ty M inister in the sam e D epartm ent, and John N ico l and his co llea g u es in P arks C anada. M any p eop le at libraries such as the N ational A rch iv es, O ttaw a, or the G len b o w F oun d ation, C algary a lso aided m e. 1 b en efitted from study and d iscu ssio n at T h e U n iversity o f C aliforn ia, B erk eley , and the U n iversity o f Canterbury, C hristchurch, N ew Z ealan d . 1 o w e m uch to m any form er students: Jim Gardner, R oger B yrne, B asil P o g u e , Ed Jack son , Barry N o b le , Jack G len n , John M arsh, B ob S c a c e , D ick Porter, B ob G a lo is, Carl N o rb eck , Jim M asyk , B ob B eatty, Jim B attin, R oger N eed h a m , Phil H a le, Terry G reen , R eid K reu tzw iser and others w h o regretfu lly can not all b e m en tion ed here. I a lso learned m uch from P rofessor Jam es C ragg and Dr. S teph en Herrero, e c o lo g is ts and en ­ vironm ental scien tists at C algary. I am grateful to Dr. G ordon H o d g ­ so n , Linda J on es and other sta ff at the E nvironm ental S c ie n c e s C entre, U n iversity o f C algary, for providing m e with the fa cilities n eed ed to co m p lete this m anuscript q u ick ly. M rs. G race G ray and M rs. M . A . B urge did m uch o f the typ in g o f the original papers. M rs. C athy S y lv ester has assisted w ith the typin g and preparing o f the present m anuscript. The late N ick B ab ey o f Calgary and Mr. D erry G raves, T h e U n iversity o f W estern O ntario, assisted with drafting and other tech n ical m atters. A t various tim es xiii

xiv

W E S T E R N C A N A D IA N LA N D SC A PE

finan cial assista n ce w a s provided by T he U n iversity o f W estern On­ tario, the N ational R esearch C o u n cil, Federal G overn m en t D epart­ m en ts. the N ational and P rovincial Parks A sso cia tio n and T h e Canada C ou n cil. 1 appreciate receiv in g perm ission to republish all or part o f mate­ rial that o rigin ally appeared in H um an G eography: C oncepts a n d Case Studies, U n iv ersity o f C anterbury. D ep t, o f G eograp h y (ed itor, W . B. Joh n ston ), 1969; The C anadian G eographer; The C anadian G eog­ raphical Journal; G ./.R .M .S ., (G eograp h y Inter-U niversity R esource M anagem ent S em inar); T h e G eographical R eview ; Studies in L and Use H istory a n d Landscape C hange; and P ark N ew s. I a lso w ish to thank the S ocial S c ie n c e R esearch C ou n cil o f Canada for p erm ission to republish an article from C anadian P ublic L a n d Use in P erspective. F in ally, I w ish to thank m y fa m ily , and m ost e sp e c ia lly m y w ife, S h irley , without w h o se support and in tellectu al participation, these papers and this book w ou ld not have b een co m p leted . J. G . N elson

Introduction M a n ’s Im p a c t on L andscap e* J . G. Nelson

M E N have lon g been interested in their effe ct on the en viron m en t or landscape. T h e history o f this interest has been stu d ied in con sid erable detail by C laren ce G lacken (1 0 4 ) and h is various w orks sh ou ld be con su lted by all th o se interested in m an, lan d scap e, and con servation . T he first major sy n th esis o f m an’s e ffe c ts on the landscape w as pub­ lished by G eorge Perkins Marsh (1 8 6 ). H e recogn ized clea rin g , lum ­ bering, g ra zin g , c u ltiv a tio n , and other a ctiv ities not just as e c o n o m ic p ractices but as cultural p ro cesses w h ich often prom oted intense and w idespread ch a n g es in v eg eta tio n , anim al life , s o ils , and other asp ects o f landscape. In the years that fo llo w ed the publication o f M arsh's m onum ental w ork, g e o lo g is ts , e n g in eers, adm inistrators, govern m en t o ffic ia ls , and others b eca m e in creasingly aw are o f hum an effe cts on the land and a variety o f m anagerial and technical approaches to the problem were m ade in a num ber o f cou n tries. For ex a m p le, in nineteenth century France w here d eforestation , overgrazin g, so il ero ­ sio n , and flo o d in g w ere o f particular con cern to M arsh, the en gin eers began to u se a com b ination o f sm all d am s and other d e v ic e s , as w ell as b io lo g ica l m eth o d s, to control lan d scap e deterioration in alp in e and h illy lands ( 2 0 8 ) .In the U nited S tates, forestry and other departm ents were foun d ed by govern m en t to h elp m anage forest resources and about 1900 m en such as G ifford P inchot began to prom ote the idea o f “ w ise u se” o r “ co n serv a tio n ” as a social and a p olitical id eo lo g y (2 7 ). At this tim e geograp h y a lso began to em erg e as a p rofessional d iscip lin e and its m em b ers started to m ake contributions to the under­ stan d in g and m anagem ent o f m an 's im pact on lan d scap e. S o m e were in v o lv ed in the organ ization and co n d u ct o f early land u se and land cap ab ility su rv ey s as part o f a program m e to reduce so il erosion and gen erally to im prove the lot o f the agriculturalist. Later, historical and cultural geographers undertook relevant stu d ies, on e o f the leaders b ein g Carl S au er, w h o foun d ed a sc h o o l o f geograp h y at the U n iversity o f C a lifo rn ia , B erk eley , in the 192 0 ’s (1 5 8 ). Cultural history and landscape are central interests o f the Sauer *A la rg e p art o f this In tro d u ctio n is fro m G eo g ra p h y, L a n d sc a p e a n d C o nservation, in H u m a n G e o g ra p h y : C o n ce p ts a n d C a se S tu d ie s, W . B . Jo h n ­ sto n , e d ., D e p artm e n t o f G e o g ra p h y , U n iv ersity o f C a n te rb u ry , C h ristc h u rc h , N .Z ., 1969.

1

W E S T E R N C A N A D IA N LA N D SC A PE

sc h o o l and h a v e led to m uch study o f m an 's e ffe c ts on the w orld around him . In m any c a s e s an interest in the effe cts o f man has not been central to the study at hand, any relevant fin d in gs b ein g a m inor, in cid en ta l, or accidental by-product o f research prim arily directed to other g o a ls. An ex a m p le is J oseph S p en cer's 19 6 6 m onograph on sh iftin g agriculture in southeastern A sia . H ere the focu s is on such thin gs as the d istribution o f the practice, its ty p o lo g y , and its o rigin . H o w ev er, S p en cer a lso recog­ n izes that the sh iftin g cu ltivator is resp onsib le for part o f the ex ten siv e soil erosion in the hill country o f southeastern A sia ( 2 8 7 ). In their m ore direct approaches to the study o f m a n 's e ffe c ts, geographers h ave so m etim e s fo c u sse d on the p ro cesses at work on the la n d sca p e, fo r ex a m p le, fire. Carl Sauer h as v iew ed fire as an early tool o f m an, used for thousands o f years as a m ean s o f hunting and in other w a y s (2 7 1 . 2 7 2 ). T h e w ork o f Sauer and others on fire is a useful ex a m p le to begin with b eca u se it im m ed iately raises the problem o f a ss e s sin g m an’s e ffe c ts v is-a -v is other p o ssib le non-hum an ca u ses o f landscape ch an ge. T h u s, there is m uch ev id e n c e to indicate that fire has been very sign ifican t in the form ation o f the w orld 's grasslan d s. But the im por­ tance o f man as a c a u se o f fire h as been a su b ject o f m uch d isagreem en t. L ightning frequently has been cited as a p o ssib ly im portant natural ca u se , but this idea has been rejected by Sauer and other geographers. For ex a m p le, D avid Harris' (1 1 2 ) stu d ies in the arid and semi-arid" southw estern U nited States h ave led him to con clu d e that m illio n s o f acres o f form er grassland recently have b een invaded by m esq u ite and other w o o d y plants. T he b egin n in g o f this in vasion is attributed to the reduction o f form erly frequent grass fires. T h is reduction in turn is attributed to the cessa tio n o f burning by n ative p eo p les fo llo w in g their con q u est by the A m erican s. Harris con sid ers it " m o st im probable that ligh tn in g w a s a principal cau se o f frequent fires m en tion ed by early travellers, m any o f w h om indeed ascribed them to burning by the aboriginal p o p u la tio n " (1 1 2:416). In other w ord s, he is o f the op in ion that the form erly ex ten siv e grasslan d s o f the sou th w estern United S tates w ere prim arily due to the a ctivities o f m an. H o w ev er, in the northern grasslan d s o f the Canadian prairie p rovin ces ligh tn in g has been a frequent cau se o f fire throughout h istoric tim es. It fo llo w s that, in this area at lea st, grasslan d s could d e v e lo p independent o f man (2 3 8 ). In their m ore direct approaches to the study o f m a n 's effe cts, geograp h ers h ave a lso fo cu ssed on one or m ore elem en ts o f landscape, such as lan d form s, v eg eta tio n , or so ils . An ex a m p le is the study by P arsons and B o w en (2 5 4 ) o f so m e usual landform s on the low er M agdalena R iver floodp lain in northern C olom b ia. W ith the aid o f aerial p h otograp h s, they have id en tified an e x ten siv e area o f abandoned

in t r o d u c t io n

:

m a n ’s im p a c t

3

ridged field s a lon g the western margin o f the flood p lain . S o m e o f the best preserved and m ore v isab le ridges have a relief o f three feet or m ore and norm ally are w id e en ou gh to have supported at least four or fiv e row s o f cro p s. T he ridges are b elieved to b e pre-European in a g e, m ainly b ecau se S panish ch ron iclers o f the tim e o f con q u est did not d escrib e the rid g es, or use o f them . Parsons and B ow en co n sid er it alm ost im p o ssib le that the S p an ish w ou ld not have com m en ted on these unusual features had they seen them under cu ltivation and they estim ate that so m e 8 0 ,0 0 0 persons m ight have been supported w ithin the old field s area. T hey a lso say that this n ew ev id e n c e in northern C olo m b ia su b stan tially rein forces the g row in g argum ent that pre-European popu­ lation d en sities in the A m erican tropical low lan d s have b een grossly u nderestim ated. P resum ably this underestim ation a lso ap p lies to the lan d scap e ch an ge cau sed by such p op u lation s. M arvin M ik e se ll’s (2 0 4 ) study o f northern M orocco is an exam p le o f a m ore co m p reh en siv e attempt to assess m a n 's effe cts on the land­ sca p e . A lthough the sc o p e o f the study is quite w id e, so m e em p hasis in evitab ly falls on certain p rocesses and elem en ts o f lan d scap e, su ch as so il ero sio n , and v eg eta tio n . M ik esell u ses a variety o f m ethods to sh o w that burning, g ra zin g, and forest cu ttin g have profoundly ch an ged the v eg eta tio n o f northern M orocco and cau sed w idespread soil ero sio n . For e x a m p le , he cites historical sou rces to sh o w that tall forests w ere present in areas w here they are no lon ger found today and u ses sim ila r inform ation to study p rocesses su ch as w o o d con su m p tion , attem pting to estab lish their rate o f operation and the extent to w hich they have m odified the lan d scap e through the years. A nother approach is to map trees at relig io u s sh rin es distributed throughout northern M o ro cco . T h ese areas m ay never h ave been cut o ver by m an, and the trees therefore con stitute an im portant clu e to the nature o f the early M oroccan forest. S in ce the 1 9 5 0 ’s m ore geograp h ers h ave b eco m e interested in m an’s im pact on the landscape. D ev elo p m en ts w ithin the d iscip lin e are at least partly resp on sib le for this. For ex a m p le, D avid L ow en th al's (1 6 7 ) study o f the life and work o f G eorge Perkins Marsh m ade more p eo p le aware o f the earth as m od ified by hum an action . G eographers such as T h o m a s, Sauer, D arby, C lark, and Evans (3 0 6 , 2 7 2 , 4 5 , 87) jo in ed with m em bers o f other d iscip lin es in the sy m p o siu m o f M a n 's R ole in C hanging the F ace o f the E a r th , held in N ew York C ity in 1955 ( 3 0 6 ). T h e publication o f the papers and p roceed in gs o f this con feren ce stim ulated w idespread sch o larly and p u b lic interest. M uch o f the g ro w in g concern o f the !9 5 0 's undoubtedly g rew out o f actual ob serv a tio n s o f the ev er m ore apparent exten t and depth o f the human imprint on the lan d scap e. Population w as risin g sharply. M ore and m ore production w as ca lled for to m eet su b sisten ce n eed s in so m e

4

W E S T E R N C A N A D IA N LA N D SC A PE

parts o f the w orld and the g row in g aspirations for ev e r higher livin g standards in others. M ore and m ore stress w as b ein g placed on tech n ol­ o g y as the m eans o f prom oting greater production and m eetin g these n eed s or d em ands. T h e clim a te o f op in ion and the general d irection o f the expert thought o f the 1 9 5 0 ’s is reflected in the papers and p roceed in gs o f the M a n 's R o le sy m p o siu m . M uch thinking w a s directed alon g rather fam iliar lines: v eg eta tio n ch a n g e, so il ero sio n , and the lik e. B ut, in ad d ition , there w ere sig n s o f n ew and differen t kinds o f con cern . L eisu re, recreation, and problem s o f w aste d isp osal received so m e attention. Harrison Brow n (2 0 ) w rote o f the spread o f the m ach ine and tech n o lo g ica l d enudation. H e en v isio n ed the tech n ology o f a future w orld population o f about 3 0 b illion p eop le co n su m in g so m e 1500 b illio n ton s o f rock each year in the search for an in creasingly large am ount and array o f m inerals. Northrup directed attention to aesth etic, eth ica l and legal v a lu es. He sa w tech n ological so c iety as em p h asizin g in tellect and te c h n o lo g y , creating: a m odern man w h o has b eco m e so absorbed by the intellectual im agin ation , its tech n o lo g ica l to o ls, and its abstract legal co d es that he is starved em o tio n a lly and with respect to aesth etic im ­ m ed iacy (2 4 4 ). A reading o f the papers and p roceed in gs o f m ore recent con fer­ en ces su ch as that on The F uture E nvironm ents o f N orth A m erica (6 6 ), held in W arrenton, V irgin ia, in A p ril, 1965, or on The N ew Zealand C ountryside in 1980 ( 3 0 1 ), held in A uckland in N ovem b er, 1 9 6 7 , sh o w that m any o f the budding con cern s o f the M a n 's R ole sym p osiu m have c o m e to fuller flo w er in the last fifteen or tw en ty years. P opulation, prod u ction , and tech n o lo g y h ave con tinu ed to g ro w . A spiration s for still higher liv in g standards h ave con tin u ed in North A m erica and other parts o f the w o rld , stim ulated by ad vertisin g and the idea o f a grow in g eco n o m y (1 3 8 ). In less-d e v elo p ed areas such as A frica, agricultural and other e co n o m ic pressures are pushing hard on w ild fauna and flora. In m any cou n tries the urban, ad m in istrative, p o litica l, and acad em ic atm osphere is h ead y with talk and study o f air and w ater p ollu tion . In in creasingly autom ated and tech n o lo g ica l so c ie tie s leisure is no longer a p astim e am idst productive pursuits but a w ay o f livin g frequently undertaken u n w illin g ly and u n w ittin gly. U nder these circu m stan ces p eop le are m ore and m ore con cern ed with landscape and with the purpose o f life — with what to d o and w here to d o it! And the leaders and the exp erts talk in crea sin g ly o f the quality o f en viron m en t and the quality o f life. H ow have geographers responded to increasing contem porary

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interest in m an’s im pact on the land? S o m e have begun to d o research on a sp ec ts o f the landscape hitherto so co m m o n p la ce or so little used as not to be m atters o f general con cern or study. D avid L in ton 's (16 5 ) w ork on the sc en ery o f S cotland is a g o o d ex a m p le. Scen ery can be lo o k ed on as an a sp ect o f the lan d scap e. But it a lso can be v iew ed as a resou rce. Linton justifies h is attem pt to assess scen ery as a resource by p o in tin g out that tourism and the recreational d em and s o f an in creas­ in gly urban so c ie ty are p lacin g m ore d em and s on the visu al assets o f S cotlan d . A situation is thus arising in w h ich there is danger, as with alm ost ev ery other resou rce, o f exp loitation that is unplanned and irra­ tional. lo ca lly o v er-in ten se and ev en s e l f d estroyin g by the p rolif­ eration o f u g lin ess. It is thus b eco m in g im portant to attem pt the eva lu a tio n o f sc e n ic resources in so m e ob jectiv e and quantitative fash ion (1 6 5 :2 1 9 ). In attem pting h is a ssessm en t o f scen ery as a resou rce. Linton aim s to ap p ly the p rinciples that h ave b een used in evalu atin g and m apping other resources. W e m ust stu d y the elem en ts o f scen ery that in flu en ce our reactions to it. w e m ust se lect th ose w e con sid er basic and m ap their variations o v er the w h o le area o f the stu d y; and w e must range the several ca teg o ries w e map in a h ierarchy o f valu e. W e w ill then be ab le to m eet the requirem ents that w e have already laid d o w n , n a m ely , to say o f our scen ery “ h o w m uch there is that is better than a sp ec ified standard and w h ere it is to be fo u n d '' (1 6 5 : 2 2 0 ) Linton attem pts to evalu ate the scen ery o f S cotland on the b asis o f lan d form s, the w ater elem en t, and land use. H e c la ssifie s the landform s into six general ca teg o ries and m aps th ese. H e a lso id en tifies and m aps lan d scap es w ith a sig n ifica n t w ater elem en t. A variety o f different types o f " land u se " lan d scap es a lso are id en tified and m apped. He then a ssig n s point or valu e ratings to all these e lem en ts and co m b in es them to arrive at a quantitative evalu ation and a map o f the scen ic resou rces o f S cotland . M any critical co m m en ts cou ld be m ade about L inton’s interesting stu d y , although this is not the p lace to d o so . The relatively h igh lev el o f su b jectiv ity in the se lectio n o f criteria and in the assign m en t o f point ratings is o n e problem that o b v io u sly w ill crop up in all such stu d ies. M any lan d scap es are marked by ston e rem ain s, old b u ild in gs, ancient field patterns, o r other human artifacts. T h ese an tiq u ities d is­ appear in the co u rse o f a n ew h ou sin g project, the con stru ction o f a n ew

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h ig h w a y , or the ex p a n sio n o f so m e agricultural en terprise. Y et, like scen ery , they in crea sin g ly are con sid ered to be valu ab le in m any parts o f the w orld . T h ey o ften are lo ok ed upon as aesth etically p leasin g and in tellectu ally and ed u ca tio n a lly u sefu l, v isib le ev id en ce o f national, tech n o lo g ic a l, and cultural h istory. C on seq u en tly in so m e cou n tries an tiq u ities are b ein g stu d ied and treated as resou rces. T he geographer N ew co m b (2 4 0 ) has describ ed h ow this is d on e in D enm ark. T h e basic aim is to preserve relic features and lan d scap es as o n e o f the com p onent e lem en ts o f a d y n a m ic contem porary sc en e. T h e features are c la ssifie d , su rv e y ed , and m apped on a national b a sis. W ith this k n ow led ge o f the d istribution and the relative u n iqu en ess o f the various an tiq u ities, the d ecisio n -m a k er is in a m uch better p osition to d ecid e h o w im portant it is to c o n se rv e a g iv e n feature or features. E ven if no threat o f ch an ge is im m ed iately apparent, m easures can b e taken to protect an tiq u ities that are rela tiv ely rare or oth erw ise o f sp ecia l valu e region ally or n ation ally. N ew co m b a lso d escrib es (he various institutional and cultural arrangem ents that have been introduced in an attem pt to m anage the antiquarian resou rces o f D enm ark. A g e n c ie s such as the National M u seum play a prom inent role in organ izin g and co n d u ctin g surveys and in ven tories. A lthou gh its nam e m ight su ggest an em p hasis on other th in g s, the Nature Preservation A ct o f 1963 sets a sid e ap p roxim ately I per cent o f the D anish landscape in parks or reserv es, so m e o f w hich cou ld be used to p reserve a n tiq u ities. A ccord in g to N e w c o m b , these um brella-type p rotective m easures are reinforced by a general Danish tradition for the protection o f h istorically in terestin g fragm ents o f lan d scap e. N ev erth eless N ew co m b is o f the op in ion that m ore n eed s to b e d o n e to m ake adm inistrators and planners se n sitiv e to an tiq u ities as resou rces and to p ersuade them to include an tiq u ities on a sp e c ific basis in overall land u se m anagem en t and p lan nin g. N ew co m b b e lie v e s that the historical geograp h er can contribute d irectly as a participant in antiquarian resource m anagem ent and indirectly as a m oulder o f public op in io n toward the con servation o f land history. R ecent in creases in p op u lation , the u se o f in sec ticid es, leisure, recreation , and other a sso cia ted c h a n g es, a lso have prom pted more geographers to b eco m e in v o lv ed w ith the problem s relating to what m ight be ca lled the “ naturaLness" o f lan d scap e. A ll but the m ost rem ote parts o f the w orld have been a ffected by man to varyin g degrees: but it is this very matter o f d egree that is now im portant to m any p eo p le. T h ey w ish to find and protect w ild or relativ ely little ch a n g ed areas for various purposes. S o m e want them as sanctuaries for in creasingly rare sp e c ie s o f fauna and flora or as nature p reserves in the w id est se n se. O thers want su ch areas for recreational p urposes: as h aven s w herin to ca m p , w alk , and oth erw ise en jo y the so -ca lled w ild ern ess ex p erien ce. O thers want th ese areas for scien tific

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and ed u cational p urposes; as reservoirs for p otentially useful or­ g a n ism s. or as standards again st w h ich to ju d ge the im pact o f in sec­ ticid es or other hum an to o ls on surrounding lands. T h ey w ish to use rela tiv ely unchanged areas as laboratories in w h ich to learn m ore about the e ffe c ts o f man on the la n d scap e, and as cla ssro o m s in w hich the urban d w eller can be sh o w n what m uch o f the land o n ce w a s like. S o areas with rela tiv ely high d egrees o f “ n atu raln ess" b ecom e resources to be id en tified , c la s sifie d , in ven toried , and m apped. In N ew Z ealand for ex a m p le, a botanist. A tk in son (4 ). has su g g ested that a series o f con servation districts be estab lish ed w h o se boundaries w ould m ore or less con form to the soil types in the N ew Z ealand g en etic soil m ap. A s he se e s it, the advantage is that the soil types a lso are a sy n o p sis o f general d ifferen ce s in clim a te, so il, parent m aterial, top og­ raphy, availa b le o rg a n ism s, and the tim e in w h ich these factors have been interacting. T h ese con servation d istricts c o u ld , thu s, be used as a fram ew ork for the preservation o f o n e or m ore representative sam p les of “ rela tiv ely undisturbed soil and v e g e ta tio n ,” or o f “ natural c o m ­ m u n ities." Such a sy stem cou ld a lso prove u sefu l in m aking d e c isio n s on w h eth er or not to p reserve a "natural area" threatened by lum bering or so m e other eco n o m ic a ctivity. In 'this con n ection A tk in son a lso presents a list o f co n servation criteria for u se as an index o f scien tific valu e. P oin ts are allocated and a rating estab lish ed on the b asis o f such standards as the relative u n iqu en ess o f the ca n o p y co v er, B - horizon m o rp h o lo g y , plant and anim al sp e c ie s, and d egree o f m odification from the " p rim itiv e” co n d itio n o f thin gs. G ro w in g public and sch olarly con cern about the protection o f landscapes that h ave been rela tively little m odified by m an is on e o f the things that recently has cau sed so m e geograp h ers and m any b io lo g ists to put in creasing stress on the e c o lo g ic a l approach to landscape m an­ agem en t and planning. T he e c o lo g ic a l approach se e m s to m ean a num ber o f thin gs. At the rela tively sim p le end o f the spectrum it has been used to mean that inform ation on the natural history and character o f a landscape should be em p lo y ed in plan nin g. In its m ore sop h isti­ cated se n se it can be con sid ered as sy n o n o m o u s with the eco sy ste m s approach, an ec o sy ste m h avin g b een d efin ed as a fu n ctio n in g , interact­ ing sy stem co m p o sed o f o n e or m ore organ ism s and their effe ctiv e en viron m en t both p h ysical and b io lo g ica l (9 4 , 2 9 5 ). A m on g other th in g s, the d escrip tion o f an eco sy stem m ay include its spatial rela­ tio n s. in ven tories o f its p h ysical featu res, its habitats, its o rg a n ism s, its b asic reserves o f matter and en erg y , and the patterns o f circulation o f matter and en erg y . In other w ord s, the eco sy ste m approach stresses k n ow in g as m uch as p o ssib le about all elem en ts o f a landscape and the interactions or inter-relatedness am o n g them . T h e em p h asis is on v iew in g part or all o f a lan d scap e or environm ent as a sy stem or part o f a

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sy stem and on understanding the w ay the sy stem w ork s. W ith such an understanding, or a substantial m odicum th ereo f, the planner and the d ecisio n -m a k er se em in g ly are less lik ely to interfere w ith the landscape in such a w ay as to ca u se u n w an ted and so m e tim e s en tirely u nforeseen ch a n g es. A fairly w id e range o f geograp h ical stu d ies cou ld be cited as illustrating the e c o lo g ic a l approach in the rather broad se n se o f the term . R elevant research has b een carried on in B a n ff N ational Park. C anada, where a sc en ic h igh w ay program m e has been proposed to m eet the anticipated n eed s o f tourists and as a m ean s o f reducing traffic in other in crea sin g ly cro w d ed parts o f the park. E cological con sid era­ tions can be said to play a part in the fo llo w in g an alysis o f on e o f the prop osed routes w h ich w ou ld run for forty m iles through the now road less w ild cou n try o f the upper Red D eer V a lley . C onstruction through the upper Red D eer w ould be particularly unfortunate as th is probably is the largest o f those areas in the park w here the lan d scap e is still com p aratively c lo s e to what it w a s at the tim e that the fur trader and the Indian roam ed the land. The upper Red D eer largely escap ed the fires, m ining and lum bering that a ffected so m any other parts o f the park in the d ecad es around the turn o f the tw entieth cen tu ry. It is therefore covered for the m ost part with relatively old spruce-fir forest rather than the fire fo llo w in g lo d g ep o le pine (so c om m on elsew h ere in the park). The upper Red D eer a lso sh elters g rizzly bear, m ountain g o a ts, and other an im als not so co m m o n ly seen in m ore frequented parts o f the park. Its faunal im portance certainly m erits further study before any road is constructed through the v a lley ; there is already a co n sid era b le b od y o f ev id e n c e in support o f the settin g aside o f this area, not for the a u to m o b ile, but for the cam per, the p h oto­ hunter and others w h o w ish to en joy the “ w ild ern ess e x p erien ce” (2 2 4 :8 1 ). T he g eograp h er, Stoddart, has argued for the protection o f the sm a ll atoll o f A ldabra, lo ca ted in the Indian O cean about 2 6 0 m iles northw est o f M ad agascar, on the grou n d s that its e c o lo g y m akes it e sp e c ia lly valu ab le to sc ie n c e . Stoddart p oin ts ou t that as a result o f their iso la tio n , and for other reason s, islands p o ssessed d istin ctive a ssem b la g e s o f plants and a n im als. H o w ev er, early European voyagers introduced ca ts, d o g s, g o a ts and other a n im als, both d elib erately and inadvertently. Later settlers clea red , burned, m ined, and otherw ise ch a n g ed the isla n d s, su b stan tially altering the plants, an im als and e c o sy ste m s o f all but a few o f them . Aldabra is on e o f th ose w h ich has undergone rela tiv ely little ch a n g e. But in the early 1 9 6 0 ’s the British

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M inistry o f D efen ce and the British B roadcasting C om p any began to plan the con stru ction o f an airfield and a transm itting tow er on the isla n d , although these projects have n ow b een sh elv e d o w in g to a ch a n g e in Britain’s p o licy ea st o f S u ez. H ow ever, a num ber o f sc ie n ­ tists o b jected to the projects w h ile they were under active con sid era­ tio n , a m o n g them Stoddart, w h o has put his argum ent as fo llo w s: U n lik e m ost elev a ted a to lls, Aldabra has never been m ined for gu an o and hum an in terference has been very lim ited . S o m e o f its a n im als and plants are im portant in th e m se lv e s— the last Old W orld giant to rto ise, fo r e x a m p le , the last Indian O cean flig h tless bird, the largest c o lo n ie s o f Frigate birds in the Indian O cean , and en d em ic sp e c ie s and su b -sp ecies o f land birds, in sects and plants. But from an e c o lo g ic a l point o f v ie w these are in the lon g term less im portant than the p reservation , intact, o f the last rem aining natural laboratory in the Indian O cean . S o far the S e y c h e llo is fisherm en w h o use Aldabra h ave had on ly a sm all effect on the island eco sy stem : . . . (2 9 6 :8 ). Stoddart g o e s on to ca ll for planned preservation o f the w o rld ’s differen t kinds o f islan d e c o s y ste m s and su g g ests so m e institutional or p olitica l arrangem ents w hereby this goal m ight be m et. T he 1964 A greed M easu res for the C on servation o f A ntarctic Fauna and Flora could serv e a s a m odel for the n ecessary international agreem ent or treaty. T he 1964 M easu res govern the protection o f n ative m am m als, birds, and plants, prohibit the im porting o f an im als and plants not in d igen ous to the area and provide for the d esign ation o f S p ecially Protected A reas o f outstanding im portance. T h e p reced in g e x a m p les are o f additional interest in that they raise q u estio n s as to w h y p eo p le react to landscape and resou rces in the w ay that they d o . T hus the statem ents on the upper Red D eer Road or Aldabra both in v o lv e the use o f e c o lo g ic a l inform ation, but this m ate­ rial is a n alyzed in such a w ay as to reflect the attitudes and v a lu es o f those w h o m ade the stu d ies. A ll kinds o f in form ation , all sorts o f ap p roach es, and a variety o f altern atives m ay be used and con sid ered in problem s o f lan d scap e and resource m an agem en t, but the d e c isio n s that u ltim ately are m ade gen erally w ill d epend on su ch thin gs as attitudes or valu es. T h o se w h o are in the p osition o f m aking the final d ecisio n on the Red D eer V a lley or Aldabra in the end m ay co n sid er the problem as thoroughly as any interested group, but d ecid e to act in another w ay b ecau se o f d ifferen ces in attitudes or va lu es. O f cou rse an assessm en t o f pu b lic op in ion u su ally w ill w eig h h ea v ily on the d ecision -m ak er. It fo llo w s from the fo regoin g that those w h o are interested in m an’s e ffe c ts on la n d sca p e, w hether for a cad em ic or practical reason s,

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sh ou ld learn as m uch as they p o ssib ly can about w h y p eop le react to the lan d scap e as they d o . In recent years a num ber o f geograp h ers have been trying to d o just this through what are often ca lled perception stu d ies. T h e m eaning o f the w ord perception ten ds to vary som ew h at am o n g researchers and situ ation s (1 1 0 . 2 6 9 ). In its broadest se n se it se em s to refer to the ou tlook or v ie w that p eop le h a v e o f a lan d scap e or resou rce. W hen used in this se n se it en co m p a sses the m ore traditional geograp h ic idea that a lan d scap e or en viron m en t is used or ch an ged by a p eo p le in accordance w ith their v a lu e s, their attitu des, and other cu l­ tural attributes. On the other hand the word perception has been used in a more p recise w a y , a w a y that separates it at least in the gradational se n se from the ideas in v o lv ed in w ords such as attitudes or va lu es. T h u s the geograp h er, G ilbert W h ite, w h o has w orked with p sy ch o lo g ists on perception research , has d efin e d '■attitude" as b ein g interchangeable with " b e lie f" o r " o p in io n ." A ttitude is said to describe: a p reference held by a person with respect to an object or con cep t. It d o es not in itse lf con stitute a valu e, it is the result o f a valuation p rocess o f so m e k ind, and a lw a y s in v o lv e s p reference. Insofar as it ap p lies to an a sp ect o f the en viron m en t it requires perception o f the en viron m en t. By percep tion is m eant the individual organ iza­ tion o f sen so ry stim ulation (3 2 2 :1 1 0 ). Perception se e m s to in v o lv e a variety o f p h y sio lo g ic a l, s o c io lo g i­ c a l. and other in flu en ces. D iffer en ces in v isio n o r a night lost w ith a girl in the w o o d s can work to m ake p eop le p erceive an aspect o f landscape d ifferen tly. A ll kinds o f in flu en ces w eigh on perception and so on the form ation o f attitu des and v a lu es. S o m e see L os A n g e le s sm o g as a d irty, u n h ealth y, and unfortunate co n se q u en ce o f h avin g too m any a u to m o b iles. O thers see this sm o g as a so m etim e s irritating byproduct o f that attractive and useful status sy m b o l, the m otor car. T h e perception approach h as been adopted by an increasing num ber o f geograp h ers in recent years (1 3 8 . 170). T h ey attem pt to determ in e perception o f and attitudes tow ard s various asp ects o f the lan d scap e in several w a y s, n otab ly by stu d yin g literature and art. and through in terv iew s, although so m e also u se p sy ch o lo g ica l tests. Many o f the perception studies h ave b een carried out on p ro cesses that trouble m an in e c o n o m ic or other w ays: flo o d s, droughts and other " h a za rd s." as they are n o w o ften ca lled (1 7 0 . 143. 2 6 8 ). T h ese stu d ies fo llo w a line o f geograp h ic thinking that lead s back to Harlan Barrows (8) and his ca ll for g eo g ra p h y as hum an e c o lo g y in a Presidential address to the

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A m erican A sso cia tio n o f G eograp h ers ( A .A .G .) in 1923. Barrows stressed that geograp h ers should be interested in the w ays that man adjusts to and m o d ifies the en viron m en t. He and h is students w orked on various flo o d control and w ater m anagem ent projects in the 1 9 3 0 's. S o m e referen ce a lso sh ou ld b e m ade to the g ro w in g interest in what are so m etim e s called p olitical and institutional arrangem ents. S uch an interest can be a sso ciated with h istorical, e c o lo g ic a l, or other approaches to any a sp ect o f lan d scap e. T h u s, both N ew co m b and Stoddart h ave had so m eth in g to sa y about the institutional and p olitical arrangem ents that m ight b e m ade for the protection and m anagem en t o f antiquarian or rela tiv ely u n m od ified island lan d scap es. On the other hand, m ore geographers are b egin n in g to approach m an-landscape p rob lem s from a sp e c ific a lly p olitical or institutional point o f v iew . T h e traditional geograp h ical interest in p olitical ar­ ran gem en ts at the state or national level is exp an d in g to in clu d e m et­ ropolitan areas, c itie s, differen t typ es o f land u sers, con servation ists and other interest groups. An e x a m p le is H arold M ayer's study o f p o litics and land u se a lon g the Indiana sh orelin e o f Lake M ich igan . M ayer b egin s by d escrib in g the sh orelin e as a battlefield for c o n flic t b etw een urban-industrial land u se and recreational land use and con servation . The major industrial dem and is for land c lo s e to water for steel m ills and port fa cilities. Part o f the land in dem and is the Indiana D u n e s, w h ich G eorge C ressey described in 1928 as " a rem arkable belt o f d u n es” h old ing “ great interest b eca u se o f its rich assem b lage o f plant and anim al life . . . the various en viron m en ts o f sh iftin g san d s and tam aracks furnish splendid ex a m p les o f e c o lo g ic a l relation sh ip " (1 9 4 :5 0 9 ). In op p osition to the dem ands o f steel are those o f p ersons w h o w ish to p reserve the d unes for recreational p u rp oses. M ayer sets and d escrib es their c o n flic t in a p olitical fram ew ork c o n sistin g o f tw o sta tes, c itie s su ch as C h ica g o and G ary, several differen t steel co m p a n ie s, and a variety o f interest grou p s, in clu d in g so m e con servation organ izations. M ayer d iscu sses the w a y the con cern s o f the states, the c itie s, and the various interest groups w ork to curtail or to op en up con sid eration o f alternative sites for steel and port fa cilities. He d escrib es the gradual en croach m en t o f the steel co m p a n ies on the du n es during the 1 9 5 0 's and 19 6 0 ’s w h ile the op p o sitio n w as attem pting to have a s m uch o f this lan d scap e as p ossib le placed in a national park, an ob jectiv e that w as fin ally ach ieved in S ep tem b er, 1967. In h is co n clu sio n M ayer underlines the general nature o f the co n flic t o v er the Indiana D u n es. S uch problem s ex ist on the frin ges o f m any m etropolitan and urban areas, w h ere the need for op en sp a ce, recreational areas and s c e n ic and natural p reserves m eet the d em ands o f

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industry, h o u sin g and the lik e. M ayer se e s regional planning and the use o f exp erts a s b asic to the attainm ent o f ‘ ‘optim al so lu tio n s” to these prob lem s. In Canada very little g eo grap h ic research has been undertaken on m an 's effe cts on la n d scap e. T h e em p hasis sin c e the seriou s b egin n in gs o f the d iscip lin e during the 193 0 ’s has largely been on p h ysical, e c o n o m ic , urban, and land use stu d ies. H o w ev er, w ithin the last ten to fifteen years historical and resource geographers h ave b eco m e more and m ore co n cern ed about m an’s relations with en viron m en t and also about environm ental m anagem en t. John W arkentin’s stu d ies on the ch a n g in g im ages and character o f nineteenth century W estern Canada are an ex cellen t ex a m p le, as is Conrad H eid en reich 's (1 15) recent work on the land u se, la n d scap e, and e c o lo g y o f Huronia in pre- and early-C aucasian d a y s. R ecent research on human adjustm ents to flood s and other “ h azards” by Burton, S e w e ll, and o th ers, and J. C . D a y ’s eva lu a tiv e stu d ies o f the so c ia l, e c o n o m ic , and p h ysical e ffe c ts o f d a m s, reservoirs, and other tech n ology represent the flo w erin g in Canada o f the hum an e c o lo g y and resou rces sc h o o l o f G ilbert W hite and Harlan B arrow s, his p red ecessor and teacher at C h icago ( 2 6 , 28, 2 7 9 , 6 8 , 6 9 ). E ven with these p rom isin g d ev elo p m en ts, w e still k n ow rem arka­ bly little about the nature o f the landscape at the tim e o f arrival o f the C au ca sia n s, and the w a y w ild life , veg eta tio n , and other elem en ts and p ro cesses have ch an ged through recent cen tu ries. H istorians su ch as Innis and R oe h ave told us som eth in g about our e ffe c ts on b eaver, b iso n , and other a n im als through the fur trade and other a ctiv ities. But the geograp h er, with his su p p o sed ly strong interest in interactions betw een man and lan d , had largely been silen t. M y o w n attem pts to gain a fu ller u nderstanding o f m an ’s ch an gin g im pact on the C anadian la n d scap e began in the early 19 6 0 ’s not lon g after taking up a teach in g p osition at The U n iversity o f C algary. A s with all research en d ea v o u rs, the form and su b stan ce o f these attem pts can o n ly be w ell understood in term s o f the d eep er learning in flu en ces and ex p erien ces that prepared the student for h is stu d ies. M y B .A . work at M cM aster w a s prim arily in land u se and regional geograp h y. T h e fo cu s at the M . A . level at C olorad o w as on land u se, con servation , and g eo m o rp h o lo g y , this b ein g accom p an ied by an initial exp osu re to the ideas o f Barrow s through on e o f h is form er stu d en ts, Harold H o ffm eister. P h .D . work in cultural geograp h y at Johns H op k ins w as pursued under G . F. Carter, a form er student o f S au er’s. In a PostD octoral year the g e o m o rp h o lo g y interest w as furthered under the process-orien ted g e o lo g ist and p h ysical geograp h er, M . G . W olm an. S u b seq u en t con tact w ith b io lo g ists and b iogeograp h ers at C algary, and

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w ith m any graduate stu d en ts, prom pted a greater interest in plants, birds, and other an im als. T h e essa y s in this vo lu m e reflect the d ev elo p m en t o f this back ­ ground in W estern C anada. T h e first e s sa y on man and lan d scap e in w estern C anada w as prepared in 1965 and 1966, about on e h alf-d ozen years after taking up resid en ce in the W est. T h e paper sh o w s a ssim ila ­ tion o f so m e o f the literature on Indian and C aucasian activity and an em erg in g ap preciation o f the w h ite m an's invasion o f the northern plains area. T he paper is ch ron ological in nature but also reflects an interest in p h ysical and cultural p ro cesses and in pu b lic land, ranching, and other to p ics thought particularly w orthy o f further stu d y. A m o n g the to p ics o f sp ecial interest are fire and an im als, the foci o f attention in the next tw o e ssa y s in the v o lu m e. Both are stu d ied in the con text o f q u estion s that have lon g interested Sau er and other students o f la n d scap e. T he fire e ssa y attem pts to build a c h ron ology o f fire as the b a sis for understanding its relation s to ligh tn in g, m an , clim a te, and other variables. T h e fire paper, and the fo llo w in g on e on a n im als, both w ere written in the late I9 6 0 's . T he last-nam ed paper particularly m an ifests a g ro w in g a w a ren ess o f the m any p h ysical and cultural p ro cesses w hich must be con sid ered in any attem pt to understand m an ’s role in ch an gin g the fa ce o f the northern plains. N ot o n ly is it n ecessary to con ten d with the lon g-stan d in g con troversy o ver the relative roles o f fire, m an, and clim a te in creating and perpetuating the grasslan d s o f this area, but o n e m ust a lso recogn ize the very im portant role o f the m ultitudes o f pre-C aucasian a n im als, su ch as b iso n , a n telop e, and elk , w h o se grazing and b row sin g undoubtedly a ffected the nature o f the v e g eta tio n , and w h o se in flu en ce often m ust h ave overridden that o f clim a te, or other varia b les, in clu d in g m an. Further d etails on the C aucasian in v a sio n , and on the interaction o f m an, fire, a n im als, and other interrelated in flu en ces are set forth in a recent b ook . The Last R efuge (2 3 1 ). T h e fourth paper in this v o lu m e , on the S u ffie ld M ilitary R eserve C o n tro versy , is a b rief attem pt to present historical and e c o lo g ic a l ev id e n c e and argum ent for the estab lish m en t o f a national park or sim ilar public reserve a lo n g a reach o f the South S ask atch ew an R iver w h ich has been relatively little disturbed by dry farm in g, irrigation, dam con stru ction , and other cultural p ro cesses largely introduced sin ce the co m in g o f the C aucasian to the W est. T h e paper reflects the con tin u in g interest o f so m e students o f m an’s im pact on lan d scap e in the p o licy and m anagerial im p lication s o f their research. T he d egree to w h ich the student sh o u ld b eco m e in v o lv ed in present-day m anagem ent issu es has been con tro v ersia l, with so m e m aintaining that he sh ou ld not get em b ro iled in current land use argum ents. T h e “ o b je ctiv ity ” o f the

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researcher and its relation to his role as interpreter, critic, and teacher is seen as a key issu e h ere, although it has been pointed out that personal va lu es are inherent in m ost research an yw ay ( 2 1 5 ). Sauer apparently w as se n sitiv e to this matter and en cou raged h is students to maintain their d istan ce from current issu es. On the other hand, Sauer did not fail to ex p ress h is o w n general v ie w s on the ad verse e ffe c ts o f m an’s agricultural and other a ctiv ities o n landscape and culture through tim e. The S u ffield essa y leads from the first block o f papers, prim arily in v o lv in g the northern p lain s, to the seco n d block w h ich are ch iefly co n cern ed w ith national parks and environ m en tal m anagem en t, nota­ bly in the R ock y M ountains. T he first paper in this secon d section is an attem pt to trace and interpret the d evelop m en t o f Canadian thinking about national parks and co n servation al reserves, e sp e c ia lly in relation to the A m erican precedents that have s o freq u en tly in flu en ced us over the years. T h e approach is prim arily from the perceptual stan d p oin t, an attem pt being m ade to v iew the d evelop m en t o f national parks and related types o f land use in term s o f the id eas, b e lie fs, v a lu e s, k n ow l­ e d g e . and social clim a te o f the tim es. T h e fo llo w in g e ssa y is a ca se study o f m an’s effe cts on landscape in the v icin ity o f P acific R im . a n ew Canadian national park, on the w est co a st o f V a n co u v er Island. T h e focu s is on man and fauna, notably birds and m am m als. T he d ifferen ces in the role and e ffe c ts o f preC aucasian and C aucasian m an are d iscu ssed and an alyzed , and an attem pt is m ade to fo resee the im p lication s o f current recreational and other pressures resulting from the recent estab lish m en t o f the park, as w ell as to present a m o d el, or organ izational fram ew ork , for future m anagem en t o f man and landscape in the park area. T h is paper there­ fore c o m b in es an a cad em ic interest in the ch an gin g effe cts o f m an, with a practical co n cern for the im p lication s o f current land u se trends for lan d scap es and e c o sy ste m s o f the future. T he P acific Rim paper, and the next essa y “ Canadian National Parks: R esearch N eed s and M a n a g em en t,” were written in the early I9 7 0 's and are o f additional interest in that they sh o w ch a n g es in approach and m eth o d o lo g y w h ich h ave d ev elo p ed during about ten years o l research. T h e earlier papers on the northern plains reflect the general state o f the art during the late I9 5 0 's and early I9 6 0 's . Man is seen as so m ew h a t distinct from the an im als, trees, and the world around h im , and so m e stress is placed on separating h is e ffe c ts as m uch as p o ssib le from those o f c lim a te, or other forces or p ro cesses “ in d e­ pendent o f h im .” to u se term in ology from the M a n 's R ole Sym posium ol 1955. The foci are v eg eta tio n , fire, erosion , agriculture, and other elem en ts ana p ro cesses o f traditional con cern . T h e later papers, for ex a m p le on P acific R im , or “ Canadian N ational Parks: R esearch N eed s and M a n a g em en t,” are m ore com p lex

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and reflect more ex p o su re to the theory, m eth o d o lo g y , and find in gs o f b io lo g ists, p sy c h o lo g is ts , la w y ers, p olitical sc ien tists, e c o n o m ists, and other m em ebers o f a w id e array o f sch olarly d iscip lin es. T h e trend to greater con tact with m ore and m ore d iscip lin es is accom p an ied by serious organization and an alytical prob lem s. T h e c o n c e p ts, m eth od s, and term in o lo g y o f the various d iscip lin es h ave to be reco g n ized , assim ila ted , and utilized in d ealin g with the problem at hand. S om e type o f integrative organ izational fram ew ork , or m o d e l, therefore is n ecessa ry , not o n ly for personnel reason s, but a lso to satisfy the needs o f graduate stu d en ts, sch olars in other d isc ip lin e s, adm inistrators, and citizen s. T h e m odel that has b een d ev elo p ed in a prelim inary attem pt to co-ord in ate and interpret data and con cep ts from a variety o f different sou rces is describ ed in the e ssa y “ C anadian N ational Parks: R esearch N eed s and M a n a g em en t,” and w ill not be d iscu ssed further here. The m odel is a lso applied in the P a cific R im stu d y. T h e papers in the secon d part o f this v o lu m e a lso se em to reveal a shift aw ay from orientation to rela tiv ely sim p le c a u se and effect think­ ing. in v o lv in g a com p a ra tiv ely sm all num ber o f in flu en ces, toward m ore co m p lex a n a ly sis, in w hich m any interacting variables are con sid ered in a sy stem s-o rien ted fram ew ork. T h u s, the con cep t o f ec o sy ste m takes its p la ce a lo n g sid e that o f landscape. H o w ev er, term s such as la n d scap e, en viron m en t, and eco sy stem tend to be used in this and other research in overlap p in g and rather co n fu sin g w a y s, in part b eca u se the d ifferen ces am on g them often are m ore apparent than real. T he term environm ent has lon g been used not on ly by b io lo g ists and other p h ysical sc ien tists, but a lso by g e o g ­ raphers, an th ro p o lo g ists, and other m em b ers o f m ore so c ia lly or c u l­ turally oriented d iscip lin es. For the p h ysically oriented sch o la rs, the term com p reh en d s air, w ater, nutrients, so il, and other essen tially non-hum an elem en ts in flu en cin g the grow th and distribution o f or­ g a n ism s. T he p h ysical scien tists h ave not used the term as broadly as the geograp h ers and so c io lo g is ts w h o g en erally m ean it to include not on ly p h ysical variables but a lso b u ild in g s, liv in g sp a c e , and other cultural en tities. In the late 19 3 0 ’s , b io lo g ists a lso began to use the word e co sy stem to describe the e lem en ts and p ro cesses interacting with and in flu en cin g an organism or org a n ism s in sp ace and tim e. E ssen tially eco sy stem refers to the elem en ts and p ro cesses that g iv e life to a p lace through tim e. T h e term stresses en erg y flo w , and the c y c lin g o f p h osp h orou s, nitrogen, and other ch em ica ls through s o ils , rock s, w ater, air, plants, and an im a ls, in clu d in g m an. R ecently as b io lo g ists h ave b ecom e more sen sitiv e to hum an e ffe c ts on the sy s te m , and as they have m oved aw ay from their lo n g -tim e ten d en cy to look for “ natural en v iro n m en ts”

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w here plants and an im als cou ld be studied m ore or less “ in d ep en dent" o f m an, they have in crea sin gly exten d ed the con cep t o f eco sy stem and the theory and m ethod o f the sc ie n c e o f e c o lo g y to m inin g, lum bering, and other p ro cesses a sso cia ted with m an. At this point the d ifferen ces b etw een the term s en viron m en t and eco sy stem b eco m e m ore and more d ifficu lt to discern. L andscape is b a sica lly a geograp h ical and architectural con cep t. It refers to the a ssem b la g e o f plants, a n im als, roads, b u ild in gs, clo u d s, and other elem en ts located at or near the earth’s su rface at so m e point in tim e. L andscape a lso at least im p licitly com p reh en d s plant su cc essio n , ero sio n , anim al m igration, trade and com m e rce, and other p h ysical and cultural p ro cesses at w ork at or near the earth's surface at su ch a point in tim e. L andscape traditionally has been a less dyn am ic con cep t than e c o s y ste m , but o b v io u sly is c lo s e ly related to it. Indeed lan d scap e m ay, perhaps, best be c o n c e iv e d o f a s a m anifestation o f the ec o sy ste m at a particular tim e and p la ce. L andscape stresses m o rp h ology, or struc­ ture, m appable fo rm s, and the p h ysical or cultural p ro cesses accou n t­ ing fo r their character and distribution. T he con cep t o f landscape is im portant as it provid es e v id e n c e o f the eco sy ste m and can serve as a b a sis for m anagem en t o f national parks, and other types o f land u se, as is sh ow n in " C an ad ian N ational Parks: R esearch N eed s and M anage­ m e n t.’’ Environm ent L andscape

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c o

Ecosystem Sim ple C onceptual D iagram In general the last tw o papers in this v o lu m e represent the m erging o f h istoric stu d ies o f m an’s e ffe c ts on lan d scap e with the current high lev el o f concern for better m anagem ent o f en viron m en t in Canada and m any other parts o f the w orld . S p e c ific a lly , the tw o papers are c o n ­ cerned w ith environ m en tal im pact a ssessm en t, i.e . with attem pts to

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id en tify, m ea su re, and predict the effects o f m an -in d u ced c h a n g es on the lan d scap es and ec o sy ste m s o f the future. T h ese attem pts raise sign ifican t philosop h ical and procedural q u estion s about planning for the future, w h ich arc touched upon in the first paper “ S om e B ack ­ ground T h ou gh ts on E nvironm ental Im pact S ta tem en ts." T he secon d paper, the last in the v o lu m e , d isc u sse s the proposed tw in n in g o f the T rans-C anada H ig h w a y through B a n ff N ational Park as an ex a m p le o f a critical ev alu ation o f an en viron m en tal im pact assessm en t. H o p efu lly the papers in this v o lu m e dem onstrate the valu e o f research on m an 's e ffe c ts 011 the w orld about him . S uch studies se em to be not o n ly o f general intellectual or acad em ic interest, but a lso o f sig n ifica n ce to p lan nin g, resource m an agem en t, and environ m en tal education in C anada. A sim ilar v iew has been exp ressed for the United States by the A m erican geograp h er M ik esell (2 0 5 , 2 0 6 ) in a recent A m erican A sso cia tio n o f G eograp h ers p u b lication . P erspectives o f E nvironm ent. H e points out that, for m any y ears, the entire field o f traditional g eo g ra p h ic interest know n as m an-land relation s, has been n eglected by U .S . g eo g ra p h ers, at least in part b ecau se o f reactions against the d eterm in istic thinking typical o f the first thirty years o f this century. In this brief introduction, it is im p o ssib le to d iscu ss the rise, fall, and p o ssib le resurgence o f environ m en tal d eterm in ism with its notion o f lim its to human population and a ctivity. H o w ev er, M ik e se ll’s paper and referen ces are availa b le to the interested reader, as are other relevant w ork s, in clu d in g D esign with N ature, by the determ in istic architect and planner, M cH arg. C ertainly at this tim e o f h eigh tened concern about the general health o f the en viron m en t and the future o f m an, m ore study o f m an 's im pact upon and interactions with landscape se em m ost d esirable in Canada.

i M N T $ .\

Figure I: Plains Area

1 M a n a n d L an d sc ap e in the W e ste rn Plains of C a n a d a J . G. Nelson

T H E original agreem ent w as a relatively lo o se o n e, to d o a study o f man and land in western C anada.* O n ce the work b eg a n , problem s o f sc o p e im m ed ia tely arose. W hat span o f tim e sh ou ld be co v ere d by the study? S h ou ld the em p h a sis be put on the traditional approach o f en viron m en ­ tal in flu en ce on man and m an's in flu en ce on en viron m en t? H o w far sh ou ld o n e be co n cern ed with p h ilosop h ical q u estion s? W hat is en viron m en t? H o w d o es it differ from landscape? Can w e really think e ffe c tiv e ly about man as distinct from environm ent or landscape? S h ou ld w e u se another approach, perhaps an e c o lo g ic a l, com m u n ity, or sy stem s approach o f the kind recently stressed by various g e o g ­ raphers (2 0 7 . 6 3 )? And there are a lso q u estion s o f area. W estern Canada is a h u g e place! E ven W arkentin’s " w estern interior o f C an ad a" is a ch a llen g e in term s o f siz e and v o lu m e o f relevant material (3 1 7 ). In arbitrary resolu tion o f these d iffic u ltie s, this essen tia lly nonp h ilo so p h ica l essa y is co n cern ed with so m e a sp ects o f m an’s im pact on the landscape o f the w estern plains area, prim arily during the nineteenth century. T h e w estern plains area is taken as roughly corre­ spondent w ith central and southern A lberta and southeastern S ask atch ­ ew an (Figure I). T he term lan d scap e is used m ore or less in the Sauerian se n se (2 7 0 ) o r in the se n se o f the “ fa c e o f the e a rth " in th e M a n 's R ole v o lu m e (3 0 6 ). H o w ev er, the essa y is broader than the previou s state­ m ent su g g ests in that C aucasian settlem ent and occu p an ce are d is­ c u sse d , albeit b riefly and rather s e le c tiv e ly , as are m any asp ects o f what m ight be called the hum an geograp h y o f the w estern interior o f C anada. S uch an ela stic co v era g e se em in g ly is n ecessary for reasona­ b le understanding o f the main them e and area. T he approach has the advantage o f p roviding a substantial b od y o f inform ation and o f en u n ­ cia tin g or im p ly in g research top ics or them es pertinent to the western plains as w ell as other areas. T h i s e ssa y w as w ritten in resp o n se to an in v itatio n to prep are a p a p er for inclusion in the C en ten n ial issue o f the C a n a d ia n G e o g ra p h e r, x l , 4 (1967): 251-264 19

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T h e C a u c a s ia n In v a sio n At the b egin n ing o f the nineteenth century the n atives o f the w estern p lain s and ad join in g areas w ere in the m idst o f ch a n g es brought about by the appearance o f the w hite man and his culture ( 3 2 9 ). H o w lon g the Indians had been on the plains is uncertain. A rch a eo lo g ica l fin d s and old er C - 14 dates in areas to the south in the U nited States su g g est a very lon g habitation. H o w ev er, the old est occu p an ce date so far ob tain ed in Alberta is 1 1 ,0 0 0 years at the B ayrock site near T aber, A lberta. The date d erives from w o o d found near the sk u ll o f an extin ct sp e c ie s o f b iso n . W ithin the sk u ll w as a co b b le ch op p in g tool. T he skeletal rem ains o f an infant a lso h ave been d iscovered beneath glacial till at the Stalk er site in the T aber area, but the age o f this find is uncertain. T h e q u estion o f h o w and w hen early man first entered A lberta and region therefore rem ain s o p en . W orm ington and Forbis (3 2 9 ) ou tlin e a series o f stages through w hich man d evelop ed upon his re-entry after the last g la cia tio n . A s in other parts o f the northern p lain s, three broad sta g es seem to predate the H istoric; these W orm ington and Forbis call the P aleo-In d ian , the M eso-In d ian , and the N eo-In d ian . T he b egin ­ n in g s o f the earliest sta g e o b v io u sly must be h a zy , but it is said to en d at about 2 ,5 0 0 B .C . The stage is characterised by w ell-m a d e lan ceolate points w h ich w ere used in the hunting o f b ig g a m e , ancestral form s o f b iso n , and other an im als n o w extin ct. T he n e x tsta g e , the M eso-In d ian , is sa id to exten d from 2 ,5 0 0 B .C . to about a . d . 6 0 0 , and to be charac­ terized by the production o f a variety o f large stem m ed and notched p oin ts. D uring this sta g e, p eo p le in parts o f the northern p lain s se em to h ave put so m ew h a t le s s em p h a sis on b ig -g a m e hunting and m ore on the gatherin g o f fo o d p lan ts, but this apparently did not occu r in A lberta. In the third sta g e, the N eo -In d ian , w hich began about a . d . 6 0 0 , m ost p rojectile tips w ere sm a ll, light arrow p oin ts. T h e hunting em p hasis w as on the m odern b ison . W orm ington and Forbis b e lie v e that there w as an in tensification o f Indian occu p ation and an elaboration o f Indian culture in N eo-Indian tim es. T h ey ad van ce the h y p o th esis that these ch an ges arose from the late, sp ec ia lize d , and productive d evelop m en t o f the b u ffalo ju m p , a form o f anim al drive in w hich the b ison or other an im als w ere driven over a c l i f f rather than into a w ood en en closu re or pound for slaughter. “ W ith this tech n iq u e the Indians were provided with the relatively certain m ethod o f producing su p p lies o f m eat and raw m aterials for clo th in g and sh elter far in e x c e s s o f what they cou ld c o n su m e. T hick b on e layers at m any jum p sites clearly in d icate that vast num bers o f an im a ls, running in to tens o r hundreds o f th ou san d s, if not m illio n s, w ere left to rot and s p o il.’ ’

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W orm ington and Forbis co n clu d e from the foregoin g that the Indian “ harboured no notion o f co n se r v a tio n .” H o w ev er, early buffalo p opulations have been estim ated in the tens o f m illion s. T he question therefore arises as to what con servation al thought and p ractice m ight be ex p ected w hen a resource w as s o very p len tifu l, perhaps as all pervad­ ing as air or w ater w as o n ce for us! Later o n , in the nineteenth and tw entieth cen tu ries, the Indians w ere said to b e resp onsib le for e x c e s ­ siv e slaughter o f in crea sin g ly scarce b iso n , m ountain sh ee p , and other a n im als, but their role and attitudes in the d ep letion p rocess are not clea r and certainly w orthy o f further research. T h e end for the N eo-In d ian began with the com in g o f the w hite m an’s g o o d s, w h ich , by trade and other m ean s, preceded h is actual entry into western C anada. W hen the First w h ites penetrated the w est they often found the form erly pedestrian n atives u sing h orses, g u n s, and m etals, with the latter q u ick ly d isp la cin g their traditional stone to o ls. A cco rd in g to W orm ington and F orbis, this ch an ge in to o ls occurred so q u ick ly as to create a gap b etw een the early tribes w h ich w e k n o w by a rch aeological study o f ston e to o ls and the later tribes d e­ scribed in the historical literature. A ttem p ts to link arch aeological and h istoric Indians presum ably w ou ld be further com p licated by their d isp lacem en t during w h ite ad van ce. N ot all such m ovem en ts appear to have b een traced in d etail. T h e B la ck fo o t, the A ssin ib o in e, the S n ak e, and other western p la in s’ tribes all have shifted con sid erab ly in the last 2 5 0 years or s o ( 8 9 , 3 2 9 ). A lthough other con sid eration s su ch as the rom an ticized search for the w estern sea are in v o lv ed ( 7 2 ), w hite m ovem en t into the western plains w a s c lo s e ly lin k ed to the fur trade (1 3 1 ). T he French were active in the upper Great L akes country in the mid to late 1 6 0 0 's. Joliet and M arquette reached the M ississip p i and the m outh o f the M issouri in the early 1 6 7 0 ’s . La V erendrye w as a ctiv e in the lake country o f co n tem ­ porary w estern O ntario in the early d ecad es o f the eigh teen th century and estab lish ed p osts on Lake W in n ipeg and the A ssin ib o in e R iver. B y the 1 7 5 0 ’s the French w ere operating p osts on the North S ask atch ew an , a river w h ich o v er the next hundred years and m ore w as to serv e as the m ajor artery o f su b sisten ce and co m m erce for the exp a n d in g fur trade. From York Factory and the N elso n R iver sy stem , and from M ontreal, the Great L a k es, and Lake W in n ip eg , b u lky York b o a ts, and sv e lte ca n o es w ere used to m ove su p p lies and furs a lo n g the river and b ey o n d , to p la ces such as Lake A thabasca in the north and the C olu m b ia R iver country w est o f the R ock y M ou n tain s. But m uch o f this w as in the future in the m iddle o f the eigh teen th cen tu ry, w h en the E n glish began sen d in g m en to the North S ask atch ew an v a lley and the p lains, apparently to counteract French interferen ce with Indian trade

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to H u d so n 's B ay. A H u d so n ’s Bay C om p any e m p lo y e e , A n thon y H en d ay. se e m s to h ave been the first to reach the R ock y M ountain fo o th ills, although the w an d erin gs o f h is French Canadian p red ecessors are v a g u e. O thers such as W illiam P ink, Jam es G ad d y, and M atthew C o ck in g fo llo w ed him on to the plains as the com p etition b etw een the fur co m p a n ies built up in the I 7 6 0 ’s , I7 7 0 ’s , and I 7 8 0 ’s; P ond 's H ou se. H udson H o u se, M anchester H ou se, and other p osts all b ein g estab lish ed in these years. T h e jou rn als o f H enday and C o ck in g have b een published ( 2 4 ), but the a ctiv ities, routes and role o f others in ex p lo rin g and o p en in g the w estern p lain s are not w ell k n ow n . T h e fur co m p a n ie s tended to fo llo w o n e another up river to n ew territory, the p osts ad van cin g in grou p s, co m p etin g in tensely for the furs o f the regio n . B eaver, for the hats o f E u rop e, w as the prim e com m od ity in the early years. A lthough not too m any detailed stu d ies seem to be a v aila­ b le , it has been said that the traders m ined a region s o rapidly that it w as ruined for fur in about seven years (2 0 9 ). In the 1 7 8 0 ’s and 17 9 0 's the fur traders began to m ake con certed e fforts to estab lish p osts in central and southern A lberta and in southern S ask atch ew an . O n e line o f approach w as from the North Sask atch ­ ew a n . south a lo n g the eastern ed g e o f the fo o th ills to v a lley s such as the B o w and the H igh w o o d . D avid T h om p son m ade su ch a trip in 1787 and w intered with the Indians in the B o w V a lley (1 0 5 , 3 0 8 ). Peter Fidler fo llo w e d him in 1792, w in terin g in the H igln vood and jou rn eyin g to the O ldm an R iver and w est into the m ountains b efore returning in the spring o f 1793 (9 0 ). A nother lin e o f approach w as alon g the Sou th Branch o f the S ask atch ew an R iver (9 1 , 179). O ne o f the early posts w a s South Branch H o u se, built in 1786 but d estroyed by the Indians in 1794. C hesterfield H o u se, at the Junction o f the Red D eer and South B ranch, w a s esta b lish ed by Peter F idler in 1800-1801 and he and so m e Cana­ dian com p etitors a lso appear to h ave traded at this site during the fo llo w in g w inter. N orth w est C om p any traders under John M cD on ald o f G arth, and so m e H u d so n 's B ay C om p any m en did b u sin ess there in 1 8 0 5 -1 8 0 6 , but no p osts are kn ow n afterw ards until 1822 (1 9 0 ). O n e o f the m ain problem s w as the h ostility o f the p la in s’ Indians, notably the Fall or Gros V en tres. It w as the Fall Indians w h o w ip ed out all but one o f the e m p lo y ees at South Branch H o u se in 17 9 4 and participated in the harassm ent o f F idler and h is C anadian com p etitors in 18 0 0 and 1801. M cD on ald w as a lso bothered, h avin g so m e m en k illed by an unknow n tribe during the trip out in the sp rin g o f 1806. A nother problem w as g ettin g the quantity o f furs that the fur traders desired . T h e reports o f m en su ch as F id ler, and th e jou rn als o f posts such as South Branch H o u se, su ggest that con sid erab le num bers o f b eaver, f o x , w o lf, and other sk in s were secu red at tim es. On the

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other hand the distribution and siz e o f these anim al p op u lation s, n ota­ b ly the b eaver and other are uncertain. T h e ob servation s o f Fidler and others do in d icate, h o w ev er, that b eaver p op u lation s w ere high in at least so m e o f the poplar “ w o o d s” stretching d iscon tin u ou sly a lo n g the South Branch. A nother p roblem w hich co m p lic a tes a ssessm en t o f early anim al p op u la tio n s w as the apparent d isin clin ation o f the B lack foot and other p lain s’ Indians to hunt for furs, particularly th ose o f riverine an im als. M ost o f their trade w a s in w o lf and fo x . And ev en w ith this the traders com p la in ed that the plain s' Indian w as d ifficu lt to incorporate into the fur trad e.H e w as lab elled as “ in d ep en d en t,” preferring to ch a se the vast herds o f b u ffa lo , e lk , a n telo p e, and other gam e from w hich he cou ld sa tisfy h is wants: m eat, fresh , dried, or m ade into p em m ican , le g g in g s, m o cca sin s, and other clo th in g , warm rob es for w in ter, horns for u se as con tainers, sin ew for strin g, and rope and sk in s for the teep ees in w hich he m ade h is h om e during h is w anderings o ver the land. In 1 8 2 2 , the H u d so n 's Bay C om p any m ade a bold attem pt to try to esta b lish the fur trade in southern A lberta and S ask atch ew an , as w ell as the nearby areas in present-day M ontana, by sen d in g the B o w R iver E xp ed ition d ow n the South S ask atch ew an R iver (2 3 1 ). T h is strong party, co n sistin g o f o v er one hundred m en , w a s led by exp erien ced leaders su ch as D on ald M cK en zie and John R ow an d . Y et the group w as con tin u a lly harassed and threatened by hundreds o f Indians w h o cam e and w ent for trade, w ar. and other reasons during the cou rse o f the w inter. In the spring the traders left and no w h ites from the Canadian sid e o f the border se em to have operated p osts there until 1871. w hen Isaac C o w ie m anaged a h ou se in the C yp ress H ills for the H u d son 's B ay C om p any for o n e w inter (5 9 ). H o w ev er, there is little doubt that the M etis were in creasingly a ctiv e in the Southern plains in the d ecad es b etw een 1822 and 1871. In d eed , the M etis m ay have begun to enter the region for trade purposes on a regular basis in the early 180 0 ’s, fo llo w in g the abortive estab lish ­ m ent o f C h esterfield H o u se. A lth ou gh sh ortlived , this post g a v e som e o f F id ler's m ixed b lood s a ch an ce to m ake con tact with the Indians. S o m e are know n to h ave g o n e to live with the B la ck fo o t, at least tem porarily, at that tim e. M any o f these M etis, and the Indians them ­ s e lv e s , b eca m e hunters o f b ison rather than fur, deliverers o f m eat to the p osts a lo n g the North S ask atch ew an in particular. M uch o f the m eat w as m anufactured into p em m ican and distributed to the b rigades m o v ­ ing alon g the river in spring and fa ll, carrying fur or su p p lies. T h ese b rigades were g o in g to o q u ick ly to hunt, or to distant p osts in the north, w here fish and other so u rces did not su p p ly the great quantities o f food that cou ld be extracted from the p lains. T hus the b ison herds o f the

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south served a s a pillar o f the trade until w h ite settlem en t began in earnest later in the century. W hatever the situation on the Canadian sid e , the A m ericans b eca m e more and m ore active in the upper M issouri cou n try, and the nearby plains and m ountains in the years b etw een 1804 and 1871. L e w is and Clark and their party o f about thirty m en staked the A m eri­ can interest during their exp ed ition to the P acific and return in 1804, 1 8 0 5 . and 1806 (5 3 ). S o m e o f the participants were drawn back by the country and its fur and b ecam e part o f the various fur com p an ies operating in the M issouri v a lle y , and even tu ally in the R o ck ies, during the years 1 8 0 7 -1 8 4 0 (4 1 ). T h e A m erican s en countered strong resis­ tance from the B la ck fo o t and other Indians, but p ersisted , even tu ally esta b lish in g p osts and settlem en ts such as Fort U nion and gradually w earin g the Indian d ow n by w ar, d ise a se , and other m ean s. T o what exten t the southern and w estern plains o f Canada w ere in the trade area o f enterprises such as the A m erican Fur C om p any during the 18 3 0 ’s and 1 8 4 0 's is. h o w ev er, not en tirely clear. T h e B lack foot se em to have oriented quite stron gly to the M issouri p o sts, but no study has been m ade o f the over-a ll trade pattern o f the Indians, or o f their relations with Canadian p osts during th ese years. The M etis se em to have m oved rather freely b etw een A m erican and Canadian p o sts, and s o through the region o f the M issou ri-S ou th S ask atch ew an v a lle y s, regardless o f any im aginary border. In 1848. P alliser w a s guided in his solitary ram bles on the plains by a M etis w h o seem ed quite fam iliar with the area g en era lly east o f the C yp ress H ills (2 5 2 ). By 1850 the interests o f variou s g overn m en ts w ere su fficien tly aroused that ex p ed itio n s w ere sent from the U nited S ta tes. E ngland, and C anada to ex p lo re the w estern p lain s, the A m erican and English parties being particularly interested in routes for railroads. T h e A m eri­ can su rv ey for the northern railroad route w as d irected by Isaac S teven s and travelled through m uch o f the M issou ri, the R o ck ies, and the country w est to the P acific in the early 1 8 5 0 's (3 1 0 ). V arious m em bers o f the E n glish ex p ed itio n under John P alliser covered m uch o f western C anada from present-day M anitoba to eastern British C olu m b ia in 1 8 5 7 -1 8 5 9 ( 2 5 3 ). T h e C anadian govern m en t sent Henry Y o u le Hind into present-day w estern O ntario, M an itoba, and S ask atch ew an at about the sam e tim e (1 2 3 ). M uch geograp h ical inform ation is c o n ­ tained in the various reports o f these e x p ed itio n s, with several im ­ proved m aps o f the w estern plains area b ein g o n e result, although blank sp ots rem ained in the so u th w est, the d om ain o f the B lack foot and other p la in s’ tribes. A co m b in a tio n o f factors se em to have cau sed a breakthrough into the w estern plains in the late 1 8 5 0 's, 18 6 0 ’s and 18 7 0 ’s (2 8 1 . 180). G old w as d isco v ered in M ontana and other areas to the w est o f the

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m oun tain s. There fo llo w e d a w a v e o f prospectors and m iners into the p lain s, fo o th ills, and m ountains o f what is n ow eastern British C o lu m ­ bia and western A lberta. T he num ber o f these m en . their routes and e ffe c ts arc not w ell k n ow n (2 6 7 ). A nother factor w as d ise a s e , a tantalizin gly interesting but in su fficien tly studied in flu en ce on w estern C an­ adian settlem en t and d ev elo p m en t. The B lack foot and other p la in s’ tribes su ffered from a num ber o f outbreaks during the years o f w hite ad van ce, the ep id em ic o f 1781 apparently k illin g about tw o-thirds o f tribes su ch as the B la ck fo o t. T h e outbreaks o f 18 3 7 and 1869 a lso were very se v ere am ong m any p lain s' tribes, with the last o n e probably being a fundam ental b lo w to B lack foot p ow er, w hich se em in g ly had been in stead y d eclin e for about a d eca d e. A third factor in the breakthrough w as a m ajor sp illo v er o f A m erican settlem en t. For d ecad es A m erican traders and trappers had been trading in the southern Canadian p lains, but their pressure se e m s to have b eco m e particularly strong in the 1 8 6 0 's w h en a num ber o f p osts w ere estab lish ed by so called “ w h isk y trad ers,” and southern A lberta earned the d esign ation " W h o o p -U p C o u n try .” T he p ow er o f the H u d son ’s Bay C om p any a lso w as w aning fast at this tim e, w ith Rupert's Land b ein g transferred to Canadian control in 1870. T h e Canadian govern m en t w as thus left with such basic p ro b lem s as the transgression o f A m erican settlem en t onto what w a s n ow C anadian so il. T h in gs ca m e to a head w ith the s o called C yp ress H ills m assacre o f 1873. A group o f A m erica n s, w h o felt that their h orses had b een stolen by the Indians en g a g ed in battle with so m e A ssin ib o in e s, w h o m ay or m ay not have been the gu ilty party. O ne A m erican and a num ber o f Indians w ere k illed . T h e battle and the killing occurred on Canadian so il and nationalistic feelin g s w ere aroused. E ventu ally the North W est M ounted P o lice w ere sent to bring law and order and Canadian so v ereig n ty to the w estern p lain s (7 0 , 2 8 3 ). T h ey m arched from the Red R iver and W in n ipeg area in 18 7 4 and after a trek o f m any m onths reached the O ldm an R iver o n ly to find that, for the m ost part, the A m erican s had d isp ersed . In the fo llo w in g m onths and years the North W est M ounted P o lice estab lish ed m any posts throughout western C anada. S o m e o f these p o sts, like Fort W alsh in the C ypress H ills, w ere su b seq u en tly abandoned and largely forgotten . O thers, lik e F oil M a cleo d , h ave g ro w n , with so m e stru g g le, to sm all tow n s or e v e n to large citie s like C algary. The sam e is true o f the trails, although their form er g eograp h y is v a g u e. S o m e se em to be m ore or less p aralleled by contem porary h ig h w a y s such as route 2 to E dm onton; others h ave disappeared or been relegated to a lesser role. T he late I8 6 0 's . I8 7 0 's and the early I8 8 0 's were transitional years. T h e fur trade, with its scattered settlem en ts and its m aintenance o f w id e op en sp a ces am en able to the nom adic hunting life o f the Indian

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and the M etis, w as d isap p earin g. For the Indian in the next ten to fifteen years the p rocess w as o n e o f in creasing co n fin em en t and the sig n in g o f treaties relegatin g them to reservation lands. For the M etis the story w as sim ilar. T h ese p eop le se e m to h ave m oved from the fur trade post and the w hite w orld into that o f the Indian relatively freely, to have b een the practitioners or forerunners o f the fur trade in areas w here w hite p osts w ere not esta b lish ed , eith er b e c a u se o f Indian h o stility or b eca u se attem pts had not been m ade. T hroughout the greater part o f the n in eteen th century so m e o f them lived at the Red R iver co lo n y and d ev o ted th e m selv es in part to cu ltivation and in part to the life o f the nom ad and the b u ffa lo hunt. O thers lived aw ay from the Red River v a lley , out on the p lain s, w intering at m ysteriou s sites in the relatively m o ist, treed v a lley s and h igh lan d s, su ch as B atoch e on the South S ask atch ew an or East End in the C yp ress H ills. Like the Indians, the M etis had trouble in fin d in g a p lace in the C anadian sc h e m e o f things. A diaspora, rather vague in s iz e , ex ten t, and geograp h ical detail, occurred after the failure o f the first rebellion in 1 8 6 9 -1 8 7 0 and also after the seco n d in 1885. M any M etis fled to the U nited States or the further reaches o f the w est w h ere they con tinu ed to hunt, to be slo w ly integrated into C anadian or A m erican so c ie ty , or to be driven into the relatively free north during the latter part o f the nineteenth and the early tw entieth cen tu ries. (1 0 2 , 103).

R esearch T hem es T h e d eclin e o f the Indian and the M etis w as accom p an ied by the d isappearance or d ep letion o f various kinds o f w ild life . O n ly the story o f the b u ffa lo se e m s relatively w ell k n ow n , although largely on the b a sis o f stu d ies o f the A m erican rather than the C anadian situation (2 6 5 . 16). By the I8 7 0 's the anim al se e m s to have been elim in ated or driven from the eastern section o f the w estern interior so that M etis from the Red R iver v a lle y had to con d u ct their great hunts far out on the p lain s, as far as the neigh b ourhood o f the C yp ress H ills in co n tem p o ­ rary southern A lberta. T he final throes o f the b u ffalo appear to have b een rapid with the lo n g -tim e pressure o f th e fur trade, the Indians, the M etis, com m ercial hide hunters, the railroads, and other in flu en ces all b ein g in v o lv ed in its d isappearance as a w ild anim al by the early 1880%. A very fundam ental force for ch an ge w as the co m in g o f the railroad. S u rveyors for the C .P .R . w ere w ork in g under the d irection o f Sir Sandford F lem in g throughout the plains and ad join in g m oun tain s in the early I8 7 0 's ( 9 3 ). T h e railroad itself w as constructed in the early 1 8 8 0 's, h avin g a variety o f e ffe c ts on land u se and landscape w hich

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h ave not been thorough ly stu d ied . T he d evelop m en t o f agriculture and the o p en in g o f the w est o w e m uch to the railroad, although the history o f agriculture is an old o n e in the w estern interior, for sm all vegetab le gardens w ere part o f m any an early fur-trade p ost. A ls o , a range o f grains and v eg eta b les h ave been grow n in the Red R iver v a lley s sin c e at least the tim e o f Selkirk in the early 18 0 0 ’s. And w hen the early railroad su rveyors and the M ounted P o lice cam e in the early I8 7 0 's they found agricultural settlers here and there in v a lley s such as the O ldm an. T h e d ev elo p m en t o f the cattle industry still se e m s to d eserve geograp h ical attention. T h e H u d son ’s B ay C om p any records refer to im portations o f sm all num bers o f cattle in the early 1 8 0 0 's. A udubon m en tion s M etis m o v in g ca ttle about in the M issouri v a lley in the 1 8 4 0 ’s (5 . 177). John M cD o u g a ll. (1 9 8 , 199, 2 0 0 ), the m ission ary, trailed cattle from Fort Benton north to the B ow v a lle y in the early I 8 7 0 ’s. C attle and the c o w b o y tradition were certainly in the A lberta footh ills and southern plains in the 1 8 7 0 ’s and early 1 8 8 0 ’s , sp illin g o ver from the in crea sin g ly w ell-sto ck ed ranges o f M ontana. A lthough British and other in flu en ces did c o m e in . alon g with C anadian in n ovation and c h a n g e , m uch o f the character o f Canadian ranch life , lore, and land­ sca p e se e m in g ly stem s from the tradition o f the A m erican w est, which in turn w as d erived in part from S panish traditions in the A m erican south and sou th w est (1 4 5 . 3 0 2 , 175, 180). T h e style o f ranching w a s op en ran ge, w ith cattle grazing on un fen ced crow n land. T he ranches were private or com p an y o w n ed , w ith the c o w b o y " r e p ” b ein g the agent for h is ranch at the big co -o p era tiv e roundup. H o w ev er, the system w as sh ort-lived , for the railroad op en ed the w a y to the introduction o f large num bers o f cu l­ tivators or farm ers. T he few soon b ecam e tens and hundreds o f thou san d s as their introduction proved to be m ore and m ore a matter o f national p o licy in the 1 8 9 0 's and 190 0 ’s. A s in the U nited S tates, they were a llo w ed to settle on p h y sica lly unknow n areas, w here s o ils were often poor and the clim a te se v e r e , or on farm units o f doubtful siz e for su c c e ss . In m ost areas, the peak se em in g ly w as reached so m e tim e in the early I 9 0 0 ’s. In the p ro cess, the open range w as largely cut up by p lo u g h s and fen ced for farm s, m any o f w h ich lasted for o n ly a few years before b ein g am algam ated into larger u nits or reverting back to range or ranch. S ca n d in a v ia n s, G erm ans, U krainians, and other ethnic grou p s and n ation alities were in volved in the settlem en t p rocess and in the adaptation to lim ited and uncertain rainfall through su m m er fa llo w ­ ing and other dry farm ing tech n iq u es. R elatively few stu d ies o f these grou p s, their varyin g settlem en t p olicies-an d p ractices, and their g e o ­ graphical e ffe c ts , h ave been carried out (3 1 6 ). T hroughout the 1 8 9 0 ’s and early I9 0 0 ’s , the settlers tried to work out so m e adjustm ent to their en viron m en t, their problem not o n ly being

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s o ils , clim a te and drought. T h ey w ere bothered to an uncertain d egree by lo cu sts and in sect p ests. Fire w as a great problem (2 5 9 , 2 1 1 ). A lthou gh lightning w as often a ca u se , prairie b la zes were started ca relessly by settlers, cam p ers, railroad e n g in e s, and for a variety o f other reasons. On the in co m p letely cu ltivated prairie such fires could burn, uninterrupted for m iles and often d estroyed hay, crop s, h o m es, and even human liv e s. In m any ca ses the fires d estroyed farm eq u ip ­ ment and w hatever h ead w ay the settlers had m ade, often driving them from the land. N ot surprisingly therefore, fires were b asic to the earliest leg isla tio n introduced in the C anadian w est, with various con trols, such as the p lou gh in g o f fireguards alon g railroad track s, or fines for ca r e le ssn e ss, b ein g stipulated. W in d s, H oods, and other p ro cesses a lso were a hazard to the early settlers w h o , alon g with g overn m en t, early began to d ev elo p tech n iqu es to com bat th em , so m etim e s su c c e ssfu lly , so m etim e s not, in a battle that con tin u es up to the present. T o w n s such as Fort M a cleo d se em to have had to be abandoned at various tim es b eca u se o f flo o d in g and a cco m p a n y in g channel ero sio n . E lsew h ere, as in C algary, a m ore gradual a ccom m od ation w as w orked out through the con stru ction o f d a m s, le v e e s , in fillin g o f the ch an n el, and other m ean s, in a story that rem ains largely untold. T he im pact o f man on w ild life con tinu ed to in crease in the 18 9 0 's and 1 9 0 0 's. The early settler often w a s d ependent on the g a m e o f the region for su b sisten ce, particularly in winter. The rancher and the farm er both seem to h ave seen certain kinds o f gam e as in com patib le with their en d s. T h e g rizzly , form erly abundant on the p lain s, appar­ en tly w as g o n e ev en from treed n ich es such as the C yp ress H ills, by the late I8 8 0 ’s or early 1 8 9 0 's. M any ranchers did not even se e the bear but o n ly the scars he carved on h orses ridden by those c o w b o y s w h o w ent out to la sso him in the g a m e so w ell portrayed by the fam ou s A m erican co w b o y artist, C h arles R u ssell. D etailed stu d ies o f their num bers and distribution are c o n sp icu o u s by their rarity, but on e gain s the im p res­ sion that the great herds o f elk and a n telop e seen by Peter Fidler in the early I8 0 0 's se em in g ly w ere all but g o n e from the S outh S askatchew an v a lle y and other nearby areas by the early 1 9 0 0 's. E a g les, vultures, w o lv e s , c o y o te s , the fo x , w aterfow l, all fell in creasin gly before the hea v y hand o f settlem en t. On the other hand, in the late d ecad es o f the nineteenth and early tw entieth cen tu ries, there grew an increasing concern for the preservation and con servation o f w ild life . V ery ffiw d etails o f this co n cern are a v a ila b le, although attem pts w ere m ade to estab lish such co n tro ls as season al hunting lim its, a bag lim it, and a prohibition on the hunting o f certain an im als. M any o f these ideas seem to be tied to sim ilar d ev elo p m en ts in the U nited States. T h e years after 1900 are not o f primary interest here. H ow ever, they are full o f ch a llen g in g to p ics for the geographer. The cu ltivators

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con tinu ed to h a v e d ifficu lties. Farm abandonm ent w as com m on as w ere stead y in creases in farm siz e . S c ie n c e and tech n o lo g y were in creasingly applied to agricultural land use. In th is co n n ectio n it w ould be interesting to trace ch a n g es in ideas and attitu des, fo r e x a m p le , what appears to have b een a ch a n g e from the idea o f the in sect as a pest to the idea o f in sec ticid es as a m enace. A nother th em e, w h ich has b eco m e in creasin gly im portant in the late nineteenth and tw entieth cen tu ries, is that o f C anadian-A m erican relation s. In p rev io u s d iscu ssio n , several ex a m p les have been g iv en o f the penetration o f the A m erican p e o p le , their id ea s, m eth o d s, land-use patterns, and effe cts into m in in g, ran ch in g, and oth er a ctiv ities in the C anadian w est. A n other e x a m p le is w ater, o f w h ich study irrigation is an interesting branch. S tu d ies o f the historical geograp h y o f western C anadian irrigation d istricts cou ld an sw er a n um ber o f q u estio n s not on ly about land u se and landscape ch an ge but a lso A m erican in flu en ce on p o licy and the d ev elo p m en t o f the C anadian irrigation en terprise. To what d egree is Canadian irrigation procedure a product o f eth n ic groups su ch as the M orm on s? For that m atter, what w a s the general in flu en ce o f groups such as the M orm on s on w estern C anadian agricultural land use? T o what exten t w ere the A m erican s resp on sib le for the introduc­ tion o f sugar b eets or o f other irrigation cro p s, p ractices, and m eth o d o lo g y ? W hat h as b een the A m erican in flu en ce on w ater law in the C anadian p lain s? H ow d o es the govern m en tal role in irrigation com p are in the U nited S tates and Canada? What p olicies and proce­ dures h ave been fo llo w e d in the starting o f irrigation d ev elo p m en ts and what have their e ffe c ts been? H ow has the su itab ility o f land been d eterm in ed prior to d ev elo p m en t in both cou n tries? W hat e ffe c ts have C anadian d istricts had on e c o n o m ic and social d evelop m en t and on the landscape in com p a riso n to th ose in the U nited S tates, or. for that m atter, in other sem i-arid areas? Q u estio n s sim ilar to the foregoin g c o u ld b e asked about other ty p es o f w ater u se and about other resources as w ell. T h e years after 1900 a lso sa w the d evelop m en t o f various a g e n c ie s, such a s the P. F .R .A .. w h o se in flu en ce on land u se and landscape ch a n g e rem ains largely unstudied. O ther a g e n c ie s, w hich began to work in the nineteenth century or earlier, often con tin u ed to play an im portant role. For ex a m p le , the C .P .R . w as in v o lv ed in ev ery th in g , from the distribution o f m igrants through to the d e v e lo p ­ m ent o f irrigation, urban areas, and national parks. Industries such as o il and gas a lso grew after the turn o f the century and m ade u n assessed d em and s on w ater and other a sp ects o f landscape. Industrialization and urbanization b eca m e m ore and m ore im portant, with such attendant problem s as w ater a llo ca tio n and p ollu tion . A ll these thin gs seem to h a v e led to less co n cern about con q u est o f the en viron m en t, a basic

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them e o f the nineteenth and early tw entieth cen tu ries ( 1 8 1 ), and to m uch more con cern about con trollin g m an's im pact on the land. A nother c h a n g e, w h ich really began in the nineteenth but cam e to fruition in the tw entieth cen tu ry, w as the creation o f large b lo ck s o f pu b lic land. T h e gam ut in clu d es national parks, the p rovincial parks, m ilitary reserves, grazin g d istricts, w ild life p reserves, and Indian re­ se rv es. T o what d eg ree w ere m isu se o f land, the d evelop m en t o f con servation al id ea s, agricultural failu re, the prospect o f eco n o m ic g a in s, and other unknow n in flu en ces resp on sib le for their estab lish ­ m ent and for ch a n g es in bou n daries, land u se. and landscape through the years? H ow have their use and valu e ch an ged through tim e? W hat is to be their situ ation to d a y , and in the future, w h en tech n o lo g ica l ad v a n ce, population g ro w th , in creases in leisu re , and other factors have ch an ged the nature o f the d em and s to be m ade upon them ? S o m e w ork on public reserves has been d on e in C anada. S tu d ies o f lan d scap e-ch an ge in B a n ff N ational Park sh o w that this area is not the " u n to u ch ed la n d sca p e" o f national parks p u b lication s, h aving been cut o v er, m ined, lum bered, and oth erw ise m od ified by the w hite man notably during the nineteenth and early tw en tieth cen tu ries (2 3 3 ). B ey o n d their a ca d em ic interest, such fin d in gs h ave im portant im plica­ tions for plan nin g. For o n e thin g, the pu b lic can n ot think o f p rop osals for road co n stru ctio n , h y d ro-electric d ev elo p m en ts, or other " im ­ p ro v em en ts" in the national parks as in v o lv in g reserves little used hitherto by m an. On the contrary such p rop osals in v o lv e ch an ge in or lo ss o f w ild land built up from a lo w ebb during the p ion eer d a y s o f the nineteenth cen tu ry. For another th in g , hum an e ffe c ts on national park lan d scap es h ave been u n even and this sh ou ld be taken into accou n t by p lanners. T h u s, if zo n in g is to be instituted, it w ou ld seem sen sib le for those areas least m o d ified by man to b e con sid ered as prim e can d id ates for prim itive or " w ild e r n e ss " status rather than to be d ev elo p ed for m ore in ten siv e u se through in stallation o f facilities such as roads, m o te ls, and g as sta tio n s, with the attendant p ollu tion associated with su ch ch a n g es. \ A nother th em e w orthy o f research is the ch an gin g im pact o f man in urban areas. In the nineteenth and early tw entieth cen tu ries, the v illa g es and to w n s o f the w estern plains se em to h ave been q uite narrow in fu n ction , m ainly agricultural cen tres, sm all in s iz e , rate o f grow th , effe c ts on the la n d scap e. M any w ere railroad tow n s w h ich g rew around the sta tio n , the tracks and, in so m e ca se s around tax-preferred lands. T od ay the situation is quite d ifferen t. T h e industrial function has b eco m e in crea sin g ly varied and im portant, the to w n s and c itie s m uch larger, lo w d en sity , often q u ick -grow in g un its, w h o se con su m p tion o f sp a ce , production o f w a ste, and other effe cts on rivers and other parts o f the lan d scap e is n o w a w id esp read problem often requiring large

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3I

am ounts o f m o n ey for a m elioration . V ery few stu d ies have been undertaken o f the d ev elo p m en t o f these urban areas and these prob­ lem s, o f the cultural and legal fram ew ork w ithin w h ich they a rose, or o f the sp a tia l, e c o n o m ic , so c ia l, and e c o lo g ic a l im p lication s i f present trends con tinu e in future. T h is essa y m ay at tim es h ave se em e d ram bling and in co m p lete, a n ecessary result, perhaps, o f the d esire to g iv e con sid erab le inform a­ tion on the occu p a n ce o f the w estern p lain s an d . at the sam e tim e, to raise m any q u estion s and stim u late stu d y, all in the span o f a few thousand w ords. The sc o p e for research o b v io u sly is great. Indeed, en ou g h em p hasis p robably has not been placed on the real paucity o f cultural and historical g eo g ra p h ic stu d ies o f any period, p lace, or hum an activity in w estern Canada as a w h o le . A s W ood has recently pointed o u t, with reference to A lberta, d esp ite the w ealth o f availab le e v id e n c e ranging from H u d so n 's B ay C om p any records to old field patterns, the “ on ly historical geograp h y that has arisen from this bounty is to be m easured in fragm en ts" (3 2 7 ). W hether certain general top ics or approaches are particularly w orthy o f attention is largely a matter o f op in ion . H o w ev er, special ch a llen g e d o es se em to lie in historical g eograp h ic stu d ies em p h asizin g past b io lo g ica l and p h ysical co n d ition s and p ro cesses and their interre­ lation s with man and culture, and a lso in stu d ies o f the historical geogra p h y o f land u se. land m anagem en t, and con servation . Im plicit in the latter research is so m e em p h asis on C anad ian -A m erican relations and its im p lication s for land u se through the years. S tu d ies o f attitudes or v iew p o in ts, percep tion and other asp ects o f resources or hazards alon g the lin es o f the U n iversity o f C h icago stu d ies directed by G ilbert W hite (3 2 2 . 3 1 2 , 169), a lso se em particularly ch a llen g in g and w orth­ w h ile , esp e cia lly in v ie w o f their p o ssib le application not o n ly to flo o d s and drought, but a lso to such p ro cesses as fires and erosion on the C anadian plains. A ll the previou s kinds o f stu d ies are con sid ered to be particularly w orth w h ile not just b ecau se o f their acad em ic interest and sig n ific a n c e , but b ecau se o f their relevan ce to sp atial, en viron m en tal, and lan d -u se p rob lem s o f g ro w in g concern to all segm en ts o f so c iety . T h ey are lik ely to b e quite useful in the form ulation o f public p o licy . T h e research can be undertaken in various w a y s. S p e c ific , s y s ­ tem atic studies co u ld be undertaken o f su ch problem s as m an’s adjust­ m ent to flo o d s in the Q u ’A p p elle R iver V a lle y , historical and current attitudes toward w ild life in Alberta Irrigation D istricts and their e ffe c ts , land u se in and around the B lo o d Indian R eserve, A lberta, or the role o f the C .P .R . in the d ev elo p m en t o f C algary. A s in the p reced in g e x a m ­ p le s. these sy stem a tic stu d ies m ight fo cu s on su ch th in gs as a p rocess or hazard, an attitude, id ea , or point o f v ie w , an eth nic group or a g en cy , and their im pact on land use and landscape (2 7 3 ). On the other hand.

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certain areas an d /or tim e p eriod s cou ld be selecte d for w ork. A d y n a m ic flavour h o p efu lly w ou ld grow out o f em p h asis on certain them es such as flo o d s, fires, eth n ic variations, land tenure, and so forth, or, altern a tiv ely , out o f an e c o lo g ic a l, co m m u n ity , or sy stem s approach, although the landscape fram ew ork o f Sauer and others se em s to h ave a sim ilar effe c t. If these approaches are fo llo w e d , a historical geograp h y ol N o rd eg g , A lberta, m ight be con cern ed with such them es as w ild life p opulation and e c o lo g y , Indian use o f the area, the d e­ velop m en t and character o f the fur trade in the North S ask atch ew an v a lley , the im pact o f the trade on w ild life and la n d sca p e, the d ev elo p ­ m ent and d eclin e o f the coal industry, labour m o v em e n ts, govern m en t p o lic y , further ch a n g es in the b io m e . the d evelop m en t o f o il and other industries in nearby areas, urban g row th , in creasing d em and for recrea­ tion and tourism , and further ch a n g es in w ild life , veg eta tio n , and other a sp ects o f la n d scap e. B eca u se o f their s c o p e and co m p lex ity these rather h o listic stu d ies gen erally w ou ld require con sid erab le co m p e ­ ten ce and training in a num ber o f sy stem a tic fie ld s, in clu d in g those w here em p h a sis is placed on p h ysical and cultural p ro cess, and the history and an a ly sis o f ideas.

2 Som e C o m m e n ts on the C au ses and Effects o f F ire in th e N o rth e rn G ra s s la n d s A re a o f C a n a d a a n d the N e arb y U nited States, C a. 1750-1900 J . G . Nelson an d R. E. E ngland*

A L T H O U G H g eo g ra p h ers, b io lo g ists, and other scholars h a v e lon g stu d ied fire in the grasslan d s and savan n as o f the w orld (2 7 2 . 2 9 2 , 9. 4 5 ) , so m e ou tstand in g q u estio n s rem ain. H ow im portant have lightning and other forces independent o f man been as ca u ses o f fire? H as man cau sed m any fires, and, if s o , in what w ays? D id fires increase as a result o f the in vasion o f the w h ite m an? W hat e ffe c ts have fires had on v e g eta tio n , flora, and other asp ects o f lan d scap e, in clu d in g man h im self? W hat relation sh ip s h ave ex isted betw een fires, clim a te, and m an? Little relevant research on such q u estion s has b een undertaken in the u nusually rich historical literature on the northern plains o f Canada and the nearby U nited States ( 3 1 7 , 2 2 2 ). S o m e results o f such a review are presented in this paper. T h e tim e period for the study w as selecte d b ecau se the historical literature b egin s about 1750 and h om estead ing and cu ltivation w ere w ell on the w ay to d isp la cin g ranching from m any areas by 1900, thereby creating a n ew fire en viron m en t w h ich has not been adequately in vestigated as y et. T h e results o f the present study m ay apply to other areas, but not a lw a y s; for ex a m p le the occu rrence and e ffe c ts o f fires m ight d iffer in the N ew Z ealand grasslan d s b ecau se o f the lack o f large grazing an im als like the North A m erican b ison .

N o n -h u m a n C a u se s W h ile reco g n izin g other uncorroborated p o ssib ilitie s, such as the spread o f fire from c o a ls burning in river b anks, lightning is the o n ly ca u se o f fire, independent o f m an, w hich is m en tion ed in the historical literature on the northern grasslan d s. R eferen ces are frequent en ou gh to su ggest that ligh tn in g w a s a c o m m on cau se o f fire. For e x a m p le, w h ile cam ped in the H ig h w o o d V a lle y , south o f p resen t-d ay C algary, on 18 D ecem b er 17 9 2 , the H u d so n 's B ay C om p any trader and su rveyor Peter F idler noted in h is journal that “ ligh tn in g in the spring and fall fre­ *T his p a p er o rig in ally a p p eared in the C a n a d ia n G e o g ra p h e r, X V , 4 (1971): 29 5 -3 0 6 33

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q u en tly lights the G rass" (9 0 ). A more recent ob server, w h o w as em p lo y ed at a range research station in southern A lberta from 1949 to 1 9 6 4 , has stated that o f “ all the fires he sa w during those y ears, only tw o w ere caused by m an . . . A ll the other fires, and there m ust have been a dozen or so w ere cau sed by ligh tn in g" (1 4 2 ).

H u m a n C a u se s T h e Indians often se em to have started fires a ccid en ta lly . For ex a m p le, on I I January 1792, w h ile not far from the site o f the present city o f C algary, Peter Fidler and so m e com p an ion s w ere jo in e d b y n atives w ho had been cam p ed about three-quarters o f a m ile aw ay and had not put ou t their fire w hen they left it. It spread rapidly am ong the dry grass, travelling " a great d istan ce in a little w h ile " (9 0 ). T h e Indians d elib er­ a tely started fires for cerem o n ia l, su p erstitiou s, and other reaso n s, for e x a m p le, as an o fferin g for fair w eather or the return o f a war party. Fire w as a lso used for w ar, sig n a llin g , hunting, and con trollin g the m o v e­ ment o f w ild life (5 3 :1 0 5 3 , 2 5 3 :5 7 , 1 0 5:197, 5 0 :1 0 3 ). T h e em p lo y m en t o f fire to control w ild life m ovem en ts on a large sca le is less k n ow n than the other u ses and is worth elab orating upon. S o m e tim es fires were started early in the year to prom ote grass grow th. For ex a m p le, in M arch 1805, w h ile near the M andan v illa g e s in present-day North D ak ota, L e w is and Clark ob served that the M innitarees or G ros V entre Indians had set all the n eigh b ouring grass afire in order to obtain an early " cro p " for their h orses and a lso to in d uce the b u ffalo and other w ild life to co m e to the area (53:241 and 2 4 9 ), R udolph Kurz, an em p lo y ee o f the A m erican Fur C om p an y, and a resident o f the M issouri valley in the late 18 4 0 ’s and early 1 8 5 0 's, also reported that the Indians set fires in the sp rin g to rem ove “ the old dried grass and provide room for the y o u n g tender g ro w th " ( 1 1 8 :3 3 1). About tw en ty -fiv e years later the N orth-W est M ounted p olicem an C o lo n el S. B. S te e le , o b serv ed that " th e Indians and the h alf-breed hunters w il­ fully set the prairies on fire so that the b ison w ou ld con ic to their part o f the country to get rich green grass w h ich w ou ld fo llo w in the sp rin g" (2 9 0 :6 9 ). Indians a lso used fire in su m m er to rem ove the grass and ca u se the b u ffa lo to g o elsew h ere. W h ile near the Q u 'A p p e lle River v a lley in late July 1 8 5 9 , the C anadian scien tist H enry Y o u le H ind sa w m uch grass­ land that had b een burned by the n atives and said that on e o f their o b je ctiv es w as to divert the an im als to the sou th , w here “ they w ould feed for a tim e before they pursued their w ay to the Little S ou ris in the country o f the S io u x , south o f the 49th p arallel” (1 2 3 :3 3 6 ). Earlier reports o f sim ilar u se o f fire w ere m ade elsew h ere in the plains country.

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for ex a m p le, by the Spanish am on g the Ign aces Indians, w h o lived in southeastern T ex a s in the I5 0 0 's . T h ese p eop le burned to drive o f f m o sq u ito es, to' bring lizards from the ground for fo o d , to kill d eer, and " to d ep rive the an im als o f pasture, co m p ellin g them to g o w here the Indians w ant” (2 9 2 :3 1 7 ). H o w ev er, the im pression sh ou ld not be left that the Indians cou ld alw a y s exert a c o n siste n tly high lev el o f annual control o ver the grow th and q u ality o f grass sim p ly by varyin g the season o f burning. S o ils, p recip itation , and other factors must have w orked against this in so m e areas or in the sa m e area in drier years. In d eed , the botanist John M acou n , w h o w as activ e in the Canadian grasslands in the late nineteenth cen tu ry, has stated that “ fire p assin g o ver the cou n try, w here the rainfall is lig h t, p reven ts nearly all the grass from se ed in g that year, and it is o n ly in the seco n d year after a fire that seed in any quantity can b e o b ta in ed ” ( 18 2 :2 8 6 ). A v igorou s grass fire a lso could burn the organ ic matter in the upper soil h o rizo n s, thereby ad versely affectin g the grow th o f grass for years. N ev er th eless, the u se o f fire in the m anner ou tlin ed undoubtedly g a v e the n atives a lev el o f control o v er their environm ent and a p lace in the e c o lo g y o f the grasslan d s that has not gen erally been appreciated. T o d w ell on the e c o lo g ic a l point for a m om en t, various attem pts have been m ade to reconstruct the seasonal m ovem en ts o f the m ultitud es o f p lain s b iso n , w ith so m e students su b scrib ing to the notion o f regular north-south m o v em en t o f the an im als in w in ter, the reverse occurring in su m m er. H o w ev er, the regularity o f this m ovem en t has been d is­ puted by other sch olars for various reason s, am on g them that large bison herds w ere frequently ob served in parts o f the plains at the “ w ro n g ” season o f the year (2 6 5 :5 6 9 -9 5 ). W ithout g o in g further into this co m p lex m atter, su ffic e it to say that ob servation s lik e th ose o f H ind, a s set forth a b o v e, indicate that m an, through his use o f fire, had an im portant in flu en ce on the m ovem en t o f bison and other w ild life , an in flu en ce w h ich cou ld transcend clim ate or other factors. T he entrance o f the w hite man resulted not o n ly in m ore p eop le cau sin g fire through traditional m ea n s, such as c a relessn ess, but a lso in the introduction o f n ew ca u ses o f fire. T h e im portance o f so m e o f these n ew c a u se s is d ifficu lt to evalu ate. S o m e w ere ep h em eral; for exam p le, for a tim e fo llo w in g the elim in ation o f the b ison about 18 8 0 , the Indians, the M etis, and early European settlers burned and blackened the grasslands in order to m ake it easier to see and co llect b ison b on es w h ich w ere so ld for m anufacture into fertilizers or for other purposes ( 1 7 8 : 16 4 - 5 ) .O ther c a u se s se em alm ost bizarre; for ex a m p le, the w hite man introduced iron h o rsesh oes w hich so m e early settlers sa y caused sparks that set fire to the grass. A m o n g the m ore lon g co n tin u ed , w id esp read, and im portant new

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ca u se s o f fire w ere the sparks thrown from the railroad e n g in e s that began to traverse the grasslan d s after the con stru ction o f the Canadian P a cific railw ay in the early 1 8 8 0 ’s . On M on d ay. 10 O ctob er 1898, the C algary H erald reported that a railroad en g in e had started fires in tw en ty different p la ces a lon g about tw enty m iles o f track north o f C algary (2 6 4 :1 5 ). On W ed n esd ay, 2 6 N ovem b er 1896. the H erald ind icated that cattle had had to be m oved from the north to the south sid e o f the B o w R iver, a w a y from the rail lin e, b ecau se o f num erous fires resulting from railroad op eration s (2 6 4 :1 4 -1 5 ).

S o m e I n flu e n c e s o n th e C h a r a c te r an d F r e q u e n c y o f P r a ir ie F ir e s Prairie fires are not a lw a y s im p ressiv e sp ec ta cles. T h u s, on a w indy April d ay in 1 8 5 2 , R udolph Friedrich Kurz w ent into cam p near the Y ello w sto n e and M issouri rivers with several co m p a n io n s w h o ' prom ptly started a fire and w ent to sle ep . A ccord in g to Kurz, In the m eantim e the dried grass about them caught fire but burnt slo w ly , surrounding them with a w id e circle o f fla m e. T h en , fanned by a gu st o f w in d , it spread, driving onw ard in w in d ing cu rv es. I fo llo w e d a lon g w ay at an ev en g a it, w alk in g over the charred grou n d , sp rin gin g several tim es across the flam es . . . A lthough the w ind w as rather h igh the fire in the dead grass did not spread any m ore rapidly forward than I cou ld ea sily fo llo w w ith­ out w a lk in g very f a s t . . . T h e fire w as at no point m ore than three feet in depth. It spread in ev ery d irection , m ore sw iftly w here the w ind b lew hard; for in stan ce, the h ills and s lo p e s , then d escen d ed m ore gradually on the o p p osite sid es o f those h eigh ts (1 18:331 -2 ). On the other hand, fires can burn very q u ick ly and dram atically. G iv en favourable co n d itio n s and free rein o ver a vast exten t o f un­ fen ced and unbroken grass and parkland, they are k n ow n to h ave lasted for w eek s and co v ered thou san d s o f m ile s, so m etim e s ju m p in g major river v a lley s such as the North Sask atch ew an in the p rocess ( 7 0 :2 3 3 ). A grass fire o f im m en se proportions w as describ ed by H enry Y o u le Hind during h is travels in the eastern and central Canadian plains in the late 1 8 5 0 ’s: “ From b eyon d the South Branch o f the Sask atch ew an to Red R iver all the prairies w ere burnt last autum n, a vast con flagration ex ten d ed for 1,0 0 0 m iles in length and several hundreds in b r e a d th ,. . . w e traced the fire from the 49th parallel to the 53rd , and from the 90th to the 107th d egree lo n g itu d e. It exten d ed no doubt to the R ocky M oun­ tain s” (1 2 3 :2 9 2 ).

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A variety o f m ete o ro lo g ic a l, ciim a to lo g ica l. h y d ro lo g ica l, b io lo g ­ ica l, and other factors o b v io u sly can in flu en ce the freq u en cy, m agn itid e, and character o f grass fires. A ridity is a b asic in flu en ce on both a short and a lo n g term b a sis. S e a so n a lly , fires are m ost frequent in the sp rin g and fall w h en drier w eath er c o in c id e s with the exp osu re or p resen ce o f dry “ cu red " grass. E v id en ce to support this con ten tion can be found in the Annual Reports o f the N orth-W est M ounted P o lice, C algary D istrict. O f about six ty -se v e n fires cited in these reports during 1887- 1 9 1 5 . tw en ty -eig h t and sev en teen occurred in the m onths o f April and O ctober resp ectiv e ly (2 6 4 :1 5 ). On the other hand, fire can occu r on the plains at any tim e during the year, if w eath er and other in flu en ces are favourable. O ne p ositive in flu en ce is the ch in o o k or “ sn o w -e a te r ." a foehn type o f w ind w hich can bring tem perature increases o f tens o f d eg rees in a few hours in the co ld m onth s. T h is co u p led with its gen erally lo w h u m id ity, often ca u ses e x te n siv e sn o w m elt, e x p o sin g and drying the plains grass ( 18). W h ile in the C algary area in the w inter o f 1792-93. Peter F idler made certain ob serv a tio n s ind icative o f the effe ct o f the ch in ook on w eather and fire (90). T h e ob serv a tion s w ere recorded during D ecem b er and January, w hen tem peratures can fall b elo w 0°f for w eek s. On 19 D ecem b er 1792, F idler w rote o f “ clo u d y w ea th er," " g a le w in d s," and “ a great th a w ," a d escrip tion very rem in iscen t o f ch in ook co n d i­ tio n s. On 31 D ecem b er the w eather w a s d escrib ed as very w arm , with a tem perature o f about 40°f . On 5 January the tem perature w as said to have b een betw een 3 l°Fand 50°f for three d ays with " fresh g a le s " and " fly in g c lo u d s” as w ell as " n o m ore sn o w than in su m m er" . On 6 January a light sn o w fa ll occu rred, but the grass w as on fire all around the H ig h w o o d area. On 7 January the w eather is again reported as warm and on 10 January the grass w as burning “ w ith great fu r y .” Such o b servation s su g g e st that the fo o th ills and plains o f w estern Alberta and sim ilar areas farther so u th , w hich have a high ch in ook freq u en cy, w ou ld be particularly su scep tib le to grass fires, w inter and sum m er.

R e la tio n sh ip s B e tw e e n F ir e , A n im a ls , a n d V e g e ta tio n T h e historical e v id e n c e m akes it d ifficu lt to estab lish the over-all e ffe c ts throughout the period under d iscu ssio n , but grass fires undoubt­ e d ly had co n sid era b le in flu en ce on fauna and flora. For e x a m p le, the n estin g s u c c e ss o f various kinds o f birds w as d im in ished by prairie fires (107- 1 2 4 ).T h ey a lso are know n to h ave injured and killed large num ­ bers o f bison from tim e to tim e. A lexan d er H enry, a fur trader w ho liv ed and w orked in the Red R iver V alley and other parts o f the plains around the turn o f the nineteenth cen tu ry, sa w b u ffalo w h ich had been

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cau gh t in grass fires. H e d escrib ed the sc en e as fo llo w s: ' ‘T h e poor b easts h ave all the hair sin ged o ff. ev en skin in m any p laces is sh riv­ elled up and terribly burned, and their e y e s arc sw o lle n and c lo s e d fast . . . In o n e spot w e found a w h o le herd ly in g d ead " (5 4 :1 :2 5 3 -4 ). O b servation s can a lso be cited to sh o w that fires caused e x ten siv e destruction o f trees and favoured the m ainten an ce or ex ten sio n o f grassland at various tim es during the period ca . 1 7 5 0 -1 9 0 0 . D avid T h o m p so n , the su rv ey o r and fur trader w h o travelled through m uch o f w estern Canada in the 1 7 8 0 's, I 7 9 0 's . and early I8 0 0 ‘s , sa w m any areas w here large g ro v es o f asp en had been burned, and co n clu d ed that the Great P lains w ere “ con stan tly increasing in length and breadth with the D eer g iv in g p la ce to the B iso n " (1 0 5 :2 4 3 -5 0 ). In the late I 8 5 0 ‘s H enry Y o u le H ind noted the destruction o f large areas o f forest, particularly south o f the Q u 'A p p e llc and the A ssin ib o in e rivers in present-day M anitoba and S ask atch ew an (1 2 3 :3 3 4 ). In d isc u ssin g the vegetation in the sam e general area in the 1 8 7 0 's, the R everend G eorge G rant, a com p anion o f the c p r su rveyor Sanford F lem in g, stated that autum n grass fires were frequent and “ destroyed the w ood w hich form erly w as o f larger siz e and m uch m ore abundant than n o w " (1 0 7 :1 5 8 ). G rass fires con tinu ed to have an im pact on the parkland and nearby forests during the 188 0\s and I8 9 0 's . with m uch tim ber repor­ ted ly b ein g destroyed by burning (1 1:55, 2 5 9 :8 4 , 2 4 5 ). T h e problem , h o w ev er, is to determ in e w h eth er these fires were frequent and con tin u ou s en o u gh to ca u se an ex ten sio n o f the grassland during the eig h teen th and nineteenth cen tu ries. T h is need not n ecessa r­ ily have been the ca se for poplar can regrow q u ick ly after burning, as ind icated by H enry Y o u le H ind, w h o said that if a portion o f the grassland “ esca p es fires for tw o or three years, the result is seen in the grow th o f w illo w s and asp en s, first in p atches, then in large areas, w h ich in a short tim e b eco m e united and c o v e r the cou n try" ( 12 3 :3 3 6 ). M ore w ill be said about this problem later.

S o m e E ffe c ts o f F ir e on M an G rass fires are know n to h ave cau sed injury and death to Indians (1 9 6 :3 5 , 7 2 ). S everal w ere burned in a fire w hich L e w is and Clark o b serv ed w h ile cam p ed in the M issouri V a lley in the fall o f 1805 ( 5 3 : 18 5 ). D uring the nineteenth century fur traders a lso su ffered e x te n ­ siv e d a m a g e to h a y , w o o d su p p lies, and other p roperty. In the 1 8 7 0 's, I8 8 0 's , and I8 9 0 's fire con stituted a major handicap to w h ite se ttle­ m ent. Pasture and hay su p p lies were frequently d estroyed , “ m aterially reducing the g ra zin g cap acity to the great d etrim ent o f sto c k m e n ." M en w ith fa m ilies to support were left standing “ in the o n ly thin gs they

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p o sse sse d , v iz. their clo th es. . . . A representative ca se in v o lv ed lo ss o f h ou se and all the furniture, tw o s ta b le s ,” m uch w h eat, o a ts, and hay, and sle ig h s and im plem en ts (2 5 9 :8 2 -3 ). Fires were so serio u s a hazard in the late nineteenth century as to have an important in flu en ce on the d evelop m en t o f legislation and govern m en t. S o m e o f the earliest legislation in w estern Canada relates to fires. For e x a m p le, in the 18 8 0 's guards had to be p lou ghed in order to contain b lazes started a lon g the railw ay tracks. E ventu ally the govern m en t got in to the b u sin ess o f building fire guards on a very large sc a le in d eed . A bout 1 ,7 5 0 m iles w ere constructed in 1902 under a contract betw een the D epartm ent o f Public W orks and the Canadian P acific R a ilw ay (2 5 9 :8 6 ). A fter 1909 the m ile a g e d ecreased , there b ein g better fire control as the lon g unbroken se c tio n s o f op en range g a v e w a y to the roads, cu ltivated fie ld s, and other m an ifestation s o f present-day settlem en t. In the early 188 0 ’s legislation w as passed w h ich perm itted the estab lish m en t o f fire d istricts o f not less than 3 6 square m ile s and not m ore than 144 square m ile s upon application o f the m ajority o f the resid en ts. O n ce esta b lish ed , a district co u ld assess taxes payab le in funds or in s e r v ic e s, to be used for fire control. A cco rd in g to T h o m a s, it w as from these fire d istricts, representing the m ost o b v io u s lo ca l p rob lem , that the present sy stem o f rural m unicipal govern m en t in S ask atch ew an “ really g r e w ” (3 0 3 :1 -2 ).

Frequency o f F ire s, ca. 1750-1900 T o g et anything m ore p recise than an im pression o f fire frequency from the historical so u rces is d ifficu lt for several reason s. In the first p lace, so m e ob servers were m ore interested in fire than others. S e co n d ly , the o b serv a tio n s for various tim e p eriods are uneven: so m etim e s o n ly tw o or three so u rces are a v a ila b le, and at other tim es sou rces are num erous. T h ird ly , a con tin u o u s record o f the sa m e type and quality is not alw ays ob tain ab le for the entire C anadian plains region or e v en for a large part o f it. M uch o f what is said b elo w relates to an area o f indeterm inate exten t betw een the North S ask atch ew an and M issouri R iver v a lley s in the w estern Canadian plains and nearby M ontana. Fur trade journals and other d ocu m ents g iv e a fairly co m p lete historical account o f this part o f the country. A lthou gh statem ents cou ld be m ade about the relative frequency o f burning, for ex a m p le the period ca. 1 8 3 5 -6 0 se e m s to have had m ore fires than any other (1 2 9 ), the general im pression gained from the historical so u rces is that grass fires w ere a p ersistent feature throughout the years ca . 1 7 5 0 -1 9 0 0 . T he ubiquitous nature o f fires is evid en t in certain general rem arks m ade by early travellers. T h u s, on 10 April

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1 8 0 5 , w h ile travelling up the M issouri V a lle y , in w hat is n o w North D ak ota, L ew is and Clark o b served that: " O n both sid es o f the M is­ so u ri, after ascen d in g the h ills near the w ater, on e fertile unbroken plain ex ten d s itse lf as far as the e y e can reach, w ithou t a solitary tree or shrub, excep t in m oist situ ation s or in the steep d ecliv ities o f the h ills, w h ere they are sh eltered from the ravages o f fire” (5 3 :2 6 4 ). A s another ex a m p le, parts o f the M issouri country are referred to as “ Prado del F u e g o ,” or the Fire Prairie, in S panish d ocu m en ts datin g from the penultim ate d ecad e o f the eigh teen th ccntury (2 1 6 :1 2 5 ). If the various historical d ocu m en ts are a reliab le g u id e, fires were sim p ly a part o f life for the fur trader and this m ay account for their often b ein g referred to in a cryp tic or casual w ay. R elatively detailed and lengthy referen ces tend to appear o n ly w hen fires b ecam e a threat, a s, for ex a m p le, at Carlton H ou se on 13 M ay 18 1 5 , w hen the clerk wrote: " M en em p lo y ed as b efore till about I I o 'c lo c k w h en everyon e at both H o u ses w a s b u sily em p lo y ed ex tin g u ish in g the Fire, that is raging through the G rass and W ood s all around the H ou se, and after m uch exertion w e g ot it under su fficien t to prevent it com m u n icatin g w ith the W orks. Kept tw o M en on W atch all night in case the fire might take in any fresh b la z e ” (1 2 9 ). O ne a lso g a in s the im pression from the historical sou rces that fires in creased , albeit so m ew h a t u n ev en ly , during the period o f w h ite set­ tlem en t. Indeed su ch an idea is im p licit or ev en ex p licit in the previous d iscu ssio n o f the g ro w in g num bers o f w hite settlers and o f the introduc­ tion o f n ew c a u ses o f fire to the g rasslan d s. C h an ges in cultural con trols also m ay have b een a sso cia ted with in creases in fire freq u en cy. Certain remarks by the R everend G rant, in the I 8 7 0 's indicate that the H u d so n ’s B ay C om p any m ay h ave had fire control regu lations w hich w ere in creasingly d ifficu lt to ap p ly as settlem en t increased: O f late years fires h ave b een frequent: and they are so d isastrou s to the w h ole o f our N orth -W est that en ergetic action should be taken to prevent them . F orm erly, w h en the H u d son ’s Bay C om p an y w as the o n ly p o w er in the G reat L one Land, it w as a liv e to the n ecessity o f th is, and very su cc essfu l in im pressing its v ie w s on the Indians as w ell as on its o w n servan ts. Each o f its travelling parties carried a spade with w h ich the p ie c e o f ground on w hich the fire w as to be m ade w as d u g up. and as the party m oved o ff, earth thrown on the em b ers extin gu ish ed them (1 0 7 :1 2 4 , I 1:56). H o w ev er, a search in the H u d so n ’s B ay C om p any arch ives in O ttaw a and London turned up no referen ces to form al fire regu lations like those referred to by Grant. On the other hand the rem arks o f other ob servers do su g g est that the H u d son 's B ay C om p any did h ave a

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m easure o f control o v er fires. For ex a m p le, in d escrib in g fire c o n d i­ tions on the C anadian p lain s in 18 7 0 's , C olon el S . B. S te ele said: “ The H u d so n 's B ay C om p any had no ju risd iction n ow [havin g sold R uperts' Land to C anada in 1869] with the lam entable result that p eop le had b eco m e ca reless. T ravellers left their fires b u rn ing, tenderfeet threw their m atch es into the grass after ligh tin g their p ip e s" (2 9 0 :6 9 ). The p o ssib ility therefore e x is ts that any fire regu lations w ere inform al field requirem ents rather than form al written rules.

T h e R e la tio n s B e tw e e n F ir e , C lim a tic V a r ia tio n , a n d M a n V ariou s efforts have been m ade to correlate p eriods o f high and lo w fire frequency with clim a tic variations. For ex a m p le, in A lberta, M o ss has attem pted to link the freq u en cy o f poplar stands o f d ifferent a g es with fire freq u en cy and clim a tic ch a n ge. T h e individual poplar stands w ere ap p roxim ately ev en -a g ed and co n sid ered to h ave d ev elo p ed as suckers sh ortly after burning. T he stands w ere tree-ring dated and their ages found to group at intervals o f about tw en ty years for the period ca. 1 8 1 8 -1 9 2 9 . M o ss interpreted these fin d in gs as ev id e n c e that general burning “ term inated periods o f general drought in the poplar region " and w ent on to ad van ce the h yp oth esis o f clim atic c y c le s o f about tw en ty years in len g th , each o f w hich w as ch aracterized by a period o f extrem ely dry co n d itio n s fo llo w ed by a period o f h eavy precipitation (2 1 1 :3 8 9 -9 2 ). Such c o n c lu sio n s and h y p oth eses are fraught with prob lem s. For on e thin g, the idea o f high or lo w fire freq u en cy g en erally m ust be dealt with in q u alitative rather than quantitative term s. It is ex c e e d in g ly d ifficu lt to arrive at a reliable count o f fires for several reason s, in clu d in g the problem o f the rep resen tativen ess o f the historical sou rces and the associated problem o f d elim itin g the tim e period and the area to be co v ered in the cou n t. M o reover, p eriods o f low burning m ay be m ore apparent than real and fires m ay turn out to h ave occurred in so m e num ber o n c e the historical literature is exam in ed th orou gh ly. T o illu s­ trate these d iffic u ltie s. M o ss su g g ests that the w et phases o f h is clim atic c y c le s se em to h ave co m m e n c ed about 1819. 1 8 5 9 , 1879. and 1899. Y et the journals o f the P alliser E xp ed ition , o f H enry Y o u le H ind, and o f Edm onton H ou se sh o w that con sid erab le burning occurred in the late 1 8 5 0 ’s and early 18 6 0 's in at least parts o f the w estern plains o f C anada. T h e M ounted P olice reports, n ew spap er a cco u n ts, and other sou rces a lso indicate that fires occurred fairly frequently in the late 18 7 0 's and early I 8 8 0 ’s in the central and southern se ctio n s o f w hat is n ow A lberta. And this last statem ent lead s, in turn, to the fact that clim a tic co n d itio n s can vary from area to area in the grasslan d s, so that

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ev id e n c e for c h a n g es in one area need not ap p ly to another (3 0 4 . 20 2 ). A m ajor d ifficu lty in attem pting to correlate fire freq u en cy with clim a tic ch an ge is in esta b lish in g the freq u en cy and distribution o f cultural in flu en ces on fire. M oss certain ly recogn ized this problem w hen he stated: “ E x ten sive burning during the period 1 9 0 8 -1 9 is thought to have been due not so m uch to dry co n d itio n s as to human a c tiv itie s" (21 1:392). Sim ilar c o n c lu sio n s co u ld b e m ade about the reportedly high fire freq u en cies in ca . 1859 or 1879. D uring the late I850*s or early I8 6 0 's num erous A m erican s began to m o v e into the w estern plains and m ountains o f Alberta search in g for g old fo llo w in g earlier d isc o v e r ie s in M ontana and other parts o f the U nited States. R anchers began m igrating into the w estern and southern p lain s o f A lberta and S ask atch ew an in the m iddle to late 1 8 7 0 's and a w a v e o f settlem en t fo llo w ed in the I8 8 0 's. An increase in grass fires in the late I8 7 0 's or early I 8 8 0 's also cou ld h ave b een a sso cia ted w ith the elim in ation o f the b ison as a wild anim al on the p lain s. T h e great b ison herds are k n ow n to h ave cropped the grass short o v er large areas during their w an d erin gs for food and w ere still present in very large num bers on the w estern plains o f Canada up to the m id -1 8 7 0 's T he virtual exterm ination o f the herds by 1878 m ay h ave led to the grow th o f e x te n siv e areas o f lon ger grass m ore favourable to burning, particularly as cattle num bers in w estern Canada in the late 1 8 7 0 's and early 18 8 0 ‘s did not approach the form er num ber o f the b ison (7 0 :2 7 -3 1 ).

S u m m a r y a n d C o n c lu sio n s Fires w ere freq u en tly started by ligh tn in g and by man on the northern grasslands o f C anada and the U nited States during the period ca. 17 5 0 - 19 0 0 . T he n a tiv e p eo p les used fire o ften for a variety o f purposes, in clu d in g the control o f w ild life m o v em e n ts on a large sc a le . Indeed, althou gh their relative im portance is d ifficu lt to a ss e s s, fire, and so m an. must take their p lace a lo n g with clim ate and other factors as an im portant part o f b ison and grassland e c o lo g y . W here clim a tic and other con d ition s were favou rab le, t ires could rage q u ick ly and d ram atically o ver hundreds or thou san d s o f square m ile s, cro ssin g m ajor river v a lle y s in the p ro cess. Fires appear to have been m ost frequent in spring and fa ll, but co u ld o ccu r at any tim e o f the y ea r, b ein g favoured in w inter in m any areas by the w arm , dry ch in ook w in d s. A lthou gh their o v er-all effe ct through the years is d ifficu lt to ev a lu a te, fires clea rly in flu en ced the fauna and flora o f the grasslands. B ird s, b iso n , and other a n im als w ere injured and k illed by them . At v ariou s tim es fires caused e x te n siv e destruction o f trees and contrib­

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uted to the m ainten an ce and ex ten sio n o f the grasslan d en viron m en t. S uch effe cts w ere clea rly not d ependent on m an, ligh tn in g being cap ab le o f starting m any fires in a decade or s o , thereby lead in g to the repeated burning o f large areas. A sid e from b ein g a hazard to the n ative p eo p les and the early fur traders, fires w ere im portant o b sta cles to the settlem en t o f the C anadian plains in the 1 8 7 0 's, 18 8 0 's , and 1 8 9 0 's, ca u sin g destruction o f crop s, fora g e, and property. A s a resu lt, fires brought about so m e o f the earliest legislation in w estern Canada and also the d evelop m en t o f fire control d istricts, antcedents o f the present sy stem o f rural m unicipal govern m en t in S ask atch ew an . T h e nature o f the historical ev id en ce m akes it d ifficu lt to gain a p recise picture o f fire freq u en cy through the years. T h e general im pres­ sion acquired from the h istorical so u r c e s, h o w ev er, is the p ersisten ce o f grass fires throughout the period ca. 1 7 5 0 -1 9 0 0 . Fires a lso appear to have increased in freq u en cy as m ore and m ore settlers o f European origin ca m e into the g rasslan d s, b ringing n ew c a u se s o f fire, such as the railroad, and a lso p o ssib ly ch an gin g attitudes toward fire control. R esearch ers h ave attem pted to estab lish ch a n g es in fire frequency during the nineteenth century and to relate these to clim a tic ch a n g es or c y c le s . H o w ev er, it is very d ifficu lt to reconstruct fire frequency accu rately and ev en m ore d ifficu lt to separate cultural from clim atic ca u ses o f fire. T he historical literature on the northern grasslands in d icates that natural and cultural in flu en ces on fire h ave been intri­ ca tely in terw oven sin ce at least 1750; m oreover the relatively u n co m ­ p licated nature o f m any o f the n atives u ses o f fire, as w ell as referen ces to their early em p lo y m en t, m ake it certain that this w as a lso true w ell b efore the co m in g o f the w h ite man to the G reat Plains.

3: C h an g in g F a u n a o f th e N o rth e rn P lain s A rea: Im ages an d Effects* J . G . Nelson

In tro d u ctio n IN sp ite o f the availa b ility o f m uch pertinent literature, relatively few d etailed historical e c o lo g ic a l stu d ies have been carried out on the northern plains w ild life o f ap p roxim ately the last tw o cen tu ries. T h is has resulted, first, in an in co m p lete im age o f the kind and num ber o f an im als in the area in pre and early C aucasian tim es and, se c o n d , in m islea d in g interpretations o f the character o f the landscape and m an 's im pact upon it. G enerally w e have tried to understand the northern p lain s landscape in term s o f a sm all num ber o f m ajor variab les, notably grassland and poplar g ro v es (P op u lu s trem u loid es); lo w , fluctuating rainfall and high evaporation; fire; so il erosion ; and the introduction o f liv esto ck and c u ltiv a tio n — or agriculture. Our perception o f the interac­ tion o f these m ajor variables has been a b asic point o f departure for reason ing about the ch an gin g character and boundaries o f the northern plains. For exam ple, dryness and fire have been seen as destroying poplar and other trees, and as m aintaining or ex ten d in g the grasslan d , w h ich retreats again before the ad van cin g trees during p eriods o f rela tiv ely high rainfall. A s w ill be s e e n , su ch thinking n eg lects other varia b les, for ex a m p le, an im als. T he northern p lain s landscape a lso has frequently been p erceived as a reasonably “ balanced sy ste m ” prior to the com in g o f the w hite m an. It w as “ natu ral,” “ pristin e” and “ v ir g in .” until the arrival o f the C au casian , his cattle and tech n o lo g y brought “ o v erg ra z in g ,” d e ­ struction o f “ c lim a x ” vegetation and “ accelerated e r o s io n .” Such con cep tu al im ages have been d iffu sed w id ely a m o n g North A m erican s and have provided m otivation for im proved resou ce m anagem en t. N ev er th eless, they arc gross and overd raw n , as the fo llo w in g essay dem onstrates. T he essa y is largely based on stu d ies o f the northern plains o f M ontana, North D ak ota, Sask atch ew an and A lberta (Figure I ). W ithin this broad area, the C ypress H ills country o f southeastern A lberta,

*T he original version o f this p a p e r w as prep ared fo r T h e Im ages o f th e Plains C o n fe re n ce , D e p artm e n t o f G e o g ra p h y , U n iv ersity o f N eb rask a, L in co ln , N e ­ b ra sk a . A p ril. 1972

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southw estern S ask atch ew an and northern M ontana has received sp ecial attention. Field stu d ies w ere con d u cted there by the author and graduate students in the m iddle and late 1 9 6 0 's. D ocu m en ts in major libraries in E d m on ton . C a lgary. R egin a and H elen a were con su lted during this period. A dd ition al work w as a lso carricd out in the H u d so n 's Bay d o cu m en ts, the P ub lic A rch iv es. O ttaw a. T h ese d ocu ­ m ents are e sp e c ia lly valu ab le b ecau se they include accou n ts o f late eig h teen th and early nineteenth century exp loration s and o f fur trade activ ity in the North and South S ask atch ew an R iver sy stem , C anada. A lso o f co n sid era b le va lu e are the reports o f g overn m en t su rveyors and sc ie n tists, such as L ew is and Clark, P alliser. and Hind ( 2 3 1 ). The reports o f these m en throw light on the M issouri b asin country as w ell as the Canadian p lains. M ore recent p u b lication s by b otan ists, z o o lo g ists and other scien tists interested in grassland sp e c ie s and their distrib u tion , v eg eta tio n c la ssific a tio n , drought, overgrazin g and other top ics a lso h a v e b een co n su lted , e sp e c ia lly for the period sin ce the 1 9 3 0 's. S o m e o f the results o f the aforem en tion ed stu d ies have been p ublished so that a very d etailed treatm ent o f the ev id e n c e is not con sid ered n ecessary here. T h e special purpose o f this paper is to relate the m ore recent theoretical and em pirical fin d in gs o f scien tists to eigh teen th and nineteenth century historical ob servation s o f northern p lain s w ild life and their lan d scap e effe cts. T he results are sig n ifica n t to our e v o lv in g understanding o f h ow C aucasian man has p erceived , m an a g ed , and ch an ged the northern plains lan d scap e (2 2 3 , 2 2 7 , 2 2 8 , 2 3 1 , 2 3 8 ).

A nim al K inds an d N um bers T h e 18 0 4 -1 8 0 6 journals o f L e w is and Clark reflect the m any kinds and num bers o f a n im als in the upper M issouri basin in early European tim es. T h ey m en tion b ison (B iso n b iso n ), elk (C ervu s ca n a d en sis), a n telo p e (A ntilocapra am erican a), w o lf (C an is lu p is). b eaver (C astor ca n a d en sis), g rizzly bear (U rsu s arctos horrib ilu s). prairie dog (C y n o m y s la d o v icia n u s), h aw k , crane, duck and other an im als. The accou n ts arc rem in iscen t o f d escrip tion s o f the S eren g eti, o f a land­ sca p e rich in anim al life o f m any k in d s. For e x a m p le , near the junction o f the M ilk and M issouri R ivers in early M ay. 1805. L e w is and Clark foun d w ild life s o plentiful that it b ecam e " a m ere am usem en t to supply the party with p r o v isio n s .” In p laces the num erous b ison had to be driven out o f the w a y w ith stick s and sto n es. T h e e ffe c ts o f the beaver w ere very apparent; the w o o d s in on e p lace reportedly “ being entirely prostrated for a d istan ce o f three acres in front o f the river, and on e in

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L ess w ell k n ow n than L e w is and Clark is Peter F idler, a H u d son ’s B ay C om p any trader and su rveyor w h o travelled through parts o f the A lberta-M ontana border country in the 1 7 9 0 ’s and early 1 8 0 0 ’s . Dur­ ing a trip up the S outh S askatchew an in early fa ll, 18 0 0 , he en countered m any a n im als, in clu d in g b eaver, b iso n , elk and g rizzly . N ear the E lb o w o f the South S ask atch ew an , ap p roxim ately on e hundred m iles w est o f R egin a, about ten g rizzly w ere seen in a fe w d ays. F idler spent the w in ter o f 1800-1801 at a post called C h esterfield H ou se near the jun ction o f the Red D eer and Sou th S ask atch ew an R ivers and the border o f the present p ro v in ces o f Alberta and S ask atch ew an . W hile there he frequently referred to the b u ffalo. S o m e tim es the an im als w ere nearby, so m etim e s fa r a w a y . In D ecem b er, 1800, for ex a m p le, bison w ere sca rce. In early January, they w ere very p len tifu l. At o n e point F idler said that the “ ground literally w as black with them for a great d istan ce . . . ’’ (2 2 8 , 2 3 1 ). M any referen ces to the b iso n , e lk , or other an im als are indi­ v id u a listic, in the se n se that little referen ce is m ade to groups com p osed o f sev era l different sp ec ies. H o w ev er, so m e ob servers noted such faunal a sso cia tio n s. And they probably were m ore com m on than the record su g g e sts, for an im als su ch as the w o lf and b ison were e c o lo g i­ c a lly d ependent on o n e another for food and other n eed s. John P alliser describ ed a group o f ab ou t 5 ,0 0 0 b ison as w ell as so m e w o lv e s , a n telo p e, cro w s and ravens near C algary in 1858. In 1787, w h ile in the sam e area, D avid T h om p son d escrib ed a sim ilar association o f anim als: b iso n , sm all herds o f “ d o e and red d e e r ,’’ w o lv e s and fo x e s (V u lp es spp) (2 2 8 , 2 3 1 ).

Effects on L andscape T h e fauna can be d iv id ed into four groups for d iscu ssio n o f landscape e ffe c ts . R eco g n itio n o f these groups is in part a reflection o f their probable im portance in in flu en cin g the sy s te m , and in part o f the stage o f m y ow n work on the problem . T he four b asic groupings are the b iso n ; the burrow ing rodents; the beaver; and the other an im als, in clu d in g e lk , d eer, m o o se (A lc e s alces) and certain in sects. Fire, clim a tic ch an ge and man a lso are d iscu ssed as they interact with an im als in a ffectin g landscape.

T he Bison Through p ro cesses su ch as g razin g, w a lk in g , w a llo w in g , and manur­

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in g, the b iso n a ffected the sp ec ies c o m p o sitio n , len gth , distribution o f grass and other v e g eta tio n , g u llie s and other lan d form s, s o ils , and landscape sou n d s and sm e lls as w e ll. T h e b ison a lso in flu en ced the presen ce and distribution o f other an im als. B i s o n G r a z in g a n d T r a m p lin g

R eferen ces to h eavy b iso n grazing have been m en tion ed elsew h ere (2 3 1 ) and o n ly so m e illustrative citation s w ill be presented here. On August 2 , 1805, the C anadian trader. F ran cois L arocq ue, noted that the grass a lo n g a stream near the B ig Horn M ou n tain s, M ontana, had " b een co m p letely eaten by b u ffalo and d eer” (2 3 1 :1 2 9 ). Edward U m fre v ille, a resident on the North Sask atch ew an in the I7 8 0 's w rote that: In va llies and hum id situ ation s the grass g ro w s to a great h eig h t, w h ich fattens our h orses in a short itm e, but the b u ffalo usu ally lik es c h o ic e h illy dry ground to feed o n , the blades o f grass w h ich are sm a ll, short and tender. W hen a num erous herd o f these an im als stay any length o f tim e in on e p lace, the ground is ab solu tely barren there for the rem ainder o f the se a so n , the grass b ein g eat o f f as c lo s e as i f sh aved with a k n ife . . .(8 6 :8 9 ). In 1801 after travellin g o v er about tw en ty m ile s o f grassland near the Red River and the 4 9 th parallel, the trader, A lexan d er H enry the Y ou n ger, co n clu d ed that the grass w ou ld have been “ rather lon g were it not for the b u ffa lo " (8 6 :8 9 ). W h ile riding alon g a sm all stream in this area H enry a lso noted that the “ few sp o ts" o f riparian woodland: . . . had been ravaged by b u ffaloes; non e but the larger trees are stan d in g, the bark o f w hich is rubbed p erfectly sm o o th , and heaps o f w o o l and hair lie at the foot o f the trees. T he sm all w ood and brush are en tirely d estro y ed , and ev en the grass is not perm itted to g ro w in the points o f w o o d . T h e bare ground is m ore tram pled by these cattle than the gate o f a barnyard . . . (1 4 :5 8 ). Other ob servers have co m m en ted on the tram pling and destruction o f w o o d la n d by b iso n , althou gh there is d isagreem en t about w hether such a ctiv ity w as im portant in m aintain in g and ex ten d in g the grassland (se e R o e, 1951). R eferen ces a lso h ave frequently been m ade to the w earin g and sm o o th in g o f large rock s, u su ally glacial erratics, by gen eration s o f en circlin g b iso n . T h ese artifacts can still be ob served in m any areas on the northern plains today.

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B i s o n W a lk in g a n d W a llo w in g

B ison w alk in g and w a llo w in g frequently left the ground m arked by d eep ly worn path s, esp e cia lly near stream s and river v a lley s. The R everen d G rant, com p anion o f the I8 7 0 's C .P .R . S u rveyor. Sanford F lem in g , d escrib ed such features v iv id ly . A ccord in g to h im . the tracks o f form er tim es were “ indented in the ground lik e old furrow s . . . ” (8 6 :9 0 ). In referring to a Red R iver site in 1801, A lexan d er H enry the Y ou n ger said: The ground a lon g the river is worn d ow n by the b u ffa lo , esp e cia lly at ev ery bend o f the river w estw ard , w h ere the plains run d ow n to the w ater, and w here the herds c o m e day and night to drink. . . . T he B o is P erce, near w h ich w e are cam p ed , has b een a great cro ssin g p lace for m any years. T h e ground on both sid es is worn sm ooth as p avem en t, and the num ber o f roads at the cro ssin g , so m e o f w h ich are a foot d eep is surprising. C on sid erin g the hard so d through w h ich these tracks are b eaten , I am at a lo ss to form any idea h o w m any herds m ust have passed (54:1:88). Sim ilar e ffe c ts have been ob served in present-day nature reserves, n otably in the ap p roxim ately 1 7 ,0 0 0 square m ile W ood B u ffalo Na­ tional Park, northern A lberta, w here about 1 2 ,0 0 0 b ison still live rela tiv ely undisturbed by C au casian man (2 8 5 . 95). A sid e from w a lk in g , the b ison can break the ground by w a llo w ­ in g , or rollin g in the dust or m ud. T h is a c tiv ity , or p rocess, is appar­ en tly co m m o n in spring and su m m er w h en the anim al lo se s its winter coat and the in sects are em erg in g for the se a so n . T he resulting d ep res­ sio n s often are roughly sp o o n sh a p ed , tens o f feet lo n g , and can o ccu r in s c h o o ls . W hen M atthew C o ck in g , a H u d son 's B ay trader, w as so m ew h ere in the triangle b etw een the North and South S askatchew an R ivers in 1772 he stated that: “ A ll over the country w here buffalo resort were m any h o llo w p laces in the ground . . (8 6 :9 0 ). C ock ­ ing attributed these to the agitation o f b u lls during the breeding sea­ son . J .D . S o p er (2 8 5 ) a b io lo g ist w h o w orked in W ood B u ffalo Na­ tional Park in the I9 3 0 's , found m ultitudes o f dry w a llo w s to b e m ost prom inent sig n s o f b ison occu p ation . He a lso w as im pressed with the great trail netw ork co v erin g hundreds o f square m iles. S o m e o f the trails were m inor. S o m e he describ ed as • ‘trunk h ig h w a y s.” A ccordin g to S o p er. " T h e general run o f ordinary trails" w ere from three to six in ch es d eep . S o m e trails, e sp e c ia lly larger on es on acute s lo p e s , were d eep en ed by rain, runoff and ero sio n , and had to b e abandoned by the b ison for m ore n a v ig a b le routes. Soper a lso com m en ted on bison

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rubbing against trees. T his often stripped m uch bark, although m any o f the plants rem ained a liv e.

F ertilization S op er indicated that the bison cou ld be a very im portant sou rce o f fertilizer. “ A n y o n e ." he sa id , “ w h o has seen the great q u an tities o f this m aterial, distributed in a sin g le se a so n , o v er plain and m ea d o w , is im pressed with the p o ssib ilitie s." H istorical ob servation s tend to su p ­ port S o p er's id eas. T ravellers in the nineteenth century referred to organ ic productivity o f the b ison on a num ber o f o c c a s io n s. An im pres­ siv e illustration is found in the w ritin gs o f Isaac C o w ie ( 5 9 ), a trader, w h o en countered m any b ison near the Q u 'A p p e lle R iver in present-day Sask atch ew an in 1869. A s he describ ed it: O ur route took us into the m idst o f the herd, w hich o p en ed in front and c lo s e d behind the train o f carts like water round a ship . . . the earth trem bled day and night . . . as they m oved o v er the in clin ation s o f the p lains. E very drop o f w ater on our w ay w as foul and y e llo w w ith their w a llo w in g s and excretion s. S uch organic con trib ution s were by no m eans con fin ed to the b iso n . W hile livin g at P em bina Post in 1801 A lexan d er H enry the Y ou n g er o b serv ed that: Bears m ake p rod igiou s ravages in the bush and w illo w s; the plum trees are torn to p ieces, and every tree that bears fruit has shared the sam e fate: the tops o f the oaks are a lso very roughly h an d led, broken, and torn d ow n to get the acorns. The h avoc they co m m it is asto n ish in g ; their dung lies about in the w o o d s as plentiful as that o f the b u ffalo in the m ead ow (54:1:102). The North W est C om p any trader, Francois Larocque described sim ilar co n d itio n s in the Y ello w sto n e V alley in 1805. He reported “ m any bears in the neigh b ourhood drawn by the w ild cherries and other fr u its. . . the banks o f the river are covered with bear dung as the approaches o f a stab le are with cattle m anure" (2 3 1 ). A dram atic w ay o f indicating the organ ic contribution o f the bison alone is to cite eig h teen th and nineteenth century referen ces to the m any drow ned a n im als o b serv ed alon g stream s in spring and sum m er. W h ile near Fort Carlton on the North S ask atch ew an in 1793 the trader John M cD on ald o f Garth saw “ upward o f a thousand d ead " a lo n g one stretch o f river, and co n clu d ed that th ey had drow ned w h ile crossin g

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breaking ice. A m o n g the dead were m any bears feed in g on th e car­ c a s se s . In M a y , 1 7 9 5 . another trader reportedly cou n ted o ver seven thousand dead b u ffa lo during a sin g le d a y 's travel on the Q u 'A p p elle R iver. In A p ril, 1801. A lexan d er Henry the Y ou n ger observed drow ned b u ffalo d riftin g by in " h e r d s." T h e Indians told him that it w as the sa m e each spring (2 6 5 , 2 3 1 ). S ou n ds a lso w ere d ifferen t during the b u ffalo days on the northern p lains. O ne o f the best d escrip tion s o f the n o ise o f the b ison is that m ade by A udubon w h ile on a barge g o in g d ow n the M issouri in A u gu st. 1843. H e sa w thousands o f b u ffalo w h o se roaring resem bled " T h e gru n tin g o f h o g s, w ith a rollin g sou n d from the throat." T h e next day the b u tta lo cou ld be seen all a lo n g the river banks and “ their roaring cou ld be heard for m ile s" (2 3 1 :1 3 1 ).

B ison a n d O ther A nim als I he g ra zin g , w a lk in g and w a llo w in g o f the b ison a lso in flu en ced the distribution o f other fauna. O ne anim al p o ssib ly a ffected in this way w as the pronghorn a n telo p e, w h ich m ay have been as n u m erous, i f not m ore num erous than the b ison on the pre-C aucasian plains (8 6 :5 1 ). Its range probably ex ten d ed from the Alberta fo o th ills north to the North S ask atch ew an R iver, east into M an itoba, and w ell south in to the United States. T od ay o n ly a relatively sm all num ber o f an telope rem ains, principally on pu b lic lands su ch as the S u ffield M ilitary R eserve, A lberta. T he idea o f a n telope form erly b ein g as num erous as the b u ffalo is com p atib le w ith w hat is k n ow n about the feed in g habits o f the bison. T he antelope eats g rass, e sp e c ia lly in su m m er, but relies h ea v ily on forbs and sh ru b s, or b ro w se, m uch o f the year. B iso n , like cattle, often d o not prefer su ch plants, w hich are cla ssifie d as " in c rea se rs” or " in v a d er s" on range m uch used by them . M oderate to h ea v y grazing by the b u ffa lo therefore quite p o ssib ly en cou raged b row se and habitat su itab le for large pronghorn p opulations (8 6 :5 1 ). Burrow ing rodent p op u lation s a lso are said to be favoured by m oderate to h ea v y cattle grazin g w h ich breaks the sod and rem oves the higher g ra sses not liked by prairie d o g s, ground squirrels and gop h ers, perhaps b ecau se lon g grass ob scu res their vision (1 4 7 ). B ison grazing cou ld have had a sim ilar effe c t in the past. Prairie d o g c o lo n ie s have b een o b served in m oderately to h eavily grazed parts o f present day national parks and other public reserves. But the rodents are not m entioned m uch in the h istoric d ocu m en ts and rarely in such a w ay as to link them with bison g ra zin g. England and D e V o s do use som e citation s from M atthew C o c k in g 's account o f h is 1772 travels to

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su g g est su ch a link. A s another e x a m p le, w h ile near the E lb ow o f the South S ask atch ew an in 1857. John P alliser referred to m any " b a d g er" h o le s, like "rabbit w a rren s." w hich m enaced his horses and hunters ch asin g b u ffa lo . P alliser a lso found b ison to be very num erous in this area, and the grass reportedly w as h ea v ily grazed , at least in p laces (2 8 9 :1 4 4 -1 4 6 ).

T he B urro w ing R odents It is d ifficu lt to estim ate h ow n u m erous the b urrow ing rodents were overall on the p lain s. H istoric records d o sh o w the prairie d o g s were very co m m o n in so m e areas. H o w ev er, their " d o g to w n s" m ay not have p ersisted in one general location for m any years. R ecent p opula­ tions are know n to have disappeared rather q u ick ly and m ysteriou sly (1 4 7 ). L ew is and Clark m ade a num ber o f referen ces to prairie d o g s during their trip a lon g the M issouri in 18 0 4 - 18 0 6 . S o m e o f the c o lo n ie s were sim ilar in siz e to those in present national parks and other public reserv es. For ex a m p le, L e w is and Clark reported " a V illa g e o f Barking Squirrels 9 7 0 yards lo n g and 8 00 yards W id e S ituated on a gen tle S lop e o f a h ill" near S ca lp C reek. South D ak ota, in S ep tem b er, 1804. S om e o f the to w n s w ere m uch larger, h o w ev er. W h ile near the W hite R iver-M issouri jun ction in S ep tem b er, 1804, L e w is described a plain, on e m ile w id e and about three m iles lon g w h ich w as " en tirely occu p yed by the burrow s o f the barking squiril . . . the anim al appears in in fin ite n u m b ers" (2 5 :1 0 5 ). Still further w est, near the ju n ction o f the M arias R iver and the M issou ri, the L e w is and Clark exp ed ition e n co u n ­ tered " th e largest co llectio n o f b urrow ing or barking squirrels that we had ev e r yet seen ; w e passed through a skirt o f the territory o f this com m u n ity for about 7 m ile s ” (2 5 :1 0 5 ). T h is last c o lo n y m ay have been large en ou gh to rival a huge on e reportedly co v erin g thou san d s o f square m iles in T e x a s about 1900. T h e b io lo g ist, M erriam , estim ated its population at about 4 0 0 m illion prairie d o g s. H e w as o f the op in ion that they con su m ed en ou gh forage to support 1.5 0 2 ,5 0 0 head o f cattle. On the b a sis o f his M ontana and W y o m in g stu d ies during the I9 5 0 's , K oford thought both these figu res were far too h igh . A ccord in g to his arith m etic. M erriam 's forage con su m p tion estim ate im plied a stock in g rate o f six ty head o f cattle per section year round or " ab out four tim es a reasonable rate . . . for sh ort-grass r a n g e .” K oford w ent on to say that in the earlier part o f this century there apparently " w a s a tendency am o n g m en o f the B io lo g ica l S u rvey to overem p h asize rodent d am age in order to gain support for the work o f their bureau, w h ich at the tim e w as d ev o ted m ainly to predator and rodent co n tro l" (1 4 7 :4 3 ).

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R o d e n t G r a z in g a n d B r o w s in g

Students o f b urrow ing rodents h ave found their e ffe c ts on vegetation to be interw oven w ith and d ifficu lt to separate from large grazers su ch as cattle or b ison . In g en era l, m oderate to h eavy grazing by cattle and bison in both m ix ed and lon g grass a sso cia tio n s se e m s to favour an im als such as the prairie d o g . although the rodent distribution d oes not a lw a y s n icely con form to the presen ce o f the large grazers. N or. acco rd in g to K oford . do prairie d o g s serio u sly c o m p ete for forage with cattle or b iso n , ex cep t perhaps during d rought, w h en the pressure o f all org a n ism s on availa b le forage is high and previou s food p references m ay not hold (1 4 7 :4 8 ). In su m m arizin g h is 1950"s research o ver large parts o f the d o m in ­ antly short-grass U .S . northern p lain s, K oford stated that typical dog tow n v eg eta tio n co n sisted o f abundant short perennial grasses such as gram a (B o u telo u a g ra cilis) and b u ffa lo grass (B u c h lo e d a c ty lo id e s), a large variety o f forb s, and rarely o f shrubs. M id grasses, tall grasses and shrubs, such as the w heat grasses (A grop yron sp p ), the blue stem s (A n d ro p o g o n spp) and shrubby cin q u efo il (P oten tilla fruitic o s a ), resp ectiv e ly , arc m ore com m on around rather than w ithin a co lo n y . N ear the w estern ed g e o f the tall-grass reg io n , if grazin g or other co n d itio n s produce an area o f short g ra ss, it m ay be occu p ied by prairie d o g s. T h ese can m aintain the short-grass stage in d efin itely on so m e sites, but on others the supplem ental effe cts o f h oofed anim als are required. O n the m ixed prairie, the general e ffe c ts o f prairie d o g s are sim ilar to those o f cattle in that they tend to ca u se a d ecrease in w estern w h eatgrass, and an increase in bu ffalograss o v er blu e gram a. In other w ord s, in m ixed prairie, prairie d ogs alon e can both produce and m aintain the short-grass association . A lthough so m e forbs and shrubs are elim in ated by prairie d o g s, the fact that they e x p o se so il and often reduce perennial grasses tends to in crease forbs and m ake range vegetation h eterogen eou s (1 4 7 :6 2 ). K oford a lso stated that the e ffe c ts o f h eavy pressure on vegetation by a variety o f a n im als, in clu d in g rodents, cou ld b e severe and long lastin g. In p la ces on the northern plains re-estab lish m en t o f “ na­ tive g ra sses” on “ bared s o il” m ight require from tw en ty to forty years. Furtherm ore overgrazin g ca u ses m any o f the sam e vegetation ch a n g es as d rought. It is therefore d ifficu lt to d istin guish b etw een these p ro cesses, although so m e range researchers in Canada h ave attem pted to do so (4 7 ). In m ixed prairie, drought gen erally se e m s to ca u se a d ecrea se in the proportion o f mid g ra sses, an increase in short grasses,

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and a reduction in forage y ield . In dry years grazing in creases and aggravates the e ffe c ts o f drought. T he e ffe c ts o f drought and h eavy grazin g on the d istribution o f the prairie d o g s and other rodents are not w ell un d erstood . It has been su ggested that drought ca u ses d ep letion o f food su p p ly in and near the tow n s and that th is, in turn, stim u lates em igration . If s o . then the e ffe c ts o f drought and h eavy grazin g cou ld spread w id ely o v er the p lains from p re-ex istin g c o lo n ie s. H o w ev er, other ob servation s su g ­ gest that rodent num bers fall con sid erab ly during drought, so that m igration o f d o g s and their effe cts on grass and other vegetation m ay not be sig n ifica n t (1 4 7 :6 7 ). R o d e n t B u r r o w in g a n d C u ltiv a tio n

T h e g eo m o rp h ic e ffe c ts o f the prairie d o g s, gop h ers (T h o m o m y s sp p ). ground squirrels (C itellu s spp) and other rodents undoubtedly w ere substantial in pre-C aucasian d ays. T he different rodents tend to d ig at d ifferen t le v e ls in the so il. T h e gop h er se em s to concentrate w ithin about tw en ty in ch es o f the su rface. Ground squirrels g o dow n a few feet, and the prairie d o g . c o y o te , w o lf, and other a n im als can penetrate m ore than ten feet beneath the su rface. V arious estim ates h ave been m ade o f so il m o v em en ts by these a n im als. For ex a m p le, w orking in T e x a s, in the early I9 4 0 's , B uechner (2 2 ) calcu lated that gop h ers in one area brought .3 6 o f a ton o f so il to the surface per acre per year. In earlier studies in Y o sem ite Park. Joseph G rinnell form ed the op in ion that the lo o se n in g o f the ground by gop h ers increased w ater absorption and retarded ru n -o ff to stream s. He a lso felt that the gop h er cou n ­ teracted the packing o f s o ils by large m am m als grazin g on uncultivated rangelands (1 0 9 ). Prairie d o g s and other burrow ers h ave been id en tified as major c a u ses o f se v ere w ind and w ater ero sio n , but this co n clu sio n h as not been accep ted by all ob servers for all circu m stan ces (8 4 . 3 0 7 ), In fact it has been pointed out that w h en topsoil and plant co v e r h a v e been lost, “ gop h er w ork in gs m ade a favourable seed bed and h elp ed to re­ estab lish v eg eta tio n " (1 4 7 :4 1 ). A s a result o f research in the W asatch Plateau area in U tah , E llison co n clu d ed that " a lth o u g h gop h ers in­ creased the sp eed o f erosion after it w as w ell started, overgrazin g by liv e sto c k , not b urrow ing by go p h ers, w as the primary ca u se o f e x c e s ­ siv e e ro sio n " (8 4 ). K oford form ed a sim ilar op in ion about the ero siv e effe cts o f prairie d o g s in the M on tan a-W yom in g area (1 4 7 :4 1 ). R o d e n ts a n d O t h e r A n i m a l s

The b urrow ing rodents have a variety o f e ffe c ts on other a n im als in the

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e c o s y ste m . T h e prairie d o g . gop h er and ground squirrel serve as food for predators su ch as g o ld en e a g le s (A q u ila ch ry sa cto s). h aw k s: b ob ­ cats (L yn x rufus): c o y o te s (C an is latrans); b lack -footed ferrets (M ustella nigrip es): and badgers (T axid en taxu s). K oford 's stu d ies indicate that certain o f these predators, for ex a m p le ferruginous h aw k s (B u teo regalis) and ferrets, feed e sp e c ia lly h ea v ily on prairie d o g s. Any con trol program s directed at these rodents therefore co u ld h ave pro­ found e ffe c ts on their predators, although the latter do h ave an in com ­ plete!}. understood cap a b ility o f sw itch in g to rabbits and other fo o d , if this is n ecessa ry . T h e rodents a lso affect other an im als through their b urrow ing and h ab itat-m od ifyin g a ctiv ities. K oford (1 4 7 :3 2 ) noted that pronghorn a n telo p e " m a y profit by the ab sen ce o f thick grass and the abundance and variety o f fo rb s" in prairie d o g tow n s. C ottontail (S y lv ila g u s auduboni) con cen tration s in d o g to w n s appear to be largely due to the rabbit's use o f the d og burrows and to a lik ing for the forbs com m on in d og co lo n ie s. Certain types o f m ice (P ero m y scu s m aniculatu s) also appear to be rela tiv ely num erous in m any d o g to w n s, as do predators such as the rattlesnakes (C rotalu s v. riridis). The b urrow ing ow l (S p eo ty to cun icu laria) has been recogn ized as a com m on resident o f prairie d og to w n s sin ce the o b servation s o f early C aucasian travellers in the nineteenth cen tu ry. O ther birds reported by K oford as being rather num erous in d og to w n s are horned larks (E rcm op h ilia alp estris). m ead ow larks (Stu rn ella n eglecta) and m ourning d o v es (Zenaidura m acroura). T h ese, and the other an im als c o m p o sin g the com m u n ity o f w h ich the prairie d o g and other rodents are a b asic part, o b v io u sly have m uch in flu en ce on v eg eta tio n , so ils and o th e relem en ts o f the landscape through seed d ispersal and organ ic d ep o sitio n .

T he B eaver T h e b eaver is often thought o f as a d w e lle r o f the northern forests. But step p e and savannah (parkland) lan d scap es theoretically can offer m uch habitat for the an im al. T h e poplar, w illo w and other plants co m m o n ly used by the b eaver for fo o d , sh elter and stream en gin eerin g are plentiful in treed interio'r high land s such as the C yp ress H ills, as w ell as along the M isso u ri, North and South S ask atch ew an and other river v a lley s. Y et in so m e o f these areas, such as the C yp ress H ills, early b eaver p op u lation s are not ea sily estim a te d , prim arily becau se M etis and Indian trappers left few ob servation s o f anim al num bers (2 3 1 ). On theoretical grounds b eaver cou ld b e ex p ected to m od ify the lan d scap e and eco sy ste m in several b asic w ays. The anim als w ould

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build m any d a m s, e sp e c ia lly on sm aller stream s and ch a n n els, and so reorgan ize drainage o v er m uch o f the v a lley floors. T h ese drainage c h a n g es, in turn, w ou ld in flu en ce g eo m o rp h ic, v egetation and w ild life patterns, for ex a m p le by prom oting a llu v ia tio n , and grow th o f marsh g ra sses, w illo w , alder and other plants favourable to w aterfow l, gro u se, other birds, m o o se , deer and their predators (1 3 4 . 152. 3 3 0 . m i).

S uch e ffe c ts h a v e b een reported by so m e early C aucasian travel­ lers in the S ask a tch ew a n -M issou ri cou n try. For e x a m p le , in O ctob er. I 7 5 4 . w h en the H u d so n ’s Bay C om p any trader, A n thon y H en d ay, w as in the p la in s-fo o th ills frin ge, not far from the Red D eer R iver. A lberta, he d escrib ed the country a s “ L evel land with p oplars; and great m any C reeks and p o n d s, w ith p len ty o f B e a v er H o u se s ." A num ber o f m o o se a lso w ere ob served in this general area (2 2 8 :7 1 -2 ). On July 18, 1805, w h ile just a b ove the Great Falls o f the M issou ri. Clark saw a num ber o f beaver d am s “ su cc eed in g each other in c lo s e order and exten d in g as far up these stream s as h e co u ld d isco v e r them in their cou rse tow ards the m o u n ta in s" (25:1 10). W h ile near T o w n sen d . M ontana, in late Ju ly. 1 805. L ew is and Clark o b served m any b eaver w h ich had d am m ed up the sm all ch an n els am o n g islands and cau sed the river to cut new rou tew ays. S om e ch a n n els w ere said e'ventually to fill with m ud. sand, g ra v el, and d riftw o o d . T h is p rocess reportedly prom pted the b eaver to m o v e to n ew sites. L e w is and Clark co n clu d ed that the b eaver w a s very instrum ental in ad d in g to the m any islan d s in the river (2 2 8 :7 1 ).

O th er A nim als M oose

T h e m o o se w as a preferred fo o d o f the traders, w h o apparently fan cied its n o se and to n g u e. Prior to the attack o f the w h ite m an . the an im al's range probably ex ten d ed w ell into the parkland and grassland. S uch an exten d ed range is reasonable on theoretical grou n d s for valley b eaver p opulations w ould prom ote the p o n d s, w illo w s , and other marsh grow th so attractive to the m o o se . England and D e V o s have supported such a form erly larger range on the b asis o f ev id e n c e in jou rn als su ch as A n thon y H en d a y 's. In 1 7 5 4 -1 7 5 5 H enday travelled from the north­ eastern part o f the northern p lain s, w estw ard s a lo n g the Carrot River through present-day S a sk a tch ew an , to the A lberta fo o th ills z o n e , and then back a lon g the South and North S ask atch ew an R ivers. D uring this jou rn ey he spent about tw o and one h alf m onths in the grassland or " M u sco ty P la in s" w h ere he recorded the k illin g o f at least forty-eight m o o se.

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In co n clu d in g their c o m m en ts on the m o o se . England and D e V os say that they do not w ish to im ply that these an im als were " b y any m eans as num erous as the b ea ver, a n telop e, or even elk in the relatively op en grassland o f C anada. H o w ev er, they apparently w ere present in su ffic ien t num bers to warrant recogn ition a s a sign ifican t part o f the b io m e .” H ow far their range exten d ed southw ard is uncertain. N either L e w is nor Clark p ersonally en cou n tered the anim al in the p lain s area o f present day M ontana. On the other hand, in their personal d iaries tw o m em b ers o f the ex p ed itio n reported that on M ay 10. 1805. a party o f hunters " sa w so m e M o o se d eer, w h ich w as larger than the com m on d e e r ," a few m ile s a b o v e the m outh o f the M ilk R iver w h ich drains the C yp ress H ills area (2 5 :1 4 0 ). D eer

A nother anim al w h o se pre and early C aucasian num bers and distribu­ tion are not w ell know n is the deer. In their review o f the historical literature on the northern C anadian plains England and D e V o s found ev id e n c e for o n ly o n e type, the m ule deer (O d o c o ilcu s h em ion u s), although both the m u le and w h ite tailed deer (O d o c o ileu s virginianus) w ere recorded further sou th , alon g the M issou ri, by L e w is and Clark. T h e m ule deer m ay principally have o ccu p ied the rougher higher ground aw ay from the river b o tto m s, w hich apparently w ere preferred by the w hite tailed deer. S in ce C aucasian settlem en t the w h ite tailed deer apparently has b eco m e d om in an t over m uch o f the availab le range on the northern p lains. D e e r b r o w s i n g a n d g r a z in g

D eer are u su ally thought o f as brow sers w h ich u se a w id e range o f fora g e, including a sp en , w illo w and other broad leaved trees and shrubs, as w ell as co n ifers ( I I 1 :155-1 5 6 ). H o w ev er, deer a lso graze, and can adapt their feed in g to availab le p lan ts, s o that it is d ifficu lt to g en era lize about their pre and early C aucasian e ffe c ts on vegetation . T h e sam e ap p lies to their p o ssib le effe cts on land form s, s o ils or other w ild life. D eer do not exh ib it sig n ifica n t b ehaviour patterns su ch as w a llo w ­ ing. But their w a lk in g , like that o f other a n im als, m ust have contributed to the form ation o f dunuded trails, e sp e c ia lly near river v a lley s. T hey a lso contributed to the plains eco sy ste m organ ically.

E lk Today the elk is gen erally p erceived as a m ountain d w eller. But in pre

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and early C aucasian d a y s it w as very num erous on the p lains. S o m e elk undoubtedly m igrated, as they do tod ay, from su m m er m ountain habitat to w inter in p rotected , lo w -ly in g plains river v a lle y s, or in the ch in o o k z o n e in the fo o th ills-p la in s fringe. O thers w ere perm anent inhabitants o f the p lain s, and cou ld find food and sh elter in parts o f the grasslan d s, particularly in poplar g ro v es and w oodland along stream s. D uring his 1755 sojourn in the northern plains grasslan d s A nthony H enday o b serv ed elk freq u en tly, on on e occa sio n recording a herd o f ap p roxim ately three hundred an im als (8 6 :9 1 ). In 1 8 0 0 . w h ile near the e lb o w o f the South S a sk a tch ew an , about on e hundred m iles w est o f present day R eg in a , Peter Fidler noted that elk cou ld be ob served all alon g the stream w h erever there were “ sm all w o o d s" o f any kind (2 2 8 :6 5 ). L ew is and Clark ob served (he elk quite frequently alon g the M issou ri. On April 2 6 , 1 8 0 5 , w h ile near the m outh o f the Y ello w sto n e R iver, they noted that “ the open b ottom s border on Ihe h ills, and are covered in m any parts by the w ild h y sso p (sageb ru sh . A rtem isia tridentata) w h ich rises to a heigh t o f tw o f e e t . . . the A n telo p e , B u ffa lo e , Flk and deer feed on this herb; the w illo w o f the sand-bars a lso furnish a favorite w inter fo o d o f these an im als as w ell as the grou se, the por­ c u p in e, hare and rabbit" (2 5 :1 3 5 ). E lsew h ere L e w is and Clark record elk feed in g on grass and ru sh es, as w ell as fern and evergreen and d ecid u o u s shrubs in the w o o d s. H istorical records and more recent ob servation s in B a n ff and other national parks indicate the elk has a w id e ranging b row sin g and grazin g d iet w ith con sid erab le adaptability to circu m stan ces. R a b b i ts a n d I n s e c ts

O ther an im als w hich undoubtedly a ffec ted the pre and early C aucasian landscape w ere rabbits and in sects. Rabbits undergo fluctu ations or “ c y c le s " in pop u lation . At the high p oin ts, in particular, they can b row se, g ird le, and kill poplar, spruce and other trees and shrubs (1 4 :2 7 ). Insects such as the grassh op p er or “ lo cu st" (M elan op lu s spretus) a lso p eriod ically occu r in great num b ers, d evou rin g m uch o f the v eg eta tio n and m any o b jects in their path. D escrip tion s o f the outbursts o f the late 1 8 5 0 'sa n d early 1 8 6 0 'sh a v e been left by both the E n glishm an . P a lliser. and the C an ad ian . Hind (2 3 1 ). T h e latter wrote o f grassh op p er m ov em en ts in the sk y and their e ffe c ts on its co lo u r, at tim es b lu e, then silv er w h ite , ash g rey , and lead -lik e. T h o se p ortions o f the prairie w hich had b een v isited by grasshoppers had a “ curious ap pearance, the grass w as cut u n iform ly to on e inch from the gorund. and the w h o le surface w as covered with sm all round, green ex u v a ie (fe c e s) o f those d estru ctive in v a d ers" . P alliser m ade sim ilar

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o b serv a tio n s, although h is referen ces to v egetation con su m p tion are not as sp e c ific as H in d 's (2 2 8 :7 3 ).

Fire Fire has lon g been reco g n ized as a m ajor variable in the plains' eco sy stem (2 3 8 . 3 2 0 . 3 2 1 ). G rass fires were and co n tin u e to be caused b y both lightning and man (2 3 8 . 3 2 0 , 3 2 1). T h e se fires vary in charac­ ter d ep en d in g on w in d , fuel and other variab les. S o m e h istoric fires reportedly w ere slo w m o v in g short lived affairs. O thers w ere im m ense con flagration s w h ich burned thousands o f square m ile s. T h eir effects on grass and other elem en ts o f the ec o sy ste m und oub ted ly varied with the tem peratures g en erated , so il m oisture and other co n d itio n s. It is therefore d ifficu lt to g en era lize about their e ffe c ts . But they frequently d estroyed or d am aged poplar and other trees, thereby con trib utin g to the m aintenance and at tim es to the ex ten sio n o f the grasslan d , although its borders p robably fluctuated u n ev en ly in sp a ce and tim e as do droughts and other factors w hich can favour fire (2 3 8 ). In addition to their e ffe c ts fires in flu en ced other parts o f the eco sy ste m . A lex a n d er Henry the Y ou n ger w as o n e o f those traders w ho en countered bison herds w hich had been caught in fires, with m any an im als being k illed , or injured. S od and organic m aterial co u ld a lso be burned, affectin g plant grow th and an im als for years. T h e availab le inform ation o f such effe cts is in su fficien t to estim ate their sig n ifica n ce. It is d ou b tfu l, h o w ev er, that fire w as n early as im portant as d row n in g or the w o lf, in con tro llin g b ison population in pre-C aucasian tim e (2 6 5 ,2 3 1 ). In d eed , fires co u ld create fresh grass grow th and other co n d itio n s favourable to b ison and other a n im als. T h e Indians knew this and used to burn large se c tio n s o f the prairie in fall and early spring in order to prom ote the grow th w h ich attracted the b u ffalo. Sum m er fires a lso w ere used tem porarily to d estroy pasture and d iscou rage b ison from m igrating into areas w here they w ere not w anted by the Indians (2 3 8 ).

C lim ate O ne o f the m ore o b v io u s in flu en ces on vegetation and the eco sy ste m is clim a te. It is not surprising therefore to find that there has been a ten d en cy to read the e ffe c ts o f clim a te into ch an ges in vegetation or other landscape e lem en ts, or— to say the sa m e thing d ifferen tly— to try and use v eg eta tio n and other ch an ges as ev id e n c e for drought or clim a tic ch a n g e. A basic d ifficu lty here, o f co u rse, is the attem pt to use

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fire frequency as a d irect indicator o f d ry n ess, w hen fires can arise from a num ber o f in flu en ces m ore or less independent o f w eather and clim a te. For ex a m p le, the influx o f the careless w h isk y traders and prospectors into the northern plains in the 186 0 ’s co u ld have brought m ore frequent burning at that tim e. T h e severe d ep letion o f the b ison by the 18 6 0 - 187 0 's in the east-central C anadian plains cou ld have resulted in in creases in grass fuel for fires. Such a ch an ge m ay h ave overridden in creases in precipitation norm ally con sid ered detrim ental to fire. F lo o d s, short g rass, ex p o sed grou n d , and other occu rrences have been used as ev id en ce for w et or dry co n d itio n s, or clim a tic ch an ge. H o w ­ ev e r , large flo o d s can occu r during years o f relatively low rainfall (2 7 7 ). And short grass and other p o ssib le indicators o f aridity co u ld be due to p rolonged grazin g or other p ro cesses. In fact the nature o f the ev id en ce is such that w e must adm it to h aving little sp ec ific k n o w led g e o f ch a n g es in clim ate in the nineteenth century northern p la in s, in sp ite o f the efforts o f various m eteorologists and geograp h ers (3 0 5 . 164. 153). Furtherm ore, even if reliable infor­ m ation on clim a tic ch a n g e were a v a ila b le, the data p o ssib ly w ou ld not fit w ell sp a tia lly o r tem p orally with e x p o se d ground or other “ sig n s " or d rought, b eca u se o f ihe in flu en ce o f other variab les, notably an im als. Indeed short g rass, g u llie s, and other p h en om en a w h ich w e h ave c o m e to p erceiv e as indicators o f “ o v e r g r a z in g ,” “ accelerated er o sio n ” or other “ ab n orm al” co n d itio n s m ay h ave been m uch m ore w idespread or “ norm al” in the d ays o f the b ison , elk and other an im als than has hitherto gen erally been su sp ected .

M an Pre-C aucasian hum an num bers are d ifficu lt to estim ate, but m ay have been about 2 0 0 .0 0 0 for the northern plains area o f approxim ately present-day A lberta. S a sk a tch ew an , North D akota and M ontana (2 6 5 : A ppendix G ). C ertainly human num bers were con sid erab ly less than those o f an im als such as the b ison , a n telop e and e lk . And their effe cts on landscape gen erally se em to h ave been greater than m a n 's, although human b ehaviour often m ay h ave been im portant, as the fo llo w in g ex a m p les sh o w . From very early tim es the n ative p eop les o f the northern plains appear to h ave been rather stron gly in flu en ced by clim ate and su b se­ quent m igration o f b iso n and other an im als to the ch in ook z o n e , or to treed and sheltered h igh land s and v a lley s in w inter (2 3 1 ). A ccord in g to traders su ch as A lex a n d er H enry the Y ou n ger, the n atives often were “ c o m p e lle d ” to fo llo w the m igrating b ison , their principal sou rce o f m eat, h id es, b o n es, other fo od , sh elter and to o ls. On the other hand

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these p eop le a lso interacted with the sy stem in such a w ay as to override clim a te, at least on a short term b a sis. O ne direct m ean s o f d oin g s o was through the u se o f fire, w h ich co u ld overrid e clim atic in flu en ces on bison m o v em en t o v er large areas. T h e p olitical arrangem ents am o n g the various tribes a lso in flu ­ en ced the distribution and num ber o f a n im als, their grazing and other e ffe c ts on la n d scap e. The northern plains tribes tended to o ccu p y a lo o se ly d efined territory w h ich the early traders called " th eir general lo c a lity ,” an area in w hich they preferred to hunt and liv e . B etw een the general lo ca lities were buffer z o n e s , w here relatively little hunting w as d on e at risk o f attack from n eigh b ouring p eo p le. A ccord in g to Hickerson (1 2 0 ) a b u ffer or neutral zon e existed b etw een the S iou x and the O jibw a in present-day M in n esota for m any years during the nineteenth cen tu ry. W h ile near the E lb ow o f the S outh S askatchew an R iver in about 1 860. P alliser referred to a b u ffer zon e b etw een the C rees and the B la ck feet o f the eastern and w estern plains resp ectiv e ly . P alliser also noted a concentration o f bison and other an im als in this z o n e , as w ell as sig n s o f h ea v y g ra zin g . At o n e p oin t he said that " th e grass in this arid cou n try, a lw a y s s o sca n ty , w as n ow actu ally sw ep t a w ay by the b u ffa lo , w h o a ssisted by the lo cu sts, had left the country as bare as if it had been run o v er by fire" (2 8 9 :1 4 5 -1 4 6 ). T h e C yp ress H ills area appears to have been a b uffer zon e betw een the B lack feet o f the Sask atch ew an and the C row s o f the Y ello w sto n e country for at least se v en ty years during the nineteenth century. Like other b u ffer zo n e s it se e m s to have been rich in e lk , g rizzly bear and other w ild life , and w as d escrib ed as late as the I8 7 0 ’s by the trader. Isaac C o w ie . in the fo llo w in g rather extravagant m anner . . . A s far back as the m em ory and traditions o f the C rees then liv in g ex ten d ed , these C yp ress H ills . . . had been neutral ground b etw een m any differen t warring tribes. . . . N o Indian for hunting purposes ev e r set foot in the h ills, w h o se w ood ed c o u le e s and ravines b eca m e the undisturbed haunt o f all kinds o f g a m e, and esp e cia lly abounded in g rizzly bears and the b eau tifu lly antlered and m agn ificen t W a s-K a y -S o u s k n ow n variou sly by the English as red d eer or elk . O n ly wary and w atchful w ar parties o f any tribes ev e r visited the h ills and so d angerous w as it to cam p in them it w as cu stom ary for such parties to put up barricades about the spots in w hich they stayed o v er night. (5 9 :3 0 4 ) N oth in g in the historical d ocu m en ts in d icates that man w as sig ­ n ifican tly d ep letin g any w ild life sp ecies prior to the arrival o f the C au ca sia n , w h o se co m m erce and tech n o lo g y transform ed the human

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role and put man in a p osition o f landscape ascen d en cy w ithin a few d eca d es. T h is is not to d en y that pre-C aucasian man at tim es m ay have contributed to anim al ex tin ctio n or d ep letio n . Indeed it has b een c o n ­ tended that he played an im portant role in the extin ction o f the m am ­ moth and other m em b ers o f the giant North A m erican P le isto cen e fauna by about 6 ,0 0 0 B .C . (1 8 9 ). But, on the b asis o f the ev id en ce availab le for the eigh teen th and nineteenth cen tu ries, m an w as a contributing variable in the sy ste m — not the overw h elm in g ly dom inant on e he later b ecam e w ith the arrival o f the C au casian .

Significance I m a g e s o f P r e - C a u c a s ia n L a n d s c a p e s

In the light o f the p reced in g d iscu ssio n , the pre-C aucasian northern plains cannot be e n v isio n ed as a ''p ristin e'' or " v ir g in " landscape first ex p o se d to " se v e r e o v erg ra z in g ," " accelerated ero sio n " and other p ro cesses as a result o f the co m in g o f the w hite m an. T h e b ison , burrow ing rodents, elk and other a n im als, as w ell as fire, clim atic ch an g e and the a g en cy o f m an. must h ave interacted on num erous o cca sio n s o v er the cen tu ries to reduce grass and tree co v er, ex p o se bare ground and induce h eavy w ind and w ater erosion (1 8 5 . 4 5 , 6 4 ). T he idea o f a reasonably " b alan ced natural sy ste m " is also d ifficu lt to accept in the light o f the ev id e n c e presen ted in this essa y , u n less o n e is prepared to a llo w for pronounced sw in g s in the sy stem . V ariations in the intensity and spatial distribution o f d rou gh ts, fire, grazin g , w a lk in g , w a llo w in g and other p ro cesses must have produced a w id e range o f o sc illa tio n s in landscape character about so m e rare and transitory m ean. D ust storm s approxim ating those o f the " d irty thir­ tie s" could have been produced on a num ber o f o c c a s io n s o ver the last few thousand years o f pre-C aucasian tim e as a result o f variations in lau n al, clim a tic and pyric p ro cesses, at least on a regional b asis. T h e idea o f a " p u re" pre-C aucasion landscape is a lso d ifficu lt to sustain when o n e rem em bers other sign ifican t p ro cesses, for exam p le the drow n in g and rotting o f thou san d s o f p lain s b ison each spring. S ig n i f i c a n c e to M o ti v a tio n f o r C o n s e r v a ti o n

Support for m any co n servation al practices has. o f co u rse, been built on the idea o f man as a great evil fo rce, a " ra p ist" o f the " u n tou ch ed la n d ." A rather typ ical ex p o sitio n o f this p h ilosop h ical b asis for c o n ­ servation is found in the w ork o f su ch influential A m erican d e c is io n ­

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m akers as W alter H ick el. form er U .S . S ecretary o f the Interior, w ho has written o f h is b oyh ood con cern about the p lo w in g o f the prairie for m ore w heat. "T hat is what w e d id .” he said , and that is what upset n atu re's b alan ce. T here w eren't any dust storm s w h en the Indians lived by th e m se lv e s in K an sas. O k­ lah om a. N ebraska and the D ak otas. T h e upset dated back to W orld W ar I. w hen w e started p lo w in g up the prairies to s o w grain for the A llied arm ies o f w estern Europe. T h e top soil had b een held together for thousands o f y ears by b u ffa lo grass and a few trees. T he p lo w jarred it lo o se from its soil und erp inn in gs. T h is is h ow w e not o n ly d ep ressed the agricultural ec o n o m y but cam e c lo s e to d estroyin g the land o f what cam e to be know n as the dustbow l

(I 19:50-f). A lthou gh so m e o f H ick el's facts and his underlying philosop h ical basis for con servation are not en tirely a ccep ta b le, he d o es hint at one b asic reason for concern about h eavy g ra zin g , cu ltivation and soil ero sio n . It is not so m uch that su ch p ro cesses are n ew o r " u n n atu ral," but that under the C aucasian m an. in particular, they are extrem e and e x c e s s iv e and if con tinu ed for lon g periods o f tim e can seriou sly d am a g e or d estroy grass, so il and other landscape elem en ts w h ich are valu ed by p eo p le for e c o n o m ic , aesth etic or other reason s, in clu d in g sh eer respect for life. M a n 's P l a c e in ilie S y s te m

T h e fo reg o in g rem arks lead to the lon gstan d in g q u estion o f m an 's overall e ffe c ts on the northern plains lan d scap e. T he literature o f the eigh teen th and nineteenth cen tu ries indicates that pre-C aucasian man w as not a d om in an t a g en cy . H is e ffe c ts w ere supersed ed by an im als such as the b iso n and b eaver. H o w ev er, after the arrival o f the C aucasian with his com m ercial sy stem and his different religion and te c h n o lo g y , man q u ick ly rose to d om in an ce and n ow co m m o n ly per­ c e iv e s the lan d scap e as very su scep tib le to his m an agem en t, and u ltim ately to h is co n tro l.. A s an a g en cy o f ch an ge on the p lains, C aucasian m an has d on e m any thin gs with co n fid e n c e w h ose lon g term im p lication s are not k n o w n . An outstanding ex a m p le is the rem oval o f m uch o f the plains w ild life , and the creation o f crop and animal m on ocu ltu res— w heat and ca ttle— for sa le in grow in g m arkets ou tsid e the region . T h e result is a d eclin e in organic d ep osition on the plains, and increasing reliance on ch em ica l fertilizers, with uncertain co n se ­ q u en ces in the future.

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P re-C aucasian m an long contributed to the m aintenance and at tim es to the ex ten sio n o f the grassland and savannah through h is u se o f that “'an cien t t o o l." fire. But fire is m ore than a to o l. It is a process w h ich can occu r independent o f m an. prin cip ally through lightning. A n d . on the b asis o f the availab le in form ation , it is im p o ssib le to argue co n v in cin g ly for eith er man o r ligh tn in g as the dom inant ca u se o f fire and its e ffe c ts on the northern p lains. Both man and ligh tn in g have cau sed fires for thousands o f years, and their e ffe c ts se em c lo s e ly in tertw in ed . It m ight be argued that the historical ev id e n c e indicates that m ore fires w ere started by man than ligh tn in g, and that he is the p rem ier force. But e v e n w ith the rem oval o f m an. so m e ligh tn in g fires w ou ld h ave occurred ev ery year or s o on the northern p lains. M oreover, nineteenth century o b serv a tio n s sh o w that such fires cou ld h ave burned for thousands o f square m iles o v er the unbroken plains o f preC aucasian tim e. U nder such con d ition s a few lightning Iires cou ld result in the burning o f as large areas as m any o f the m an-m ade fires d escrib ed in h istoric records. W hen this o b servation , and the fact that fires can occu r at any tim e o f the year are reco g n ized , the im age form s o f a country part o f w h ich w as a lw a y s a fla m e, day after d ay. year after year. T h is leads to the lon gstan d in g problem ol w h eth er the grasslands o f the northern plains are due to fire, or clim a te. In m y v ie w , to se e the grasslan d s as prim arily due to on e or the other is not a lruitlul w a y o f approaching the problem o f their form ation and m ainten an ce. And this v iew is at least partly shared by th ose w h o have su g g ested that fire can be co n sid ered as a part o f the grasslan d s clim a te. It w ou ld se em better, h o w ev er, to go another step further and adopt an e x p licitly m ultivariant approach to the p rob lem , o n e that lead s to recogn ition and critical evalu ation o f the potential effe ct o f other a g e n c ie s, such as an im als. T he b iso n 's a ctiv ities m ake it a prim e can d id ate for reducing aspen en croach m en t on the grasslan d . But so m e o f the m auled trees d escrib ed by S o p er in present-day W ood B u ffalo Park rem ained a liv e . Further­ m ore. historical referen ces to su ch d am age do not seem n u m erous, so that b ison im pact on tree grow th m ay h ave been m inor overall. Indeed, at tim es the w a llo w in g o f the b ison and the b urrow ing o f rodents and other a n im als m ay actu ally have w orked to prom ote the ex ten sio n o f poplar o n to the grasslan d . T h u s, the se ed s ol trees such as the aspen reportedly have d ifficu lty penetrating the prairie so d . H o w ev er, the se ed w ill estab lish itse lf w hen the sod has b een broken by an im als and the e x p o se d so il protected by shrubby cin q u efoil or other early c o lo n iz ­ ing shrubs (1 4 ). S uch broken ground w as quite com m on in the b u ffalo d ays. O ther an im als su ch as m o o se , e lk , and deer p robably had a greater

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effe ct in preventing asp en grow th than the b ison . T h ese an im als b row se on the su ccu len t bu d s and tips o f poplar and w illo w e sp e c ia lly in w inter. In the past such b ro w sin g could have k illed or d am aged trees, and lim ited the grow th o f g roves just as it d o es today in parts o f the Porcupine H ills. A lb erta, or B an ff N ational Park. T h ese effe cts w ould have been reinforced by the attacks o f the b eaver, rabbit, and other an im als.

V egetation T ypes a n d D istribution I he northern plains clim a te can be look ed upon as having so m e kind o f ultim ate effect on v eg eta tio n . Yet grasslan d s h ave been found to occur in a variety o f differen t tem perature and precipitation reg im es, su g g e st­ ing that there is not a co n sisten t grassland clim ate (4 0 ). On the other hand, d efin itio n s or cla ssific a tio n s o f clim ate w h ich include evap otranspiration and so il m oisture con d ition s h ave sh ow n a high correla­ tion b etw een grasslan d and certain clim atic types (1 9 2 ). But ground tem perature, precipitation e ffe c tiv e n e s s, evapotranspiration and soil m oisture are all in flu en ced not on ly by clim ate but a lso by burning, gra zin g , b row sin g and related p ro cesses, w h ich reduce vegetation co v er. S o it rem ains d ifficu lt lo separate either clim a te, fire or an im als, and estab lish their independent role in the form ation o f the northern plains grasslands. T h e fo reg o in g d iscu ssio n bears on the vegetation m od els that p ro fessio n a ls h ave constructed for the northern p lains. A num ber o f differen t c la ssific a tio n s have b een used in m apping major plant a sso cia ­ tions. The sy stem o f C am p bell, et al (3 5 ) is a representative exam p le (F igure 2 ). It in clu d es the fo llo w in g major groups: Short-grass prairie (B ou telou a-S tip a association ) M ixed prairie (S tip a-A grop yron -B ou telou a association ) F escu e prairie (F estu ca scabrella association ) True prairie (S tip a-S p orob olu s association ) Tall grass prairie (A ndropogan association ) as w ell as the parkland or savannah with its poplar, fescu e (F estu ca spp) and other gra sses. T h is cla ssific a tio n sy stem is sim ilar to others, for ex a m p le. W att’s ( 3 1 9 ). w hich w as d erived from the w ork o f C lem en ts and a sso cia tes. S uch vegetation ty p es have largely been id en tified and m apped using relic tw entieth century grassland areas w h ich apparently either escaped cu ltivation and g ra zin g , or had b een left •■idle" for years. T he grass­ land areas— and the vegetation cla sse s— were sp atially and ty p o lo g i­

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ca lly organized by assu m in g they were fun d am en tally related to d iffer­ ent clim a te types on the m odern p lains, the d ifferen ces am ong these clim a tic types th e m selv es not a lw a y s being w ell estab lish ed . Short-grass prairie, m ixed prairie and the other vegetation a sso c ia ­ tions are often referred to as the clim a x , another b asic vegetation c la s s, or co n cep t, w h o se m eaning has lon g been ob scu re (2 7 8 ). For so m e students clim a x is that vegetation association m ost in tune w ith the en viro n m en t, n otably c lim a te. It w ill persist for an in d efin ite period, u n less disturbed by fire, grazing or other p ro cesses. C lim ax a lso has been d efined as that a sso cia tio n w h ich esta b lish es and reproduces itse lf under a g iv en set o f clim a tic and related environm ental co n d itio n s. Through the years problem s have arisen with the clim ax co n cep t, and it has been m odified to incorporate the lon g term in flu en ce o f so ils , drainage and other factors w hich can ca u se certain plant a sso cia tio n s to persist in an area for a lo n g tim e, ev en though other a sso cia tio n s se e m in g ly w ou ld b e favoured by the regional clim a te. For ex a m p le, a sso cia tio n s w h ich o w e their character and p ersisten ce to p rocesses su ch as fire or grazin g h ave been g iv en special recogn ition as d isc lim a x e s, the assum ption b ein g that w ithout th ese p ro cesses the plants w ou ld proceed to a clim a x stage com m en su rate with the clim ate o f the area. V egetation cla ssifica tio n and m apping based on the clim ax c o n ­ cep t are d ifficu lt to accep t for the northern plains on the basis o f the inform ation presented in this e s sa y . In pre-C aucasian tim es the effe cts o f clim a te, fire, grazin g and other p ro cesses w ere intertw ined and spatial and tem poral ch a n g es in vegetation m ust often have been related to any or all o f them . Furtherm ore, grassland areas m apped as ‘‘orig i­ n al” or “ undisturbed v eg eta tio n ” in the late nineteenth or tw entieth cen tu ries do not reflect the character o f the pre and early C aucasian v egeta tio n ; for, by the 18 7 0 ’s , the b ison had been substantially reduced in num ber throughout the northern plains and the w h o lesa le attack on the e lk , g rizzly , and other w ild life w as w ell u nderw ay. B y the 1 8 9 0 's these an im als w ere g o n e; and, although cattle had been introduced in m any areas, g ra sses, trees and shrubs had for d ecad es been subject to a lo w er level o f g ra zin g and b row sin g than that typical o f the preC aucasian w ild fauna. A num ber o f d ifferen ces in the eco sy stem cou ld be ex p ect­ ed under C aucasian co n d itio n s. For o n e thing grasses m ore su scep ti­ ble to grazin g and other p ro cesses, such as lon g and m id grasses o f the true or m ixed prairie, w ould b eco m e m ore num erous and co v er more ground. T h is, o f co u rse, im p lies that m oderate to h eavy b ison grazin g w ould have m aintained a short grass association o v er large parts o f the p re-C aucasian northern p lain s. T h is point has been m ade by a few b otan ists, notably Larson ( 1 5 1 ), w h o did not present m uch historic

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ev id e n c e to support his c a se . H o w ev er, as w e have se e n , such docum entation is not un com m on for the northern p lain s, even being availa b le for the Red R iver area in the ea st, w here A lexan d er H enry the Y ou n ger noted that b ison g razin g had at least tem porarily sh ortened the co v er in what is n o w thought o f as a subhum id lon g grass area.

S um m ary R em arks T he results o f historical e c o lo g ic a l stu d ies lik e this on e are relevant to the form ation o f pu b lic p o licy and to grassland u se and m an agem en t, as w as fo rcib ly pointed out about thirty years ago by the historian, Jam es C . M alin. in h is n eg lected The G rassland o f N orth A m erica, P ro­ legom ena to Its H istory (1 8 4 ). M a lin 's research focu sed on the south­ ern and central p lain s o f the U .S . H is e v id e n c e , interpretations and co n clu sio n s o ften find counterparts on the northern Canadian plains. A s M alin realized , lay and p rofessional attitudes and b eh aviou r in the general field o f range m anagem en t are related to p ercep tion s or im a g es o f the late nineteenth century plains lan d scap e. For m any p eop le th is is the “ o rig in a l” or " n atu ral” lan d scap e that their pioneer forefathers saw . D ev ia tio n s from it often are con sid ered undesirable on a esth etic, n o sta lg ic and e c o n o m ic grounds. U n critically and rather p arad oxically, in m any m inds this landscape co m b in es im ages o f ‘ ‘great b ison h erd s” with n otion s o f a relatively undisturbed, con tin u ­ o u s ‘“pristin e” grasslan d — until the com in g o f the ‘‘w hite m a n .” P rofession als th e m selv es have m an ifested so m e o f this thinking in the con cep t o f c lim a x , with its stron g link to clim ate as the dom inant con trol. F luctuations o r ‘‘d istu rb an ces” in the v eg eta tio n , s o ils or other elem en ts o f the sy stem as a result o f the a ctivities o f either w ild fauna, or d om esticated sto c k , are seen as departures from the id eal. The ev id e n c e presented in this paper and in M alin 's work d oes not support this type o f paradigm , w ith its associated n otion s o f le v e ls and hierar­ ch ies. Rather the ev id e n c e su g g ests that the plains are m ore accurately v ie w e d as a m ultivariate system w h o se state has lon g fluctuated in accord an ce w ith ch a n g es in clim a te, fire and a n im als, in clu d in g m an. W hether any state (lan d scap e) in this sy stem is any m ore natural than another dep en d s very m uch on o n e 's attitudes on the w ild , tech n ology and other co n cep ts. M uch a lso d ep en d s on learning: o n e 's notion o f what con stitutes the d esirable hum an and earthly con d ition ; and o n e ’s ideas on the ab ility o f man to understand, m anage and control the sy stem . T he fin d in g s in this paper, and in M a lin 's w ork, su ggest that w e have so m e rather uncertain im ages or ideas about the co m p lex ity o f the plains la n d scap e, and w hat w e have d on e to it in the last tw o

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hundred years. U n d er these circu m stan ces, it w ou ld se em w ise to undertake m ore d etailed stu d ies in land use history and landscape ch an g e w ithin and o u tsid e the g rasslan d s, w h ile attem pting to m aintain as d iv erse an array o f lan d scap es and e c o sy ste m s and as flex ib le a set o f future land use altern atives as p o ssib le.

4: T he Suffield M ilitary R eserve C o n tro v ersy * J . G . Nelson a n d L . D. C ordes

T he Problem T H E question is w hether the S u ffield M ilitary R eserve sh ou ld be used for tank and infantry ex erc ises as set forth in a recent agreem ent b etw een Canada and the U nited K in gd om . C ontroversy has arisen b eca u se o p p on en ts o f such m ilitary u se are co n v in ced that it w ill cau se unw anted ch a n g es in the R eserve landscape w hich is said to have q u alities m eriting its d esign ation as a national park.

Location an d Physical C h a ra c te r T h e S u ffield M ilitary R eserve is a 1 ,0 0 0 square m ile b lock o f land located b etw een the Red D eer and the South S askatchew an R ivers in southeastern A lberta. T he m ain entrance to the R eserve is at the tow n o f S u ffield about tw en ty m iles northw est o f M ed icin e Hat (Figure 3 ). The fen ces m arking its northern, w estern and southern boundaries follow sectio n lines rather than any topograph ic features. T he eastern bound­ ary parallels the m eandering cou rse o f the South Sask atch ew an River for about forty to fifty m ile s. In this reach the river is d evoid o f dam s or other m ajor structures although the South S askatchew an project has b een co m p leted d ow nstream to provide water for h yd ro-electric p ow er, irrigation, recreation and other u ses. On the north, w est and south the S u ffield R eserve is surrounded by ranches and farms on public and on freehold land. Part o f the land op p osite the R eserve, on the east side o f the South S ask atch ew an R iver, is fed erally o w n e d , but the greater part is p rovincial land lea sed out to ranchers. T h e R eserve is sem i-a rid , the average annual rainfall being 12.8 in ch es near the tow n o f S u ffield . T h e R eserve lands were glaciated tens o f thousands o f years ago and the western and central portions are m arked by rollin g basins and h ills and by so m e steep -w a lled dry v a lley s left by u n even ly m eltin g ice. T h e eastern portion o f the R eserve is marked on the north by m any square m iles o f a ctive sand d u n es and in the centre and south by the

* Park News, 8, 3, 1 9 7 2 , 5 - 13.

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F ig u r e 3 : S u ffie ld

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beds o f ancient g la cia l lakes. N o detailed stu d ies o f the geo m o rp h o lo g y and g la cia l history o f the R eserve have been carried out. T h ese w ou ld be valu ab le in d ecip h erin g the arch aeological and human history o f the R eserv e and o f interest to all those in tellectu ally curious about its scen ery . T od ay S u ffield is a vast ex p an se o f grasslan d , a sea o f w heat g rass, n eed le-an d-thread . gram a grass and other native sp e c ie s, stretching to the h o rizo n . T h ese grasses and a sso cia ted forbs and shrubs su ch as sh oo tin g star, cro cu ses and saskatoon berry are, h o w ev er. largely regrow th on land cu ltivated and grazed by w hite settlers prior to the estab lish m en t o f the R eserve in 1941. A s a result o f this human in terferen ce, the s p e c ie s co m p o sitio n and the distribution o f the gra sses and other vegetation undoubtedly differ from thos’e o f pre-European d a y s. But the overall character, im pression and fe e lin g o f the landscape probably is m uch the sam e as it w a s then.

H um an H istory H undreds o f arch a eo lo g ica l site s are located on the R eserve, notably on the east s id e , a lo n g the South S ask atch ew an R iver. M any are probably rem nants o f the ca m p sites o f the Indians w h o roam ed the land prior to the co m in g o f the C au casian . But others cou ld be artifacts o f very early hum an a ctiv ity . F ield work farther up the South S a sk atch ew an , near the tow n o f T aber, has resulted in the d isco v e ry o f a hum an sk eleton buried beneath the drift laid dow n during the last glaciation o f that area, perhaps 2 0 .0 0 0 years ago. Early fur traders and explorers began to m ove into the R eserve area in the eigh teen th cen tu ry. T he H u d son ’s Bay C om p any m an. A n thon y H en d ay, and so m e Indians travelled d ow n the Red D eer R iver, just north o f the R eserve, in the spring o f 1754. returning to H u d so n 's Bay after a w inter on the p lain s. In 1 8 0 0 -1 8 0 2 , Peter Fidler and so m e other traders esta b lish ed a post northeast o f S u ffield , near the ju n ctio n o f the R ed D eer and the S outh S ask atch ew an R ivers. N o post is k n ow n to have been constructed earlier than this an yw h ere on the northw estern plains o f what is n o w A lberta. S ask atch ew an and M on ­ tana. T h ejn terest o f the w hite man in the northw estern plains increased in the 1 8 5 0 ’s and I8 6 0 's and exp lorin g exp ed ition s were sent there from the U nited S ta tes, the U nited K in gd om and Canada. T h e British E xp ed ition under C aptain John P alliser travelled w id ely in what is now w estern C anada, p assin g through the R eserve on the w ay to the C ypress H ills in the su m m er o f 1859. At that tim e he and h is co m p a n io n s saw a profusion o f b iso n , e lk , d eer, g rizzly and other w ild life as w ell as som e

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Indians w h o told them that o n ly tw o w hite m en had ever crossed the country betw een the C yp ress H ills and the forks o f the Red D eer and the Sou th S askatchew an rivers. H o w ev er, w ithin a d ecad e the southern A lberta area w a s b ein g invaded b y w h isk ey traders from the U nited S tates, w h o se main interest w as barter w ith the Indians, p rin cip ally for b ison rob es, and w h o se so le m ean s o f ex ch a n g e often w as a lco h o l adulterated with tob acco and other invigorating ingrediants. F ew o f these A m erican s penetrated the R eserve although M etis and w h ite traders from Fort Q u 'A p p e lle , in p resen t-d ay S a sk a tch ew a n , m ay h ave don e s o o cca sio n a lly in the 1 8 6 0 's and I8 7 0 ’s. At this tim e ranchers began to m ove into southern A lberta, c h ie fly from M ontana. But little land w as taken up in the vicin ity o f the R eserve until the co m in g o f the Canadian P acific Railroad in 1883. T hen the town o f S u ffield w as estab lish ed and im m igrants began to try to set up su cc essfu l ranches in the surrounding country. S o m e En­ glish m en and A m erica n s in v ested in large sp reads o f tens or hundreds o f thousands o f a cres, o n ly a sm all part o f w hich w as u su ally freehold lan d , the rem ainder b ein g leased from g overn m en t. A bortive attem pts w ere m ade to irrigate and in ten sively d ev elo p on e large tract o f about 2 5 .0 0 0 acres in the R eserve area: this b ecam e k n ow n as the British B lo c , a nam e n ow often applied to the R eserve itself. T h e settlers gen era lly w ere intolerant o f n ative p e o p le s, and also o f the b ison and other w ild an im als w h ich com p eted with liv esto ck for range. The n atives w ere so o n co n fin ed to reserves and the b iso n , elk and other an im als elim in ated or sharply reduced in num bers. In the late 1 8 9 0 's and early I9 0 0 's the federal govern m en t under­ took its vig o ro u s p o licy o f settlin g farm ers or cu ltivators on the sou th ­ ern C anadian p la in s, in clu d in g the R eserve area. H om estead s were provided to p eo p le w h o m oved into little k n ow n grasslands largely too dry fo r e c o n o m ic production o f grain or other cro p s, at least on the sm all 160 acre fa rm s orig in ally allocated by the govern m en t. T h ese folk com p eted w ith o n e another and with the ranchers, even tu ally drivin g m any o f the latter aw a y . T h ey a lso tried to co p e with the d ifficu lt en viron m en t through the 1920's and 1 9 3 0 's . But as a result o f the d rought, dust storm s, erosion and e c o n o m ic failures o f the I9 3 0 's in particular, m any o f them abandoned or so ld their land. T his was gradually co n so lid a ted by the survivors into large dry farm s and ran ch es, often thou san d s o f acres in siz e and m uch m ore su ited to the production o f w heat and cattle for export. W ith the outbreak o f W orld W ar II in 1939. Britain and her allies began to look for land for airports and other m ilitary u ses. B y an unknow n p ro cess, the S u ffield area w as selecte d as a reserve, one m ajor co n tem p lated u se apparently b ein g exp erim en tation with gas.

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although the ex a ct u ses to w hich the R eserve w as put by the army and others during the 1 9 4 0 ’s , 1 9 5 0 's and I9 6 0 ’s arc not w ell know n. T h e A lberta govern m en t w as a principal agent in the settin g up o f the R eserv e, an unknow n num ber o f settlers h avin g hundreds o f square m iles o f land taken by the p rovin ce. In return they w ere paid SI .0 0 per acre for freeh old , and $ .5 0 or less per acre for leased land. In other w ord s, so m e o f the p eo p le w ho had su rvived the arduous en viron m en ­ tal c h a llen g es o f the I9 2 0 's and 193 0 ’s received as little as $ 1 ,2 4 0 fo r a hard w on tw o se c tio n s o f farm and range land. S o m e su rvivin g settlers are still bitter and b e lie v e that the land sh ou ld be returned to them . At so m e tim e during the 1 9 4 0 's or 1950’s the D e fe n c e R esearch Board o f Canada began co n d u ctin g exp erim en ts on the R eserve. The nature and extent o f these is not w ell know n but so m e in volved b ioch em ica l w eaponry and others the d etonation o f large quantities o f e x p lo siv e s in sim u la tio n s o f atom ic blasts and their e ffe c ts on build­ in g s. airplanes and other structures. F ew i f an y craters rem ain, but parts o f the R eserve are strew n with cultural debris used in these exp eri­ m ents. H o w ev er, m uch o f the R eserve m ay never h a v e been used to any sign ifica n t exten t for m ilitary p u rp oses. In fact, surrounding ranchers h ave been allo w ed to graze large parts o f it for years w ithout m uch in terference from g overn m en t. Furtherm ore, on e se n ses that during the I9 6 0 's the m ilitary u sefu ln ess o f the R eserve w as co m in g into q u es­ tio n , so m e land on the east sid e b ein g estab lish ed as a grazin g c o ­ op erative or co m m u n ity pasture for nearby ranchers in co-op eration w ith the PFRA about 1965. But, at so m e point in this p rocess the p o ssib ility o f N A T O u se for tank and other e x e r c ise s w as raised and approved. T he initial agreem en t is with the British although the area c o u ld a lso be used by other N A T O m em b ers. A s far as can be deter­ m ined the B ritish w ill be g iv en u se o f about 65 percent o f S u ffield . with part o f the rem ainder to be left for the work o f the D e fe n c e R esearch B oard, w hich not o n ly con tin u es with various b io ch em ic a l and m ilitary exp erim en ts, but a lso is b ein g charged with the b reakdow n and d isp osal o f n o x io u s su b stan ces such as D D T . A cco rd in g to personn el stationed at S u ffield and press reports, so m e stu d ies h ave been carried out in order to a sse ss sen sitiv ity o f v e g eta tio n , w ild life and lan d scap e to disturbance by tank m ovem en ts, firing and m ilitary a ctio n . At least partly as a result o f th ese, the northeastern sand h ills area w ill not be op en to m ilitary u se. Tank m anoeuvres w ill largely be co n fin ed to reportedly less se n sitiv e so ils located in the northern and w estern parts o f the R eserve. Infantry training w ill be concentrated in the central and eastern portions al­ though com b ined tank and infantry ex erc ises o cca sio n a lly m ay be carried out there. S o m e grassland in the sou th east has been id en tified as

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m ix ed prairie, and sp ecial care apparently w ill be taken in u sin g this u n u su ally interesting b io lo gical z o n e . A m ile -w id e b u ffer a lo n g the Sou th S ask atch ew an a lso has been ex clu d ed from m ilitary ex erc ises. T h e e c o lo g ic a l and other reports on w hich these land u se d ecisio n s are based are cla sse d as con fid en tial and h ave not been released to the p u b lic , although F igure 3 . a m ap sh o w in g so m e e c o lo g ic a l data and land u se zo n es is posted at S u ffield . A con fid en tial report by a m em ber or m em b ers o f the C anadian W ild life S erv ice is said to id en tify the S outh S ask atch ew an v a lley area and other parts o f S u ffield as e x cellen t habitat for e a g le and other in creasingly rare birds and w ild life . The b iso n , the elk . the p lain s grizzly and other w ild life o f earlier d ays are. o f co u rse, n ow m issin g from the R eserv e, but other an im als have recovered from the lo w ebb to w h ich they w ere reduced in the late 18 9 0 ‘s and early 1 9 0 0 ’s. T h e a n telop e w ere thought to be c lo s e to ex tin ctio n by 1907 or 1908 b ecau se o f h ea v y hunting and habitat d isturbance, as w ell as the u n u su ally hard w inter o f 1 9 0 6 -1 9 0 7 . Several national parks w ere set up to protect ih ese a n im als, including W an ak asey. a block o f so m e forty se ctio n s in east central S u ffield . bordering the S outh S ask atch ew an R iver. T h e a n telop e recovered rem arkably w ell and these parks are n o lo n g er op eratin g. W anakasey h avin g been returned to A lberta in 1938. T od ay hundreds o f a n telope can be seen in a drive through the R eserve. W h ite-tailed deer a lso are co m m o n , particularly in the South Sask atch ew an R iver v a lle y , find in g water in the stream s and fo od and sh elter in the co tto n w o o d , w illo w and other trees and shrubs a lo n g its b anks. T h e trees in the v a lley a lso h ou se the nests of m any haw ks and other interesting birds. The Sand H ills area borders the river and is rela tiv ely little disturbed, b ein g the h om e o f m any a n telo p e, deer, rattlesnakes and kangaroo rats, as w e ll, perhaps, as an o cca sio n a l kit fo x , although that anim al is con sid ered by so m e exp erts to be extinct throughout the Great P lains.

S um m ary In su m , the w ild natural character o f the S u ffield R eserve o w e s m uch to the protection afforded by its status as a m ilitary reserve, in d eed som e ob servers feel that it w ill rem ain a reservoir for native plants and wild a n im als so lo n g as it rem ains in m ilitary u se. H o w ev er, this argum ent

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a ssu m es that the nature and am oun t o f m ilitary u se w ill be the sam e as b efo re. T h is is doubtful for the British w ill station about fifty 60-ton tanks on the R eserve and a lso fly in about fiv e hundred to a thousand infantry, on rotation, ev ery three to four w eek s throughout the spring, su m m er and fall o v er a ten-year period. C o n ceiv a b ly these tanks and troops cou ld b e jo in e d b y those o f other n ation s. T h e tanks w ill fire very p ow erfu l sh ells w h ich require thou san d s o f yards o f safety clearan ce. A rrangem ents h ave been m ade to m onitor and recover faulty e x p lo ­ s iv e s . although h o w w ell this can be d on e is a q u estion . T he British w ill be em p lo y in g rubber-lined treads and other p rotective m easures but the turning o f the tanks and their repeated u se undoubtedly w ill disturb the grassland. M o reover, if the lan d scap e b eg in s to sh o w sign s o f d am age, the tanks reportedly w ill be used on other parts o f the R eserve. The firing o f sh e lls and other in cen d iaries by tanks and infantry cou ld cause m any grass fires. T h ese w ill be con trolled by p lou gh in g en circlin g fire guards. The co m b in a tio n o f troop and tank m o v em e n ts, the firing o f e x p lo s iv e s , the n o ise , the burning o f grass and the p o ssib ly quite frequent and e x ten siv e p lou gh in g o f fire guards all w ill result in d istu rb an ces to v eg eta tio n and w ild life grea ter than anything d on e by the m ilitary in the past. W hether the a n telope o r other fauna cou ld stand up to such a d istu rb a n ce w ell is unknown.

R ecom m endations 1. In the light o f the fo regoin g it se e m s best to d elay the proposed m ilitary use o f the S u ffield R eserve until all relevant inform ation on its natural character and the p o ssib le c o n se q u en ce s o f tank and infantry m anoeuvres are in the hands o f interested in d ivid u als and citizen groups. 2. P ublic h earings sh ou ld then be held in C algary and. perhaps, else w h e r e in C anada. T he su b m issio n s o f the p u b lic sh ou ld be carefully con sid ered by the authorities prior to m aking any d efinite d ecisio n on the ultim ate use o f S u ffield . It m ay be that su ffic ien t control can be introduced to safeguard the w ild life and natural character o f this grass­ land. R eg a rd less, the q u a lities o f the S u ffield R eserve m ay be per­ ce iv e d as su fficien tly high to merit settin g all or part o f it asid e as a national park. N o area o f com p arab le siz e and character is k n ow n to be av a ila b le an yw h ere in the North A m erican Great P lains. T h e interior

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grasslan d s o f M e x ic o , the U nited S tates and Canada have been so sev erely disturbed by the European invasion that the A m erican s have been search in g for years and have been unable to find a region com p ar­ able to S u ffield for a national park. Such reserves are very useful for scien tific and ed u cational p rogram m es. A ccord in g to Robert N ero, a M anitoba plant sc ien tist, the U n iversity o f C h ica g o recently paid S 2 5 0 .0 0 0 for a four-acre tract o f prairie rem nant. T he R eserve a lso co n stitu tes a cultural reserv e, in that it can be used to sh o w som eth in g o f life and lan d scap e in Indian, fur trade and early ranching d ays. 3. In addition to providing an unusual opportunity for p reserving a rare ex p a n se o f grassland for future en joym en t and study by re­ crea tio n ists. students and sc ien tists, the central and eastern part o f the R eserve borders the Sou th S a sk a tch ew a n , thereby raising the prospect o f esta b lish in g a w ild and sc en ic river. T his stretch o f the South S ask atch ew an is p ollu ted to an unknow n d egree by efflu en t from M ed icin e Hat but is undisturbed by d am s and other structures and runs through a v a lley rich in scen ery , birds and w ild life . T h e com b ination o f this se ctio n o f the S outh Sask atch ew an and ap p roxim ately the eastern third o f S u ffield w ou ld co n stitu te a u nique North A m erican grass and w ild river park. In this regard it is worth recallin g that the sand du n es area and a m ile w id e b u ffer a lon g the river already have been exclu d ed from m ilitary u se. T h is ex clu sio n c o u ld be exten d ed inland in settin g up a national park. H o w ev er, there rem ains the problem o f the com p atib il­ ity o f park a ctiv ities with the prop osed high level o f m ilitary u se and its im pact on the rest o f the R eserve. T he n orm ally rather d ifficu lt problem o f acquiring land for park use from freeh old ers co u ld be reduced substantially in the S u ffield c a s e , for m uch or all o f the land a lo n g the east sid e o f the South S ask atch ew an is p u b licly o w n e d , although large areas are leased to ranchers and their rights w ou ld h ave to be protected. But the v isits o f n on -m otorized v e h ic le s— the c a n o e s and rafts perm itted on a wild river— se em in g ly w ou ld not interfere m uch with the landscape wanted and used by the ranchers. C attle cou ld con tin u e to graze the eastern slo p es o f the river. In d eed , these an im als and o cca sio n a l strays on the w est sid e w ould rem ind v isitors o f the d ays o f the cattlem en and the op en range. A c c e s s to any prop osed park w ou ld have to be studied carefu lly in order to m in im ize disturbance to w ild life . Large areas probably w ou ld h ave to be zon ed as w ild ern ess. M ost n ecessary b u ildin gs and other fa cilities cou ld be located at the park boundary, just north o f M ed icin e Hat. T he potential e c o n o m ic im pact o f a grassland and w ild river park a lso d eserv es c lo s e stu d y , for it c o u ld provide m ore in vestm en t, in com e and em p lo y m en t than the ten-year agreem ent w ith the m ilitary. F in a lly, d esign ation as a national park w ou ld p lace em p h asis on the protection

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o f w ild life and landscape and perhaps w ou ld be com p atib le with the re-introduction o f the b iso n , the elk and other an im als typical o f pre-European d a y s.

P ostscript S in c e the w riting o f this article the British have been co n d u ctin g m anoeuvres on the range, and fires and other disturbances h ave o c ­ curred. Large d ep o sits o f natural g a s a lso h ave been d iscovered beneath the reserv e. T h e p rovincial govern m en t h olds su b su rface m ineral rights w h ile the surface rights are in the hands o f the federal govern m en t. W hat arrangem ents w ill be m ade for g a s exp loitation is uncertain, as is the prospect o f esta b lish in g a grasslan d and w ild river park, although the h istorical, e c o lo g ic a l and spatial argum ents still seem valid .

5: C a n a d a ’s N atio n al P a rk s: P a st, P re se n t, F u tu re* J . G . Nelson

T H E land u se id ea s, p o licies and practices em b o d ied in the con cep t o f the n ational park are co m p lex and d ifficu lt to d efin e readily. M oreover, they have ch an ged through tim e, and ev en n ow are in flux am ong adm inistrators, p lan ners, p o liticia n s, con servation ists and other citi­ zen s. Stu d ies o f land u se history and landscape ch an ge in the Canadian national parks therefore se em u sefu l and tim ely as a m eans o f im p rov­ ing general understanding, id en tifyin g im portant trends or fo rces for ch a n g e, and a sse ssin g their im p lication s for the future. Such studies a lso can lead to recom m en d ation s w h ich w ill reduce the lo ss o f land use o p tio n s and flex ib ility so im portant for the needs o f tom orrow . M uch o f the present study is based on inform ation pertaining to the w estern C anadian national parks, little sch olarly attention h aving been paid to those in the east (2 3 2 , 2 3 9 . 2 3 6 . 3 2 . 2 7 3 . 191. 187. 133, 2 2 1 . 2).

D evelopm ent o f N ational P a rk s T h e idea o f the n ational park originated in the U nited S tates w here the first park. Y e llo w sto n e , w as estab lish ed in 1872. S in ce that tim e sim ilar public reserves h ave been estab lish ed in m ost cou n tries o f the w orld. Several b asic threads h ave led to their d ev elo p m en t, particularly in North A m erica; these b ein g an interest, first, in the preservation and protection o f nature or w ild ern ess; se co n d , in planning for the recrea­ tional and aesth etic n eed s o f the p eop le; and third, in in co m e from b u sin esses a sso cia ted w ith the national parks. W e can begin with the last tw o threads or in flu en ces as these w ere e sp e c ia lly im portant up to about the first d eca d e o f the tw entieth century in both the U nited States and C anada, as w ell as other cou n tries such as N e w Z ealan d .

Influence of the A rchitect an d P lan n er In his b o o k . N ature an d the A m e ric a n . Hans Huth ( 130. 2 1 7 ) traces the *T his paper o rig in ally a p p eared in C a n a d ia n G e o g ra p h ic J o u r n a l, (1973): 68-89 . 78

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in flu en ce o f ihe lan d scap e architect and urban or regional planner on recreation and parks in gen eral. Huth points out that early recreation in North A m erican c itie s w a s a rather haphazard affair at least as far as the p rovision o f public land w as co n cern ed . For m ost citiz e n s a c c e ss to the cou n trysid e by fo o t or carriage apparently w a s not too d ifficu lt. M any p eop le liv ed c lo s e lo the fringe o f the relatively sm all citie s and tow n s. O thers found their recreation in yards, cou rts, or co m m o n s, or pic­ n ick ed or w alked a lo n g river banks or the w id e b ou levard s built to b eau tify c itie s su ch as P hilad elp h ia or W ash in gton , to m ake them rivals o f distant en v ied p laces such as Paris. A s early citie s grew to in clu d e thousands o f p eo p le, and as over the years these fo lk d ied , it b ecam e n ecessary to co n so lid a te m any sm all scattered burial p lots into large urban cem e te r ie s, precursors o f those w e are fam iliar with tod ay. T h ese early cem eteries were often w ell landscaped and m aintain ed , presenting ex p a n ses o f green law n, bush and trees that b ecam e the focu s o f various kinds o f recreation. T h ou sand s o f p eo p le used such site s , sp rin g, su m m er and fa ll, in the eastern U nited States in the I 8 3 0 ’s and 1840's. N ew Y ork appears to have been on e o f the first o f the large c itie s to con cern itse lf w ith the sp e c ific p rovision o f p u b lic land for recreational o r park purposes. T he term . park, s t e m s to h ave b een d erived from England and the O ld W orld where it w as used to refer to the faunal and floral reserves o f the n o b les. In N e w York arch itects su ch as Frederic L aw O lm stead began to plan and prom ote sim ilar parks, although w ithout m uch apparent em p h a sis on d eer or other an im als, but rather m ore on greenery for the p eo p le. T h e fight for such parks w as not an e asy o n e , apparently b ein g fought with uneven su c c e ss throughout the 18 2 0 's . 1830"s and 1 8 4 0 's against th ose interested in m ore com m ercial land u ses. S im ilar efforts presum ably w ere m ade in Canadian cities such as T o ro n to , but little research se em s to have b een don e on these and w e k n ow little about them . E ventually the efforts in N ew York and other eastern North A m erican cities resulted in so m e s u c c e ss , an ex a m p le b ein g Central Park. O lm stead later m o v ed to San F ran cisco w here he and others w orked on the idea o f large regional parks w h ich w ou ld h ave roads, p icn ic s ite s , ca m p sites and other fa cilities for citizen s o f grow in g urban areas such as San F ra n cisco , but w h ere large natural areas w ould g iv e v e g eta tio n , an im als and landscape so m e protection against lum ber­ in g, fire, e x ten siv e sh eep grazing and other cultural a ctivities that were ch a n g in g the fa ce o f the fo o th ills and the Sierra N evad a M ou n ­ tains. In 1862 this interest in regional parks cu lm in ated in the esta b lish ­ ment o f Y o sem ite Park, a State o f C alifornia recreation and co n serv a ­ tion reserve that fo resh a d o w ed m any o f the co n cep ts em b od ied in the

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first national parks and ev en tu a lly b ecam e o n e later in the cen tu ry. In en su in g years m any architects and planners, as w ell a s citizen s in g en era l, w orked to prom ote and protect Y o se m ite as a park in this sen se and a lso to en cou rage the d evelop m en t o f sim ilar parks elsew h ere. Bui il is probably fair to say that in these early effo r ts, and to a large extent in later o n e s, the architects h ave been c h iefly interested in the v ista , the im a g e, the v ie w , the scen ery. T heir em p h asis has been on a landscape a p p ealin g to the e y e rather m ore than the ear. the n ose or other s e n se s. A n d , unlike m any so -ca lled co n se rv a tio n ists, th ey have not been ad­ verse to m anipulating the trees and the h ills, to create the im age that they w anted; that indeed being the purpose and practice o f their p rofes­ sio n . T h is led to less con cern about in d igen ou s vegetation or the protection o f “ p ristin e” en viron m en ts than w as later true w ith the more spiritually or b io lo g ic a lly oriented p reservation ists or con servation ists.

Influence of the Econom ic V alue o f N ational P a rk s T he seco n d major thread leading to national parks w as an e co n o m ic one w h ich b ecam e m uch m ore im portant after the con stru ction o f the trans-continental railroads in w estern North A m erica in the 1 8 6 0 ’s, I 8 7 0 's , 18 8 0 's and 1 8 9 0 ’s. T h ese routes crossed vast areas with very lo w p o p u lation s, y ield in g little in com e to the often precarious treasuries o f the railroads. T h e co m p a n ies therefore searched vigor­ o u sly for resources that w ou ld raise funds from “ em p ty a rea s" . T hey so o n seized on the scen ery , the m oun tain s, the forests, the great rivers and the hot sp rin gs. W hen parks such as Y e llo w sto n e and G lacier began to em erg e in the I8 7 0 's , I8 8 0 's and I8 9 0 \s the railroads built lin es to them and constructed h otels and other fa cilities in and near them . T h ey attem pted to attract tourists from all o ver the w orld , so m etim e s to their em barrassm ent, a s. for e x a m p le , w hen a group o f Y e llo w sto n e v isitors were surprised by hundreds o f N ez Perce Indians b ein g pursued by an A m erican arm y w ish in g to force the n atives onto a reserve. Im age b u ild in g and a d vertisin g began early and h ave rem ained a vibrant part o f railroad and other b u sin ess op eration s related to the parks. T od ay o n e hears o f p ack age ski tours to B a n ff and Jasper. In the early d ays the Canadian P a cific Railroad (C .P .R .) hired photographers su ch as T h om p son o f V a n cou ver to portray the grandeur o f the m oun­ tains. Post cards o f the 18 9 0 \s and early 1 9 0 0 's, in the British C olum bia a rch iv es in V icto ria , sh o w burned forests w h o se b leach ed and black­ en ed spars have b een tinted red or y e llo w , in an attem pt to create a more attractive sc en e.

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Interest in B a n ff Park appears to have b egu n with the d isco v e ry o f the hot springs w hich were seen as p otentially offerin g great ' ‘san i­ tary" or health ad van tages to p eo p le. The C .P .R . and the federal govern m en t entered a kind o f partnership d esign ed to d ev elo p the hot sp rin g s area and attract visito rs to the C anadian w est. The original 1885 reserve at B a n ff w as ten square m ile s, but by about 1900 the g overn ­ m ent had exten d ed the boundaries to the R ock y M ountain fo o th ills, en co m p a ssin g an area greater than the present park, the size later b eing cut d ow n to its present ap p roxim ately 2 .6 0 0 square m iles to a llo w for the d ev elo p m en t o f lim esto n e m inin g and other e co n o m ic enterprises. B an ff tow n site itself, contrary to com m on o p in io n , did not d evelop from an early pre-park railroad sid in g but w as a planned c o m m u n ity , a sp a in the European tradition, providing am en ities to persons taking the hot baths or e n jo y in g the m ountains. G la cier N ational Park o rig in a lly w as a forest reserve on the rail route through the d ifficu lt R ogers P ass across the high Selkirk M ou n ­ tains o f B .C . T h e su m m it o f the pass is set am idst high m ountains and g la ciers, rich in sn o w m uch o f the year, and an avalan ch e sp aw n in g ground then and n o w . T he S elk irk s were particularly attractive to clim b ers and alp in ists w h o se v isits en cou raged the estab lish m en t o f trails, alpine h u ts, and other fa cilities— and v ic e versa. M any m ore sedentary tourists sim p ly stayed a day or so in the n ow m oribund hotel near the su m m it o f the p ass, w atch in g a ch ain ed g rizzly bear, strolling in the gard en s, or w alk in g a fe w m iles alon g paths c lo s e to the lod ge. T he w ritings o f m any o f these visitors refer to the m ountains in religio u s or p seu d o -relig io u s to n es. T he peaks w ere describ ed as sub­ lim e, grand, a w e-in sp irin g , d a n gerou s, clo se to G od and a rem inder o f H is p o w er and a ch iev em en ts. T h e interest o f the railroads has c o n ­ tinued to the presen t, although the a ctiv ities o f the C .P .R . and other co m p a n ies seem to h ave p eak ed in the years 1910 to about 1930. T he au to m o b ile b ecam e in creasin gly im portant after 1910, bring­ ing visito rs to B a n ff and other parks from nearby cen tres such as C algary and, with tim e, from m ore distant North A m erican c itie s. An e x ten siv e road netw ork w as built in m any o f the parks, the route across the V erm ilion P ass and the m ain ranges o f the R o ck ies b ein g finish ed in the early 1 9 2 0 ’s and others such as the north-south Banff-Jasper sc en ic route in 1939. M ore entrepreneurs began to m o v e into the parks to prom ote recreation and d erive a livin g from the trade. G overnm ent con tinu ed to assist by p aying for or su b sid izin g a variety o f services in clu d in g w ater su p p ly fa cilities, garbage d isp o sa l, p o lice and the like, in order to d ev elo p the national parks and protect b u sin essm en from the sea so n a l vagaries o f tourism w hich w ere q u ite strong in early d ays.

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Influence o f Interest in P reserv atio n o r Protection of N a tu re o r W ilderness T h e third b asic thread behind the national parks is interest in preserva­ tion or protection o f nature or w ild ern ess, w h ere the latter term e m ­ b od ies a con cern for the land as it w a s before the co m in g o f European culture and tec h n o lo g y . T he w ild ern ess idea d ev elo p ed earlier in the U nited States than C anada, w here it se e m in g ly appeared on ly rarely and then u su ally in the con tained and co n servative w ay that has been typical o f C anadian reaction to rom antic or aesth etic id eas. N ot s o in the U nited States w h ere, accord in g to Nash in his W il d e r n e s s a n d th e A m e r ic a n M i n d , the w ild ern ess idea b ecam e a nineteenth century A m erican attem pt to estab lish identity v is-a -v is Europe (2 1 7 ). T h e Old W orld had cities and culture. A m erica had the grandeur o f the untram­ m eled land, the w ild ern ess. Early proponents o f w ild A m erica spread their m essa g e with v o ic e , pen and brush. T ravellers and artists such as the form er P hiladelphia la w y er, G eorge C atlin. sa w the Indian, the a n im als and the landscape as part o f a w orthy and d esirable w h o le, and ca lled for their preservation and protection in a p u b lic reserve as early as the I8 3 0 's. Im agine th em , h e w rote, " a s they m ight in future be seen (by so m e great protecting p o licy o f govern m en t), preserved in their pristine beauty and w ild n ess, in a m agn ificen t park, w hen the world co u ld se c for a g e s to c o m e , the native Indian in his c la s sic attire, g a llo p in g h is w ild h o rse, with sin e w y b o w . and sh ield and la n ce, amid the fleetin g herds o f elk and b u ffa lo es. W hat a beautiful and thrilling sp ecim en for A m erica to p reserve and hold up to the v ie w o f her refined citiz e n s and the w o rld , in future a ges. A n ation 's Park con tain in g man and beast in all the w ild and fresh n ess o f their nature's b ea u ty ." C learly the con servation al thinking o f early w ild ern ess propo­ nents such as C atlin w as based on the rom antic and aesth etic rather than on sc ien tific grou n d s. It did not d erive from an inform ed appreciation o f w ild an im als and their e c o lo g y , or rocks and their g e o lo g y . T h is latter type o f form ulation w as not to em erge fu ll-b low n until d ecad es later after the publication and d issem in ation o f the ideas o f D arw in. L yell and other sc ien tific thinkers. But, although the sc ien tific b asis for w ild ern ess protection and national parks h as d ev elo p ed s lo w ly , and has a lw a y s had an a esth etic or rom antic thread as its handm aiden, sc ien tific a n a ly sis o f the im pact o f man on en viron m en t, and o f the n eed for careful m anagem ent o f the lan d , did appear at a relatively early date. A bout I860 John Perkins Marsh published the first co m p reh en siv e study o f m an ’s e ffe c ts on landscape— M a n a n d N a tu r e : O r . P h y s ic a l G e o g r a p h y A s M o d i f i e d b y H u m a n A c tio n (1 8 6 ). Marsh w as a learned N ew E nglander, h igh ly sk illed in a num ber o f

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la n g u a g es, w h o served for m any years as A m erican A m b assad or to Italy. H e therefore had ihe opportunity to read about and to o b serve first hand the results o f cen tu ries o f w o o d -cu ttin g , ch arcoal-b u rn in g, lum ­ b erin g, sh eep and g o a t grazin g and other cultural practices on the form erly green clo a k ed but n ow largely eroded dry slo p e s o f the M editerranean lan d s. He a lso lived in N ew England at a tim e when lu m b erin g, clea rin g for agriculture and other en th u siasm s o f early settlem en t w ere d am a g in g or d estroyin g forests, soil and w ild life. Marsh put m any o f these p ro cesses and their unw anted e ffe c ts forward in h is book and called for careful husbandry and an end to e x c e s s. But Marsh d o es not se em to have been very aw are o f the thoughts o f men lik e C atlin about the setting a sid e o f public reserves for the protection o f lan d sca p es or en viron m en ts. H o w ev er, although h e apparently w as not particularly se n sitiv e to the idea o f the national park, his w ritin gs are said to have b een influential in the estab lish m en t o f a U .S . Departm ent o f Forestry and in other land use im provem en ts in the I8 7 0 's , I8 8 0 's and 1 8 9 0 ’s. N ot o n ly did the ideas o f the nature protection or preservation sc h o o l p lay a rela tiv ely m inor part in the estab lish m en t o f the National Parks, they a lso played a n eg lig ib le role w ithin them — for d ecad es. For m any years after its estab lish m en t in 1872 Y e llo w sto n e N ational Park w as the scen e o f m uch hunting and trapping, with b eaver, e lk , sh eep , bear and other a n im als b ein g attacked. V isitors to the park were careless and forest fires and destruction o f trees and o f w ild life habitat were co m m o n . A sim ilar state o f affairs later existed in Canadian N ational Parks such as B an ff. W aterton or G lacier. H unting w ithin the parks w as w idespread both for su b sisten ce and sporting purposes. D yn a m ite w as em p lo y ed to obtain large quantities o f fish from stream s and lak es. T im b er berths w ere a llow ed and con sid erab le cu ttin g o f D o u g la s fir and other trees carried out. P rosp ectors and su rveyors d elib erately or ca relessly burned the park. Railroad construction and operation cau sed m any fires. C oal and other m inin g w as carried out. w ithin B an ff, with certain park sup erin ten d en ts and other observers p erceiv in g the grow th o f co a l-m in in g co m m u n ities as d esirable rather than paradoxical w ithin their boundaries. It w as not until the early I9 0 0 ’s in C anada, after su ch p olicies and practices had had a rather profound effe ct on the a n im als, the forests and the ex p erien ces to be en joyed in the parks, that a seriou s attempt began to protect the la n d scap e. S o m e funds and a few w ardens were provided in national parks at this tim e, hut these m easures were on ly m argin ally e ffe c tiv e . A more im portant ch a n g e cam e with the estab ­ lishm ent o f the D o m in io n Parks Branch as an overall m anagem en t unit for parks that p rev io u sly had b een estab lish ed and run as separate units. T h ese ch a n g es w ere in flu en ced to an unknow n d egree by further

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d ev elo p m en ts in the resource m an agem en t field in the U .S . At the turn o f the tw entieth century T ed d y R o o sev elt em erged as a president with a real con cern for land. A id ed and abetted by foresters and p rofession als su ch as G ifford P in ch o t, he b ecam e the leader o f land use im prove­ m ents in the U .S . and o f a body o f thought and action that cam e to be ca lled the C onservation M ovem ent. R o o sev elt and his co llea g u es w orked with others in Canada and M e x ic o and m any o f their ideas d iffu se d , so m etim e s in som ew h at m odified form to these nations. C anada esta b lish ed a C o m m issio n o f C on servation in the early 19 0 0 's , under the leadership o f the form er M inister o f the Interior, C lifford S ifto n . Forest reserves a lso were estab lish ed to control fires, protect forests, im prove w atershed m anagem ent and reduce H oods and erosion in m any parts o f the w est. B a sica lly these early landscape m anagers w ere utilitarian in ou t­ lo o k . L ike Pinchot in the U .S ., they favoured the m ultiple use co n cep t o f resource m an agem en t, the con trolled cu ttin g o f trees, and the har­ v estin g o f resou rces in a co-ord in ated m anner, on a sustained yield b asis. In this regard they w ere un like A m ericans such as John M uir, the w anderer o f the C alifornia high S ierras, w ho w as a ch am pion o f the p reservationist sc h o o l o f co n serv a tio n , w h o favoured elim in ation o f h eavy grazing and other extractive p ractices and the strict m anagem ent o f areas such as Y o sem ite Park. M uir and Pinchot w ere p rincipals in the battle o v er the proposal to build a reservoir in sc e n ic H etch y-H etch y V a lley in Y o sem ite during the 1 8 9 0 's and early I 9 0 0 ’s. E ventually M uir and h is supporters lo st, and the V a lley w a s flo o d e d to p rovid e a reservoir for water for San F ran cisco. T his issu e led to the estab lish ­ m ent o f the Sierra C lub and to the b egin n in gs o f a vigorou s and increasing A m erican citizen com m itm en t to con servation . J. B . Harkin w as appointed as first C o m m issio n er o f the Canadian N ational Parks in 1911 and in the 2 5 years or so o f his tenure this little k n ow n man left a d eep im print on the C anadian lan d scap e. H e appears to h ave been a d ev o tee o f the idea and the value o f w ild ern ess. He a lso w as interested in d ev elo p in g recreation in the parks, in part perhaps b ecau se o f a strong b e lie f in the a ctiv ity , in part b ecau se as a pragm atic and effe ctiv e adm inistrator, he saw that this activity w ou ld p rovid e the interest and the funds n eeded to d ev elo p the Canadian N ational Park sy stem . In the 19 2 0 's and 1930*s Harkin and his co lle a g u e s slo w ly prom oted protection o f the park lan d scap es. Strict fire control p olicies w ere introduced at an early date and con tin u e to the present tim e with the result that m uch burned and denuded forest, brush and grassland w as returned or is returning to tree co v er. T h is has had certain negative e ffe c ts on the kind and num ber o f an im als in the parks. T he protection o f a n im als w as also en cou raged although not

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uniform ly. Elk and o th e r u n g u lates w ere p erceived as “ n ic e " an im als, w h ile pred ators w ere seen as n oxiou s an im als or p ests, d a n g ero u s to man o r b east. Elk. d eer, sh eep and oth er w ild life p op u lation s w e r e , of c o u r se , serio u sly reduced by 1910. In fa c t, it w a s con sid ered n ecessary to re-in trod u ce elk into B anff N ation al Park from Y ello w sto n e in 1917. T h ese a n im als m ultiplied rapidly in the next 2 0 y ea rs. By the early I9 4 0 \s they w ere s o plentiful that they com p eted v igorou sly with deer and o th e r w ild life fo r a v a ila b le fo r a g e , stripping bark from m any aspen stan d s in B an ff and Ja sp er N a tio n a l Partes. Elk con trol p rogram s w ere introduced at about that time and these con tin u e today. T h e w o lf, the c o y o te , the cou gar and the g rizzly received less favourable treatm ent than the u n gu lates although “ the great w hite bear" w as apparently subject to more o fficia l protection than the others. Even today the predators are subject to an am bivalen t attitude. A s sc ien tific k n o w led g e o f their concentration on the hunting o f old . you n g and infirm an im als has in creased , and id eas on their valu e in m aintaining healthy herds o f herb ivores h ave spread, they h ave been v iew ed m uch m ore favourably. But old attitudes d ie hard and co y o tes h ave been killed recently in B an ff as a result o f com p lain ts about their num ber and their p row lin g. T he w o lf p opulation apparently w as build­ ing up in B a n ff in the 1 9 4 0 's but so m e reportedly were k illed as p o ssib le d isea se carriers during a rabies outbreak in A lberta in the early 195 0 ’s . T h e grizzly w as often o b served by early exp lorers and traders in the plains cou n try, east o f the R o ck ies. T h e anim al frequently w as seen near rivers su ch as the M issou ri, the Red D eer and the South S ask atch ­ e w a n . w here it fed on berries, roots and other v e g eta tio n , as w ell as on so m e fresh m eat and carrion. On the other hand, the anim al rarely s e e m s to have been seen in the m ou n tain s, sin ce at least the co m in g o f the w hite m an, s o that its num bers are d ifficu lt to estim ate there for any tim e period. In the early I8 0 0 's traders w h o travelled in the R ock ies su ch as A lexan d er H enry the Y ou n ger, m ade little referen ce to the g rizzly . H o w ev er, sco res o f its sk in s are recorded in the fur returns from trading e sta b lish m en ts su ch as Piegan P o st, w h ich w as located on the B o w R iver in the fo o th ills, about forty m ile s w est o f present-day C algary during the early I8 3 0 's . S o m e o f th ese p elts cou ld have been ob tain ed in the m ountains. But m any also cou ld have b een secured from the nearby plains and fo o th ills. T ravellers in the m id-nineteenth century a lso rarely sa w the bear, although the Earl o f Sou th esk did refer to m any sig n s o f the anim al in the A thabaska and South S askatchew an R iver V a lley s in 1859. W hatever its origin al p opulation in the m oun tain s, the assault o f the fur traders, p rosp ectors, su rveyors, railroad m en and early settlers

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reduced the g rizzly to a lo w level in the w est by the I 8 8 0 ’s and it w as g o n e from ranching country such as the C yp ress H ills, w here it w as p erceived as a grave threat to liv e sto c k , by about 1890. T h e grizzly appears to have b eco m e m ore num erous in the foot­ h ills and m ountains after 1910. in part no doubt b ecau se o f the slo w introduction o f p rotection ist m easu res. S o m e referen ces to the p resen ce o f the anim al w ere m ade in B a n ff Park in the I9 2 0 's and these increased in the 1930’s w hen at least tw o en cou n ters with the bear resulted in injuries to hum ans. T h e g rizzly w as num erous en ou gh to merit the su g g estio n that an E nglish Earl be a llo w ed to hunt and kill one in B an ff National Park during the I9 3 0 's . H o w ev er. J. B. Harkin refused perm ission for this venture on the grou n d s that it w as contrary to the protection ist p o licy . On the other hand. Harkin did a llo w perm its to m useu m s and others w ish in g to obtain sp ecim en s for sc ien tific and related p urposes. N or did the p rotective regu lations ex clu d e the carry­ ing o f g u n s on the grou n d s that they m ight be n eed ed by visitors or adm inistrators for d e fe n c e . It is not know n h ow m any an im als have b een k illed in the n ational parks o f Canada b ecau se o f su ch real or apparent danger. During the 19 3 0 's and I9 4 0 's m any g rizzly bears began to ch an ge their behaviour patterns as a result o f hum an interference with the park e c o s y ste m ; for ex a m p le they began to feed upon garbage and spoil around ca m p sites and to w n sites. In the I9 5 0 ’s and 1 9 6 0 ’s tourists w ish in g to see g rizzlies d rove to the B an ff d u m p , w here the anim als co u ld be approached and photographed— at so m e risk o f personal sa fety . W ith the in crease in bears and e sp e c ia lly in hikers and recreation alists g en era lly after W orld W ar 11. en cou n ters b etw een man and the bear have g o n e up rather sharply, although the num ber o f in cid en ts and injuries appears to be m uch low er in Canada than in A m erican Parks. Data for the C anadian parks is d ifficu lt to secu re, but in Y e llo w sto n e N ational Park in recent su m m ers scores o f injuries have been attributed to bears. A s a resu lt, the U . S . N ational Park S erv ice has sp on sored several d etailed stu d ies o f g rizzly e c o lo g y and is introducing a scries o f m easures d esig n ed to take the anim al aw ay from garbage and m an. to m ake it m ore self-relian t and so probably reduce unfortunate en cou n ters betw een g rizzly and hum ans (I 16).

T he T u rn in g Point A bout W orld W a r II W orld W ar II m arked a turning point in the history and geograp h y o f B an ff and other N ational Parks. By this tim e the e lk . sh eep and other an im als had increased su b stan tially in num bers from their low ebb about 1 900. A n d the an im als w ere cau sin g over-grazin g and other

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problem s in various parts o f the parks. A series o f w ild life stu d ies con seq u en tly w as approved with b io lo g ists su ch as C o w a n , C larke and B a n field , being en cou raged to do research on the e lk , w o lf and other sp e c ie s in an attem pt to understand their e c o lo g y for park m anagem ent p u rp oses (5 6 , 4 6 ) .T h ese really w ere the first seriou s attem pts to ad­ m inister the parks on a sc ien tific b asis and therefore con stitute a landm ark in the ev o lu tio n o f national park p o licy and practice. D uring and after the w ar Canada and other w estern cou n tries entered a period o f very rapid p op u lation , e c o n o m ic and technical grow th w h ich had strong e ffe c ts on the national parks o f the country. T h e “ baby b o o m ” o f the I9 4 0 's and 1 9 5 0 ’s really began in the fear o f u ncertainties o f the w ar and resu lted , alon g with im m igration , in m illio n s m ore C anadians in the next tw en ty years. J h is grow th w as accom p an ied by a strong trend to u rbanization, a con tinu in g process w h ich p rom ises to place m uch o f our population in urban e x ten sio n s o f M on treal, T oronto and V an cou ver by the year 2 0 0 0 . P opulation grow th and u rbanization, in turn, w ere associated with an in crease in the kind and num ber o f C anadian industries as w ell as in jo b s , in co m e and o v era ll, in G ross N ational Product. The introduction o f the m eth o d o lo g y o f operations research, o f the com p uter, and other n ew tech n o lo g ie s a lso reduced labour requirem ents, ushering in the p rocess k n ow n as au tom ation. Transport a lso im proved su b stan tially, with the au to m o b ile and the airplane greatly in creasing m o b ility , nota­ bly in the m iddle and upper in co m e grou p s. U n io n s and other a g en cies pressed for labour's share o f productivity in creases, on e result being m ore h o lid a y s, lon ger v a ca tio n s, and greater leisu re gen erally for C anadians and other North A m erican s. T h ese in creases in p op u lation , in co m e, m o b ility , leisure and other factors co m b in ed to put m ore and m ore pressure on recreational land and op p ortu n ities in C anada and the U .S . in 1 9 5 0 's, 1 9 6 0 'sa n d I9 7 0 's . M ore and m ore C algarian s began to visit nearby parks such as B an ff during these years. M ore easterners and A m erican s began to c o m e to the w estern parks each su m m er, e sp e c ia lly in the m onths o f Ju ly and A u g u st, cro w d in g the ex istin g roads, cam p sites and other fa cilites.

T he A m erican o r U .S. R esponse to Post W a r C hanges A s usual in North A m erica , the U nited States led in recogn izin g the p rob lem s and the opportunities presented by these post w ar ch an ges (8 8 ). T h e U . S . govern m en t estab lish ed the O utdoor R ecreation R e ­ sources R eview C om m ission (O R R R C ) w hich u tilized en g in eerin g , e c o n o m ic , g eo g ra p h ic, so c io lo g ic a l and other ex p ertise to predict the nature and the quantity o f future recreational dem and and s o either

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p rovided the b asis for or m ade recom m en d ation s d esign ed to m eet the ch a llen g e as the C o m m issio n p erceived it (2 5 1 ). T h e O R R R C stu d ies indicated that s ig h t-se e in g , touring and other auto-oriented a ctiv ities led the recreation list, with other m ore natureoriented a ctiv ities, such as b ack p ack in g, ranking m uch low er in lev el. O R R R C estim ated that recreational dem and o f all kinds w ou ld more than triple in the U .S . by the year 2 0 0 0 . T h e departm ents and a g en cies o f the U .S . govern m en t responded with co n sid era b le v ig o u r to the O R R R C ch a llen g e. U nder the lab el. M issio n 6 6 . the U . S . N ational Park S ervice approached C on gress for funds to provide the n ew road, trails, ca m p sites and other fa cilities seen as n ecessary to m eet the projected recreational g row th . Funds a lso were requ ested for b u yin g m ore land and estab lish in g n ew parks. A zon in g sy stem w a s a lso d ev elo p ed to allocate land to different use cla sse s accord in g to the nature and in tensity o f d em and and land character. A Federal Bureau o f O utdoor R ecreation w as estab lish ed to work w ith the state g o v ern m en ts and other federal a g e n c ie s in co-ord in atin g effort to m eet anticipated n eed s. T h e U .S . F orest S erv ice and other a g en cies traditionally interested in lum bering and other productionoriented a ctiv ities a lso began to respond to the n ew recreational ch a l­ le n g e . in part b eca u se o f criticism by public o ffic ia ls and c itiz e n s, and. in part b eca u se so m e foresters saw it as the thing to do. In the early and m idd le 1% 0 ’s as the c o m p le x ity o f recreational dem and b ecam e m ore apparent, the resp onse b ecam e m ore d iv erse. For e x a m p le , an A ct w a s passed in the U .S . in 1964 w h ich en ab led major pu b lic land a g en cies in the U .S . to d esign ate areas w ithin their h old in gs as w ild ern ess, w h ere this w as d efin ed as country sh o w in g relatively little sig n o f the w ork in gs o f m an . areas that he m ight visit for a tim e, but w here he did not rem ain. T h is W ilderness A ct w as a resp onse to the in crea sin g d em and s o f back country hikers and cam p ers, p h otohunters, b ird-w atchers and other naturalists, v igorou sly exp ressed through a g en cies such as the Sierra Club and the W ilderness Society. M any areas h ave been set asid e under the W ild ern ess A ct in the last five years, prin cip ally in the W ild life refu g es and Forest R eserves. R ela tiv ely few h ave been estab lish ed by the N ational Park S erv ice, w h ich se em s to h ave b eco m e m ore and m ore interested in p rovid in g a variety o f recreational opportunities for m any p eop le in A m erica w ho are not w ild ern ess b u ffs. A n alm ost b ew ild erin g array o f differen t types o f parks and land use have been d ev e lo p e d , in clu d in g national recrea­ tion areas: n ational sh o relin es: w ild and sc e n ic rivers: architectural m onu m en ts such a s the great arch in S t. L ou is; h istoric parks dedicated to form er p residents; early can als and railroads: and ed u cational parks or land marks intended for use at all le v e ls in the sc h o o l sy stem . The d esirab ility o f this co m p lex cla ssific a tio n o f parks h a s. h o w ev er, been

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q u estio n ed in a recent report on The F uture o f th e N atio n a l P arks by T h e C on servation Foundation o f the U .S .A . (5 1 ). A lthou gh it is not p o ssib le to d iscu ss all the resp on ses o f the U .S . N ational Park S erv ice to the recreational c h a llen g es o f recent years, m ention must be m ade o f the introduction o f a pu b lic hearings system d esig n ed to p rovid e for pu b lic participation in m aster planning for national parks. U nder this program plans are prepared for a national park; indicating prop osed zo n in g , location o f n ew roads, ca m p sites, interpretation cen tres and the lik e. T h e p lan s are prepared on the b asis o f d etailed sc ien tific studies o f the flora, faun a, and natural and cultural ch aracteristics o f the park. A sc ien tific A d visory Board o f inform ed and interested n on -governm en t persons is attached to the N ational Park S erv ice to assist with this and related sc ien tific w ork. U pon c o m p le ­ tion. prop osed m a ster p lans are p ublished and com m ents and criti­ cism s are invited at a public h ea rin g . A ny su b m issio n s are studied by the N a tio n a l Park S erv ice and the p lan s are ch a n g ed as con sid ered n ecessa ry o r d esir a b le.

T he C anadian R esponse to the Post W a r C hanges W hat has been the resp o n se o f C anada to the recreational ch a llen g e o f the I9 4 0 's . I9 5 0 's , and 1 9 6 0 's (3 2 5 , 3 2 6 )? A lthou gh so m e important ad va n ces h ave been m a d e, the C anadian effort has not equaled that o f the U .S . in im agin ation or in a ch iev em en t. T he C anadian N ational and H istoric Parks Branch undertook various relevant stu d ies and a ctio n s in the early and m iddle 1 9 5 0 's. For ex a m p le, con su ltan ts were asked to m ake recom m en d ation s on the future o f B a n ff to w n site. A m on g other th in g s it w as su g g ested that this com m u n ity o f about 4 ,0 0 0 sh ou ld be lim ited in siz e and zo n ed into co m m e rcia l, resid en tial and other use c la s se s . T h is arrangem ent w as en v isio n ed as settin g the stage for greater land u se control by the g o v ern m en t, even tu ally perm itting rem oval o f so m e o ld er h o u ses and tourist ca b in s, m akes it p o ssib le to introduce m odern m o tels, and high rise structures, and to a c h ie v e a h igh er population and tourist d en sity in B an ff N ational Park w ithout m uch further urban spraw l. A series o f serv ice centres were a lso recom m en d ed for d e v e lo p ­ m ent at p la ces such as Lake L o u ise in B a n ff, as w ell as in other national parks. T h e scrv ice cen tres were not c o n c e iv e d o f as to w n sites o f the s iz e and c o m p le x ity o f B a n ff or Jasper but as areas w here so m e m otels, g a s sta tio n s, and other so -ca lled essen tia l se r v ic e s w ould be provided for park visitors. In the I9 5 0 's and I9 6 0 's the Canadian N ational Park S erv ice also b egan to work on a w in ter recreation program . T rad ition ally, Canadian

Figure 4: N a tio n al Parks of C a n a d a

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national parks h ave receiv ed relatively little u se in w inter, ev en though B a n ff, Jasper, and others h ave ex cellen t sk iin g terrain. A p o lic y w as d ev elo p ed w h ich d esign ated certain d ow n h ill ski and w inter sports areas in so m e o f the w estern parks: for exam p le in B a n ff the three areas are Mt. N orquay near the to w n site . Sun sh in e about 15 m iles to the north and W hitehorn near Lake L ou ise. N o other areas w ithin the national parks w ere to be used for d ow n h ill sk iin g or related services such as roads, parking lo ts, restaurants and apres ski fa cilities. The exa ct boundaries o f the ski areas are h o w ev er not w ell k n ow n and little thought has apparently been g iv en to the type and d en sity o f d e v e lo p ­ ment p erm issib le in these w inter sports areas. In other w ord s, what do the zo n e s or areas mean in term s o f land use d evelop m en t? T his question w as b asic to the recent c o n flic t over the proposed V illa g e Lake L o u ise in B a n ff N ational Park. Indeed, the V isito r S erv ice C entre idea and the w in ter sports program ca m e together in the proposed plan for Lake L ou ise. In e s s e n c e , the old er settlem en t on the B ow V a lley floor w as to be renovated and m odern ized . In ad d ition , on a high terrace facin g west into the w inter su n , a new project. V illa g e Lake L ou ise w as to be constructed co n sistin g o f h o te ls, p o ssib ly as high as tw elv e stories, general sp ecia lty sh o p s, a hospital and other se rv ices n ecessary to m eet the n eed s o f thou san d s o f v isitors, particularly sk iers, as w ell as about 2 ,5 0 0 support sta ff. For m any ob servers the prop osed d evelop m en t far e x cee d e d the V isitor S erv ice C entre con cep t and carried su ch a high tech n o lo g ica l load that it w as v iew ed as lik ely to ca u se m uch unwanted landscape and sc en ic ch an ge in the park. A c itiz e n 's group, the N a­ tional and P rovincial Parks A sso cia tio n , pushed for public hearings on the project and the en su in g ex p ressio n o f p u b lic op in ion cau sed the govern m en t to reject the project. D uring the I9 6 0 's the Canadian N ational and H istoric S ites Branch a lso d ev elo p ed a zo n in g sy stem for the national parks. At first a three part sch em e w as en v isio n ed wherin land w ou ld be d esign ated as w ild ern ess, se m i-w ild ern ess and in ten sive u se. H ow ever, the branch is n ow u sin g a liv e part sch em e patterned on A m erican exam p les. T h e C anadian N ational and H istoric S ites Branch a lso instituted a scries o f public h earings on proposed m aster plans in the late I9 6 0 's . U p to the present h o w ev er, the proposed plans are not based on the sa m e quality and quantity o f sc ien tific inform ation as the A m erican. For ex a m p le the plans for B a n ff, Jasper, K ooten ay and Y o h o were d ev elo p ed largely in the early 1960'-s and represent the planner's resp onse to anticipated rapid in creases in auto traffic, as projected by O R R R C in the U .S . M any n ew roads were to be built, in clu d in g so m e through relatively untouched v a lley s. T h e prop osed zo n in g w as largely

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based on a study o f topography and en g in eerin g and e c o n o m ic co n sid ­ era tio n s, although it is very doubtful if even a rudim entary b en efit-cost a n a ly sis o f the proposed roads w as undertaken as a gu id e in d e c isio n ­ m aking. C ertainly the proposed roads, ca m p sites and other facilities w ere not based on any sig n ifican t stu d ies o f flora, fauna and other en viron m en tal or cultural features o f the park or on the w ay that their character or quality w ou ld be ch an ged by the introduction o f the fa cilities and large num bers o f tourists. F ortunately the N ational and H istoric S ites Branch had a ch an ce to adjust to this d e fic ie n c y by u sing inform ation from the su b m issio n s m ade at the p u b lic hearings on four m ountain national parks in the spring o f 19 7 1 . and the branch has sin ce ca n celled the prop osed road program . R ecently the N ational and H is­ toric Parks Branch has exp an d ed its planning and resource inventory se ctio n s so that the quality o f background inform ation and planning p rop osals can be ex p ected to rise in future. Furtherm ore, under the leadership o f the H onourable Jean Chre­ tien . M inister o f Indian A ffairs and Northern D ev elo p m en t. Canada recently has m ade u nparalleled ad d ition s to its national park sy stem . In about the last four years ele v e n n ew national parks have b een estab ­ lished as part o f a netw ork that is en v isio n ed as incorporating ex a m p les o f all major e c o s y ste m s in C anada. A m on g the n ew parks are the first tw o ev e r to be esta b lish ed in Q u eb ec: La M auricie and F orillon . A num ber, in clu d in g K ejim kujik and G ros M orne have b een created in the M aritim es, w here they are e c o n o m ica lly attractive, although the federal govern m en t p o licy o f rem ovin g resid en ts and m any traditional types o f land use upon estab lish m en t o f a park is n o w ca u sin g negative reaction s in these eastern p rovin ces. It has been m ore d ifficu lt to acquire land e ls e w h e r e , for ex a m p le for P a cific R im on w estern V an­ co u v er Island or K luane or N ahanni in the north, w h ere op p osition from lu m b erin g, m in in g and other com m ercial interests has a lw a y s been stron g. U nder Chretien substantial ch a n g es a lso have been m ade in the level o f federal contributions to the cost o f park acq u isition . F orm erly, the c o s ts w ere en tirely borne by the p rovin ces w h ich then turned the land o v er to Canada “ free o f all en cu m b r a n c es" . S o m e d ifficu lties are b ein g ex p erien ced in agreein g on the new park bou n daries, these b ein g a subject o f m uch con troversy a m o n g all interest grou p s. Final resolu tion m ay take years but h o p efu lly w ill result in parks-at least eq u ivalen t to, if not higher in q u ality than the ex p ecta tio n s g en era lly created at the tim e that the original an n ou nce­ m ents were m ade. M o reover, there are m any potential national park areas, k n ow n for yea rs, w h ich have not been estab lish ed b ecau se o f industrial or other op p o sitio n . T h e recent addition o f K luane cam e after about thirty years o f w a ilin g , ap p roxim ately 1 0 ,0 0 0 square m ile s h avin g b een p laced in park reserve in 1942 (3 0 0 ). A m ajor o b sta cle w as the p resen ce o f

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potentially valuable g o ld , copper and other m in erals, w hich have been m ined sp o ra d ica lly , but at relatively little e c o n o m ic gain . N everth e­ le s s, their presen ce has in flu en ced the ex clu sio n o f about 2 .0 0 0 square m iles o f the original reserve from the park. T he om itted land is the K luane Lake and V a lley country on the northern fringe o f the park, w h ich although rela tiv ely sm all in area, is reco g n ized as u nusually important for ca rib o u , w o lf, Dali sh ee p and other w ild life . T h e A rtil­ lery Lake area, near Great S la v e L ake, w a s p rop osed fo r a national park m ore than ten years a g o . At that tim e the op p osition o f m inin g interests w as substantial. Indians a lso h ave lived and hunted in the area for cen tu ries. U nder current national park practice they w ou ld be largely ex clu d ed from any national park and they therefore are very concerned about lo ss o f traditional rights o f liv e lih o o d . A nother very im portant in n ovation in federal park p ractice has a lso occurred in very recent m onth s. In O ctob er, ju st prior to the federal e le c tio n , the Liberal govern m en t said it had acquired d ev elo p ed land on T oronto harbour w hich w ou ld be turned into a large urban park. The entry o f the federal govern m en t into the urban park field is long o v erd u e, for that is w here very h eavy recreational and op en space problem s lie and fin a n cin g is d ifficu lt. But w hether direct federal ow n ersh ip and operation o f urban parks is d esirable or not is debatable. M any p eo p le favour m eetin g the need for urban parks through so m e type o f jo in t m un icip al, provin cial and federal system o f finan cin g and m anagem en t. T h e sudden an n ou ncem en t o f the T oronto urban park a lso brought com p la in ts o f “ se c r e c y ” and “ failure to c o n su lt” from city and p rovincial o ffic ia ls . T h is is a com m on p rob lem , h o w ev er, the govern m en t o f O ntario h aving received m any com p lain ts in the past year or so o v er its quiet acq u isition o f thou san d s o f acres o f potential recreation land in the B ruce P eninsula area. On the other hand, there are m od els o f fed eral-p rovin cial co-op eration av a ila b le, for ex a m p le, the C O R T S arrangem ent for the p lanning and m anagem en t o f the RideauTrent Canal sy stem in O ntario. Persons from m any a g en cies and le v e ls o f govern m en t are participating in co m m ittees and study team s on this project. In su m , dem ands on national parks in C anada h ave accelerated greatly sin ce W orld W ar II. T he three b asic threads o f nature or w ild ern ess preservation and p rotection , planning for the recreational and aesth etic n eed s o f the p e o p le , and the opportunity o f deriving in co m e from the parks, are still at w ork , m o d ify in g and exp an d in g the national park sy stem . But they are actin g in a m uch m ore com p lica ted and interreleated w a y . T h is is the age w hen the sc o p e and in tensity o f en virom en tal ch a n g e has been recogn ized as a b asic problem w hich man is largely resp on sib le for and w hich he has great d ifficu lty in

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con tro llin g . T h e ca ll for the protection and preservation o f nature is therefore g row in g stron ger, em anating c h ie fly from a vocal literate m in ority, representing m any w a lk s and w ays o f life: sc ie n c e , b u sin ess, education and the arts. M o reover, the ca ll for nature protection and m anagem ent in creas­ in gly is based on scien tific and e c o n o m ic con sid eration s (6 0 ). Thus b io lo g ists, eco n o m ists and others talk o f the value o f the g en e p o o ls in the plants and a n im als o f national parks and related reserves. T h ese p o o ls are seen as con stitu tin g reserviors for the p o ssib le derivation o f n ew fo rm s o f e lk . or w h eat, or p in e, o f the utility to the hunter, the agriculturalist or the forester. Certain eco n o m ists h ave stressed that the ec o n o m ic a lly u n a ssessa b le but great valu e o f the scarce C alifornia tule elk lies in the fact that these an im als provide the potential for new anim al ty p e s, the utility and v a lu e o f w hich w e w ill never k n ow if they b eco m e extin ct. A esth etic or rom antic argum ents for w ild ern ess protection h ave, h o w ev er, certainly not disap p eared . T here are m any p eop le — sc ien tists, adm inistrators and laym en — w h o argue for nature protec­ tion on the grounds that a n im als and other life sim p ly h ave the right to e x ist independent o f m an. T h ese p eop le depart from the anthropocentric v ie w that an o rg a n ism ’s ex iste n c e must be related to its present or potential u sefu ln ess to m an. Such p eop le also argue that plants, anim als and w ild areas d o not need to be visited to be w orthy o f p rotection . T h ey can serve sim p ly by b ein g there, as ob jects for thought and con tem p la­ tion. T he planning thread in the d evelop m en t o f national parks has b eco m e in creasingly frayed and d iffu se. T h u s the parks are often thought o f as sin g le use areas, d esign ed and m anaged for recreational p u rp oses. Y et, from an early stage this v ie w has been d ifficu lt to uphold b ecau se the protection o f an im als and other natural elem en ts o f the park lan d sca p es have often b een in co n flic t with and adm inistered in w ays not a lw a y s clea rly related to m ajor o b je ctiv es o f recreational u se and p lan nin g. T h e g rizzly is a g o o d ex a m p le. In situ ation s w here d angerous en cou n ters are in crea sin g , what sh ou ld be sa c rificed , the anim al or certain recreational opportunities? T o d a y the num ber o f u ses o f national parks is so co m p lex that, as the U .S . ex a m p le sh o w s , new land u se categories and arrangem ents are n eed ed to reco n cile the different types and le v e ls o f u se. T hus the U .S . N ational R ecreation A reas are not intended to p rovid e large untram ­ m eled w ild ern ess areas, m ore or less com p atib le with the protection and m anagem ent o f a n im als such as the g rizzly or the m ountain sh eep , but rather as c o m p le x e s o f trees, grass, lan d form s, water and other elem en ts useful for la rg e-sca le ca m p in g , b oating or other m ore inten­

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siv e recreational a ctiv ities. M any recreational areas in the U .S . are sim p ly w ater reservoirs constructed by the U . S . A rm y C orps o f E n gin eers for irrigation, h y d ro-electric p o w er or other purposes. T h e great u sefu ln ess o f national parks and related reserves for ed u cation and other cultural p urposes is a lso b eco m in g m ore apparent each year. In d eed , the U .S . N ational Park S erv ice has co-op erated with m any sc h o o l boards in providing facilities and se rv ices for outdoor and environ m en tal ed u ca tio n . O ver se v en ty N ational Education B en ch ­ m arks are n ow availa b le for use in the U .S ., with the Parks S ervice p roviding personnel to assist teachers and students with their stu d ies in these areas. T he Park S erv ice a lso has led the d ev elo p m en t o f im agina­ tiv e , in tegrative teach in g m eth od s, the b asic idea b ein g to h ave a general teach in g m odel or fram ew ork useful to m any d iscip lin es and so en cou rage inter-disciplinary or m ultid iscip lin ary w ork, and a total or ■‘real” v iew o f the w orld . T he m odel w hich has been d ev elo p ed is built around the fo llo w in g organ izational them es or " stran d s" : sim ilarities and d ifferen ce s, patterns, interaction and in d ep en d en ce, ch a n g es and co n tin u ity , adaptation and ev o lu tio n . T h ese threads are thought o f as part o f a p rocess rather than a program . T h ey are in ten d ed , like precursors in the U nited K in g d o m , to elim in ate a ca d em ic, class sc h ed u lin g , and other barriers and bring m any typ es o f training and m any points o f v ie w , w hether g eo g ra p h ic, b io lo g ica l or m athem atical, together in a co m m o n forum an d /or area. T h is co m in g together m ay be fo r a d a y , several d a y s or even a w eek , in a national park or benchm ark. T h e third thread in flu en cin g national parks and related reserves, their eco n o m ic v a lu e, has b een w id ely recogn ized recently. M ore and m ore b u sin essm en are now interested in locatin g in the parks b ecau se sea so n a l dem and brings few er problem s than a d ecad e or m ore ago. W inter recreation program s arc rising to b alan ce traditional sum m er tourism and recreation in C an ad a, p rovid in g the entrepreneur w ith a m ore stable annual return on h is in vestm en t. C om m ercial interest is a lso rising in recreation op p ortu n ities ou t­ sid e but c lo s e to the national parks. But this trend is not as pronounced in Canada as the U .S . O ne reason is that in the U .S . far few er facilities are a llo w ed in n ational parks: to w n sites. d ow n h ill ski areas and sim ilar d ev elo p m en ts g en era lly b ein g required to be located ou tsid e the parks. A ls o , in the C anadian national parks, particularly B an ff and Jasper, the govern m en t su b sid ize s entrepreneurs by con stru ctin g road s, trails, c a m p sites, se w a g e d isp osal plants and other fa cilities and by con tin u ­ ing to assist the w arden, w aste d isp osal and other serv ices. G iven this support, w h ich is not unique to C anada, and grow in g dem and, b u sin essm en are in crea sin g ly interested in the opportunity o f d e v e lo p ­ ing ski runs, m o tels, h o tels and other fa cilities w ithin the national parks.

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Furtherm ore, the interest and in vestm en t o f the federal g overn ­ ment is g en era lly not b alan ced by that o f the p rovin ces. T h is m ight be understandable in areas with relatively lo w in co m es su ch as the M aritim es. H o w ev er, rather rich p rovin ces such as A lberta and British C olu m b ia have parks and e x te n siv e forest reserves near the national parks. But they h ave not d on e m uch to d ev elo p them for recreation. The forest reserves in A lberta h ave b een m anaged prim arily for w atershed p rotection , with so m e lu m b erin g, g razin g and other a ctivities perm itted or en cou raged on a m ultiple use b asis. At the m om en t, interest in the production o f m inerals and particularly in the strip m ining o f c o a l, is very high in A lberta and British C olu m b ia. A s a result, pu b lic reserve boundaries have been sh ifted or are b ein g re-exam ined in accord an ce with m inin g and other com m ercial p rospects. In the early d a y s, as w e h ave s e e n , there w a s con sid erab le lum ber­ in g, m inin g, and other extractive industry in the C anadian national parks. O ver the years these industries have su ffered e c o n o m ic failure, b een phased out by the national park au th orities, or both. S o m e c o m ­ m ercial lea ses or freehold lands are still held in certain national parks. But the ten d en cy is for the govern m en t to purchase such h o ld in g s. For ex a m p le, w ithin the last ten years a major lu m b erin g lease in G lacier N ational Park apparently w as on the verge o f b ein g activated and Canada purchased it from the com p an y to prevent cutting w ithin the park. T h u s, although there is still the p o ssib ility o f lu m b erin g, m ining or other extractive industry in the p rovincial parks, this is u n lik ely in the national parks. The m ain threat there is recreation , form erly the handm aiden o f p rotection ism but n o w in creasingly in com p atib le with it. T h is state­ m ent d o es not a p p ly , o f co u rse, to all form s o f recreation, although the large and g ro w in g num ber o f p eop le interested in even the less popular a ctiv ities such as b ackpacking and w ild ern ess cam p in g e v en tu a lly w ill n ecessita te rationing and control o f entry b ecau se o f effe cts on veg eta ­ tio n , w ild life , scen ery and the w ild ern ess exp erien ces desired by other p eo p le. Litter is b eco m in g a major problem , ev en in back-country areas. Litter co lle c tio n s sp on sored by the N ational P rovincial Parks A sso cia tio n and the Canadian N ational Parks Branch have y ield ed tons o f w aste in B anff. But the m ajor problem arises from what m ay be called facilitiesoriented recreation, i.e . from those a ctiv ities that d ep en d h ea v ily on the b u ild in g s, m ach ines and constructs o f man rather than upon the re­ so u rc es or en viron m en t o f a park. A u tom ob ile touring is very m uch a fa cilities-o rien ted a ctiv ity , with its requirem ent o f roads, g a s stations and parking lo ts, as is d ow n h ill sk iin g with its cleared runs, to w s, lifts, parking lo ts, and apres ski fa cilities. On the other hand h ik in g , backcountry p a ck in g, cross-cou n try sk iin g , and sim ilar form s o f recreation

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require few fa cilities and have corresp on d in gly less im pact on the landscape. An e c o lo g ic a lly and tech n o lo g ic a lly se n sitiv e cla ssific a tio n o f recreational a ctiv ities is basic to any future m anagem ent o f national park la n d sca p es, if they are to aim at providing recreation b ased on the v e g eta tio n , a n im als and other resou rces w ithin th em , and at the sam e tim e, m aintain those resou rces for recreational and other u ses su ch as ed u cation and sc ien tific research. T he im pact o f differen t recreational a ctiv ities and v o lu m e s must be m onitored and studied and used as the b a sis for d ecid in g on the kind and level o f u se that is sustain ab le in part or all o f a park. T h e settin g o f su ch carrying ca p a cities w ill prove very d ifficu lt, being largely a function o f percep tion s and va lu es, but is required to protect recreational and other u ses o f the parks. T h ose u ses or a ctiv ities p lacin g h eavy relian ce on facilities or m ach ines are the o n es requiring m ost careful w atch . O ne need o n ly look at the e ffe c ts o f the au to m o b ile to s e e h ow often u n foreseen ch an ges can a m p lify from a tech n o lo g ica l introduction. In the w estern C anadian national parks, the a u to m o b ile is resp on sib le for m uch o f the b asic character and siz e o f B a n ff and other to w n sites, for the in creasing s iz e , v o lu m e and c o m ­ p lex ity o f the roads, for the gravel m inin g and other cultural p ro cesses that are carried on w ithin park b ou n daries, for the d evelop m en t o f d o w n h ill sk iin g and the rapid in creases in tourism and in back-country u se. The sn o w m o b ile and other all terrain v e h ic le s could have sim ilar e ffe c ts in the national parks.

S u m m ary of Im p o rta n t T re n d s o r C hanges M ajor historical trends in national park d evelop m en t and m anagem ent arc n ow clear. Three prim e threads, w ild ern ess or nature p rotection , an interest in planning for the recreational and aesth etic n eed s o f the p eo p le, and an interest in in com e from co m m erce associated with national parks, have interacted: 1) T o help reduce extractive industries such as lum bering and m in in g , although large sc a le aggregate m inin g for road and other construction has occurred in parks su ch as B a n ff sin ce about 1960. 2) T o p rovid e for the regrow th o f forests and other v egetation in large burned o v er areas created in the late nineteenth and early tw en ­ tieth cen tu ries. 3)

To in crease the kind and num ber o f an im als from a lo w ebb in

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the early 1 9 0 0 's, although pre-C aucasian sp e c ie s such as b ison and w o lf are still very rare in parks su ch as B anff. 4 ) To m ake the national park lan d scap es and e c o s y ste m s in­ crea sin g ly attractive to scien tists and ed u cators interested in en viron ­ m ental research and tea ch in g , e sp e c ia lly in areas relatively little d is­ turbed by m an. w h ere long-term m onitorin g o f p h ysical p ro cesses may be p o ssib le w ithout m uch hum an interruption. 5) T o in crease the kind and v o lu m e o f recreational u se in the national parks, n otab ly in the last ten years, with the em p h asis on auto and fa cilities-o rien ted recreation and tourism . 6) To produce increasing co n flic t b etw een recreational land use and en viron m en tal or resource con servation . T h ese trends h ave been p aralleled by a ten dency for the p rovincial govern m en ts to n eg lect their park sy stem s until recent d ecad es. S in ce the early I 9 5 0 ’s , O ntario has greatly im proved the quality and in­ creased the num ber o f its parks, but other p rovin ces such as Alberta h ave lo o k ed upon national parks as the prim e p lace for region al recrea­ tion and the d ev elo p m en t o f tourism . In d eed , the national parks in Alberta have been an im portant form o f federal recreational, en v iro n ­ m ental and e c o n o m ic su b sid y . A lberta govern m en ts have tended to push for m ore o f the sa m e, rather than in vestin g in a p rovincial or region al park sy stem .

Recommendations If w e w ish to ch a n g e these trends w e m ust d e v e lo p a parks or co u n ­ tryside p o licy in Canada that in clu d es the fo llo w in g elem ents: I) Increasing the kind and am ount o f p u b lic land in Canada: there is a need for m ore and better m anaged p rovincial parks, and a lso for the introduction o f n ew institutional arrangem ents like those re­ cen tly d ev elo p ed in the U .S . and elsew h ere; for ex a m p le, national recreation areas, national se a sh o res, w ild and sc en ic rivers, ed u ca ­ tional reserves and the lik e. T he recently published w hite paper on B yw ays a n d S p e cia l P laces in d icates that the national parks p eop le are thinking in this d irection but m uch rem ains to be d on e from the standpoint o f fin a n c e s, intergovernm ental co -o p era tio n , and the secu r­ ing o f a public reaction to the proposed program , esp e cia lly in se n sitiv e areas such as the M aritim es.

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2) Increasing the quality and the quantity o f inform ed ad vice reaching the civ il serv ice and govern m en t by esta b lish in g sc ie n tific and c itiz e n 's ad v iso ry co m m ittees at various points and le v e ls in the s y s ­ tem . Such arrangem ents have been very su cc essfu l in cou n tries such as the U .S . and N ew Z ealand but have been resisted or ignored in Canada in spite o f recom m en d ation s to govern m en t by organ izations su ch as the N ational and P rovincial Parks A sso cia tio n o f C anada. What is in v o lv ed here is the w h o le question o f m ore e ffe c tiv e public participa­ tion in m anagem ent. 3) Increasing the kind and am ount o f recreational and related socia l se rv ices in C anada, preferably in co-op eration with those re­ sp o n sib le for pu b lic land m anagem ent. For ex a m p le, the federal g o v ­ ernm ent should exten d financial and tech n ical assistan ce to to w n s and citie s w here resou rce le v e ls or in co m es are low or w here there are other barriers again st a ch iev in g a reason able level o f recreation and related a ctiv ities; in this regard there is an urgent need to d ev elo p an effe ctiv e and w id ely availab le en viron m en tal ed u cation program and relate it to the national parks and other pu b lic land now or p otentially availab le in this country. 4) Increasing the kind and am ount o f regional planning in Canada: m ore e ffe c tiv e co-ord in ation is required to avoid errors and in e ffic ie n c ie s; the C O R T S arrangem ent in O ntario in v o lv es joint fed eral-p rovin cial p lanning o f the R ideau and Trent R iver sy ste m s; this m odel cou ld b e a p p lied in the C anm ore corridor and other areas east o f B a n ff w here the federal and provin cial govern m en ts se em to be pro­ c eed in g in d ep en dently with plans and, in the op in ion o f m any ob serv­ ers, in com patib ly and b ad ly, e sp e c ia lly on the provincial sid e. 5) Increasing the am ount o f research on e c o n o m ic , so c ia l, g e o ­ g rap h ical, b io lo g ica l and other top ics relating to public land use and m anagem en t in Canada to the en d that m ore is k n ow n about the national parks and related reserves and better d e c isio n s are m ade in adm inister­ ing them . 6) D etailed en viron m en tal im pact statem ents should be pre­ pared and m ade availa b le to advisory co m m ittees and the p u b lic for criticism and resp o n se prior to any m ajor tech n ological or land use ch a n g e in the national parks. S uch statem ents are n ow w id ely used in the U .S . and sh ou ld present as m uch inform ation as p ossib le on the im pact o f a ch a n g e on sa fety , social co n d itio n s and the national park lan d scap e. In B a n ff N ational Park, at the m o m en t, stu d ies are under­ w a y on a proposed tw inn in g o f the Trans Canada h ig h w a y , for exam -

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p ic. S uch a project w ou ld have m ajor e ffe c ts on lan d scap e and land use not o n ly in the park but in areas so m e d istan ce a w ay. T o undertake such a project im p lies ev en tu a l p o ssib le construction alon g the p resent Trans Canada all the w a y to V an cou ver. Better altern atives to any traffic problem s m ay be ava ila b le. Reports on the e c o n o m ic , social and environm ental a sp ects o f such a c o stly project sh ou ld be availab le at so m e stage for rev iew by citizen s. 7) The p o licy o f p rovid in g fa cilities and serv ices m ore or less e x c lu s iv e ly through private enterprise in the national parks sh ou ld also be ex a m in ed c lo s e ly . C areful con sid eration sh ou ld be g iv en to g o v ­ ernm ent con stru ction and operation o f certain fa cilities and se r v ic e s in the interest o f m in im izin g en viron m en tal im p act, con trollin g large sc a le corporate-type ad vertisin g, and g iv in g seriou s attention to the p rovision o f lo w to m edium co st fa cilities in B a n ff and other parks. C oop era tiv e units o f the youth hostel type sh ou ld be en cou raged by govern m en t and open to a ll, w ith the num ber o f users and e n viron m en ­ tal im pact b ein g con trolled in the sam e w ay as with other projects. Any ten d en cy to use in co m e as a m easure o f a ccess to the parks or as a m eans o f co n trollin g the nature and quantity o f d ev elo p m en t and en viron m en ­ tal ch an ge should be resisted. V arious w a y s o f a ch iev in g these o b je ctiv es se em p o ssib le . The National and P rovincial Parks A sso cia tio n o f Canada has recently su g g ested that the n ational parks p ortfolio sh ou ld be m oved from the D epartm ent o f Indian A ffairs and Northern D evelop m en t to the D e­ partment o f E n viron m en t. A p o ssib ly better alternative for im prove­ m ent m ight be to re-organ ize the D epartm ent o f Indian A ffairs and Northern D ev elo p m en t into o n e resp on sib le for Public Land and R e­ lated S o cia l S erv ices. T h is w ou ld perm it con tinu ed work w ith the Indians, and the retention o f the present national parks and northern lands program . But the departm ent program cou ld be exp an d ed into an integrated approach in v o lv in g different types o f p u b lic land and use in C anada, with personn el b ein g in v o lv ed w h o w ould not o n ly be in­ form ed about the e c o lo g ic a l or p h ysical character o f the areas in q uestion but a lso the recreational, ed u cational and other social ac­ tivities to be carried ou t there. Perhaps with this type o f m issio n , these institutional arrangem ents and these p erson n el, a co-ord in ated p h ysical and cultural fram ew ork for the e ffe c tiv e and vision ary use o f the lan d scap e cou ld be d ev elo p ed in C anada. W hat is d on e in the National parks can serve as a m odel fo r land use in the country as a w h o le.

Figure 6: Pacific Rim National Park

6: M a n , B irds a n d M a m m a ls of Pacific Rim N ational P a r k , B .C .: P ast, P rese n t and F u tu re * N .A . Roe a n d J .G . Nelson

Introduction T H E b asic them e o f this essa y is past, present and future human d isturbance o f w ild life in the P a cific Rim National Park area, V an­ co u v er Island. T h e em p h a sis is on Phase I o f the park b etw een approx­ im ately T o fin o and U clu elet (F igure 6 ). O verall the approach is histori­ cal (or tem poral) a n d e c o lo g ic a l. Faunal ch a n g es in sp a ce and tim e are particularly related to cultural, but a lso b io tic, h yd rologic and other c o n tro ls. Man is o f sp ecial interest as an e c o lo g ic a l agen t. H is effe cts are con sid ered w ithin a three part fram ew ork: I) p ercep tion s, attitudes and v a lu es; 2) institutional arrangem ents; 3) tech n o lo g y .

Some Ecological Considerations T he p h ysical ch aracteristics o f P hase I h ave b een d iscu ssed at len gth in

P acific Rim : A n E cological A pproach to a N ew C anadian N ational Park (2 3 6 ). T h e clim a te is m ild and hum id due to the m oderating in flu en ce o f the o cea n . The m ean annual tem perature is 4 9 ° F. and ex trem es in tem perature are rare. T h e m ean tem perature for the warm ­ est m onth is 58° F. and for the c o o le st m on th , 41 ° F. P recipitation is h ea v y , w ith an annual m ean o f 1 10-120 in ch es. F o g s are frequent during the su m m er and last from early m orning to about n oon . W inds are m oderate with a m ean sp eed o f 7 -1 0 m .p .h ., but o c c a sio n a lly reach ga le fo rce, e sp e c ia lly during w inter storm s. B a sica lly tw o ty p es o f land su rfaces occu r in Phase I. T he first co n sists o f o ld a n d esitic v o lca n ic rocks w hich are ex p o sed on coastal h ead lan d s, islan d s and h ills. For ex a m p le, large e xp osu res o f vo lca n ics occu r on the head lan ds b etw een W ick an in nish (L on g B each) and F loren cia B a y s. S everal glacier sm ooth ed co n e-sh ap ed h ills rise ap­ p roxim ately fiv e hundred feet a b o v e sea lev el and form the heigh t o f *F rom J . G . N elso n and L .D . C o rd e s, e d s ., " P a c if ic Rim : A n E cological A p p ro a c h to a N ew C a n a d ia n N a tio n a l P a r k .' ' S tu d ie s in L a n d U se H is to ry a n d L a n d sc a p e C h a n g e, N o . 4 (C a lg a ry : U n iv ersity o f C a lg a ry , 1972).

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land in the park. T h ese h ills arc thousands o f feet low er than the easterly fringe o f m ountains co m p o sin g the sp in e o f V an cou ver Island. T h e seco n d b asic land su rface stretch es m ore or less con tin u ou sly from U clu elet to T o fin o . It c o n sists o f a gen tly undulating strip o f sand b ea ch , g la cia l o u tw a sh , till and m arine clay d ep osits o f P leisto cen e and recent a g e. T h ese d ep o sits m ake up the Estevan C oastal P lain. On its seaw ard sid e the plain norm ally b eg in s with a terrace face or scarp w hich rises from the b each es to about o n e hundred feet ab ove sea lev el. S u rface drainage on this terrace is p oor due to lim ited stream cutting and the p resen ce o f iron pans and im p erviou s clay; layers w ithin the s o il . T h is poor drainage results in s o ils that are w a terlogged m uch o f the tim e, stan d in g w ater b ein g com m on in w inter and spring. D rainage im p ro v es lo ca lly a lo n g stream s and terrace ed g es; th is, in turn, favours grow th o f taller trees w ith a som ew h at different sp e c ie s com p osition than in other areas. V eg eta tiv eiy , Phase I lies in the C oastal W estern H em lock Z on e. On better drained or m esic sites this forest is dom in ated by western h em lo ck and P acific silv er fir. The forest is m ultistoried , b ein g made up o f d en se u n even -aged stan d s. T h e understory is lu sh , co n sistin g o f ferns and shrubs. T rees, other w o o d y plants and the forest floor are cov ered with m o sses and liverw orts. W estern red cedar, shore pine and y e w are com m on in poorly drained areas. Sitka spruce occu rs on flo o d p la in s, seep age sites and in a band a lon g the co a st, w here it is relatively tolerant o f salt spray. D ou g la s fir apparently w as u n com m on in the past. It prefers xeric or drier sites and is favoured by fires w h ich are rare in this w est co a st area. In recent y ears, h o w ev er. D o u g la s fir has been planted e x te n siv e ly after lu m b erin g, and sh o w s g o o d grow th on w ell-d rain ed sites. Human settlem en t and land u se h ave not been e x ten siv e in the park. T he fish in g v illa g e s o f T o fin o and U c lu e le t, each with a popula­ tion o f ap p roxim ately three to four hundred are jo in ed by a black-top road that p arallels the co a st and even tu ally lead s east to Port A lberni. S ettlem en t in the park has been sp orad ic h istorically, with n od es d ev elo p in g around T o fin o airport and at the W ick an in nish Inn. on the north sid e o f the headland b etw een L ong B each and F loren cia Bay. O th erw ise, holiday ca b in s and a few com m ercial b u ildin gs arc dotted alon g the T o fin o -U c lu e le t road. A griculture has never been practised e x te n siv e ly w ithin park bou n daries, although a few sm a ll, cleared field s can be seen a lon g the m ain road. L oggin g a ctiv ities h ave cleared a sign ifican t proportion o f original fo rest, and left behind a netw ork o f gravel roads. Little settlem en t h as occurred in P hase II. the E ffingh am Islands, although Indian activity m ay h ave been m ore pronounced there in the past. In Phase III. a lon g the L ifesa v in g T rail, the villa g es o f B am field

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and Port R en frew , situated at eith er end o f the boundary, have little effe ct on the park. There are no roads, lo g g in g activity has been m in im a l, and o n ly o n e sm all settlem en t— at C lo -o o se — o ccu rs w ithin the park. T h e fauna o f P a cific Rim is num erous and varied. T he birds and m am m als o f the park area are o f particular interest in this paper and are listed in A p p en d ices I and 2. N ot all the listed an im als d efin itely have been ob served w ithin the park boundaries but se em lik ely on the basis o f h istoric or recent o b serv a tion s in sim ilar habitats or adjacent areas on V an cou ver Island (5 8 ). E xam p les are the V a n co u v er Island w o lf, now rare throughout the islan d , and the w o lv erin e. O thers w h ich arc un­ com m o n but w h ich h ave been seen or reported to the first author are b eaver and m arten. T he m uskrat, norw ay rat and h ou se m ou se are ex a m p les o f e x o tic an im als introduced in tention ally or unintentionally by C aucasian settlers (3 7 ). Both the m am m als and the birds sh o w an em p h asis on sp ecies asso cia ted with aquatic habitat, eith er salin e or fresh water. S eason al increases in the total avian population occu r during the m igration p eriod s. M arch-M ay and O ctob er-N ovem b er, w h en thousands o f anseriform s u tilize both near-shore and estu arin e habitats and larger num bers o f w aders o ccu p y the b ea ch es. S p e c ie s co m p o sitio n therefore varies a ccord in g to the sea son . R esident birds inclu d e various g u lls, and the bald e a g le , although this sp e c ie s tends to drift southw ard; in d ivid u als sigh ted in the w inter m onth s p o ssib ly b ein g vagrants from m ore northerly breeding grounds. T he m ajority o f the passerine sp ec ies are m igratory. T he d egree o f hum an disturbance o f the various habitats o f Phase I o f P acific Rim N ational Park m ay w ell h ave g iv en rise to a more d iverse sp ec ies com p o sitio n o f p a sserin es than is present in the le ss varied habitat types found in P hases 11 and 111. T he d iversity m ay a lso be a function o f natural p ro cesses a sso cia ted with g eo m o rp h ic, p e d o lo g ic , h yd rologic and v egetation al ch aracteristics. T he topic o f habitat d iversity and hum an disturbance w ill be d iscu ssed at greater length later in this e ssa y .

Methods A s stated p rev io u sly , the b asic them e is to ex a m in e h ow m an has shaped the distribution and num ber o f an im als in the park area in the past and his p o ssib le effe cts in future. T h e d ev elo p m en t o f this them e requires the use o f govern m en t reports, tra v elo g u es, trader's accou n ts and other primary sou rce m aterials. T h ese not on ly yield in sigh ts into anim al or e c o lo g ic a l ch an ge but a lso into the variations in human p ercep tio n s, a ttitu des, v a lu es, institutional arrangem ents and tech n o l­

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o g y a sso cia ted w ith the ch a n g es. Important secondary sou rces include D ruckcr's (7 8 ) study o f eth n o lo g y and history o f the N ootka tribes resident in the general v icin ity o f P acific Rim N ational Park; L ittle's (1 6 6 ) history o f the m aritim e fur trade; and P earse's (2 5 6 ) com p en d iu m o f bird ob serv a tio n s and d escrip tion s b y early C aucasian exp lorers in the North P acific. In so m e in sta n ces in this stu d y, ob servation s or find in gs m ade ou tsid e the park h ave b een applied to it b ecau se o f sim ilarity in habitat, or other variab les. R eco n n a issan ce field work w as con d u cted o v er m ost o f Phase I o f P a cific R im . R elatively d etailed stu d ies were m ade o f bird pop u lation s and p o ssib le hum an d isturbance in certain p h y sica lly sim i­ lar rocky headlands and b each es k n ow n to be su b ject to d ifferin g le v e ls o f human use.

W ild life a n d th e In d ia n

L a n d M am m als a n d die Indian M uch o f the fo llo w in g inform ation is d erived from the w ork o f the an th rop ologist. D rucker ( 7 8 ). w h o con d u cted field in vestigation s am o n g the N ootka in the late 1940’s. It is d ifficu lt to sin gle out any land m am m al as b ein g m ore sign ifican t to the pre-historic Indian than any other. A few certainly w ere im portant for n utritional, ritu alistic, m yth i­ cal or other reason s. T h ese m am m als were the black bear, b eaver, black tail d eer, w o lf and, in the interior, the R o o sev elt elk . Fur bearers such as the m arten, m ink and river otter apparently w ere o f m inor im portance. Black bears w ere caught with a d ead fall trap. V ests were m ade o f the h id e and the flesh w as eaten . H o w ev er, the bear se e m s to have found m ore im portance in ritual than in e c o n o m ic u se. ‘ ‘B ear cere­ m o n ia lism " w as w id esp read . For ex a m p le a bear w as m yth ically su p p o sed to h ave en g a g ed in a ritual bath to esc a p e traps. In this bath the bear used lea v es to scrub its body and Indian trappers fo llo w e d this practice c lo s e ly in the exp ectation o f catch in g m ore an im als. If a bear w as trapped, the carcass w as carried to the v illa g e w here it w as offered salm o n and m ats to lie on and e a g le d ow n w as sprinkled on its head, after w hich the bear w as sk in n ed and eaten . At K yuquot. north o f the park area, the usual m ode o f sp eak in g to a bear w a s to call it ‘ ‘Chufis w ife " or “ q u e e n " . Bears w ere respected m ore than m any other ani­ m als o f greater eco n o m ic im portan ce, for ex a m p le, the hair se a l, sea otter and blacktail d eer. Drucker (7 8 :2 5 9 ) m akes one referen ce to grizzly bears, but there is no ev id en ce o f this a n im al’s occu rrence on V an cou ver Island in recent centuries.

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A ccord in g to D rucker (7 8 :5 9 ) beavers w ere not hunted by m ost o f the V an cou ver Island N ootk a until “ rather late d a y s ." H o w ev er the anim al m ay have been used m ore by th ose N ootk a w h o lived in the park area b ecau se the fla tn ess o f the Estevan plain, the lo w er stream gra­ dients and ea sier d a m m in g co n d itio n s all w ou ld h ave been favourable to the b eaver. T h e d ead fall trap w as used to catch b eaver and they w ere also k illed w ith harpoons. T h e flesh w as eaten . Interior tribes such as the M uchalat and H opachisat are noted by Drucker (7 8 :6 0 ) as hunting e lk , w h ereas coastal groups are not. One reason for th is, he su g g e sts, is that the dank tangles o f coastal V an ­ co u v er Island w o o d s are d ifficu lt to hunt in. But th is did not stop interior groups from d oin g so . C haracteristic elk habitat is not the d en se, virtually im penetrable rain forest o f the im m ed iate co a st; it is m ore o p e n , eith er w ith ev en ly sp a ced trees and little understory veg eta ­ tio n . or m ea d o w s interspersed with grou p s o f trees. It is m ore lik ely that the elk w ou ld find su ch habitat at higher e lev a tio n s w here clim atic p h en om en a w ere sig n ifica n tly differen t from th ose o f the c o a st, and that this habitat w ou ld be co n d u civ e to Indian hunting “ d r iv e s” . In com p a riso n , blacktail deer are adapted to the m uch d en ser forest near the c o a st, or w ill readily invade disturbed areas near hum an habitation to feed on su cc essio n a l grow th . T h e coast Indians are not k n ow n to h ave clea red land on any substantial sc a le , for they were not agricu l­ turalists. But their d aily a ctiv ities and the u se o f forest products w ould have ch an ged v eg eta tio n around the villa g es w hich blacktail deer could then e x p lo it. Here they were hunted with the d ead fall. W o lv es seem to h ave played a strong ritualistic and m ythical role am on g the N ootk a. U n lik e p eop le such as the plains In d ian s, h o w ev er, the N ootk a did not d o m estica te the w o lf nor k eep it as a pet. Indeed, accord in g to D rucker (78 :1 5 2 ): W o lv es w ere p laced in a sp ecial category am on g all the an im als, as p o ssessed o f great supernatural p ow ers w h eth er in anim al g u ise or, without their sk in s, in hum an form . T h ey w ere a “ trib e” , and liv ed in a great h o u se under a m ountain. There w as so m e peculiar relationship e x istin g b etw een w o lv e s and killer w h ales; so m e p eo p le b eliev ed the latter em erg ed from the sea to turn into w o lv e s . N eith er anim al w a s con sid ered d angerous to m an. In fact, they w ere m ore lik ely to be friendly than m ost spirits. There w as no prohibition on k illin g either sp e c ie s o f the real an im als. D efin ite ta b o o s were placed on the eatin g o f w o lf fle sh , although in so m e in stan ces it apparently w as used as m ed icin e. W o lf p elts d o not se em to h ave been im portant later o n . during the m aritim e fur trade,

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although so m e early traders and w hite visitors m ention their presence am o n g otter and b ea v er sk in s (1 6 6 :2 4 ). T he m ink, marten and river otter w ere o f m inor im portance to the pre-historic N o o tk a , apparently not being eaten b ecau se o f their rank odour. R a cco o n s reportedly w ere con sid ered g o o d eatin g after soak in g the flesh overn igh t in fresh w ater, but were hunted o n ly ca su a lly . Red squirrels w ere subject to an eatin g tab oo, but with m ink were often " sh a m a n iz ed ” , b ein g regarded as spirit p ow ers w h ich cou ld e n d o w a person fortunate en ou gh to en cou n ter them with ritual so n g s and d a n ces, perhaps with m edical p o w ers. T hus squirrels and m ink were so m etim e s seen in the w o o d s sin g in g and shaking tiny rattles. T h ey are purported to h ave sh am an ized o v er rotten lo g s, m aking the lo g s writhe and groan through the p ow er o f their so n g s. T he final land m am m al to be d iscu ssed is the cou gar. Drucker m akes very few referen ces to its role in early N ootk an life , stating that it w a s not d elib erately h unted, “ but a fat on e that w andered into a bear d ead fall w as e a te n ” (7 8 :6 1 ). N eith er did the cou gar apparently hold any p osition in ritual o r m yth. It s e e m s that it w as neither d an gerou s nor u sefu l to the N o o tk a n s, w h o con seq u en tly se em to have been rather ind ifferen t to it. T he N ootka Indians h ave hunted the sea otter for an indefinite period. T w o m eth od s apparently were in com m on use b efore the fur trade era. F irstly, a hunter and ca n o e steersm an w ent before daybreak to the b ed s w here the anim al sle e p s, and w ou ld kill it before it aw ok e with eith er b o w and arrow or a spear or a harpoon. S e c o n d ly , a pup w ou ld b e located by its cries and caught ea sily as it w as less wary than the adult. T yin g it to his c a n o e , the hunter a llo w ed the pup to sw im about w h im p ering and these sou n d s attracted the m other w ithin har­ p o o n in g d istan ce s o that first sh e then her pup w ere killed. T he skins were esteem ed s o h igh ly that o n ly persons o f high rank w ore clo a k s m ade o f them . Until the tim e o f the m aritim e fur trade, rigid en forcem en t o f g a m e law s am on g the N ootk a is said to have ensured that the sea otters that co u ld be taken w ere prized as trading co m m o d ities. Even then, w hen the p elts were given aw ay in occasion al p o tla ch es, no particular n otice w as paid , as far as can be learned, to size or q u a lity , although the Indians were w ell aw are during later tim es that the w hite trader w ou ld m easure the sk in , feel the d en sity o f the fur, and s o o n . in setting a p rice on it. In w inter, or for cerem on ial o c c a sio n s, so m e Indians w ore garm ents and hats o f w o v en ced ar fibre, or robes m ade o f three sea otter sk in s in w hich the sid es o f the tw o were sew n togeth er, and the sid e ot the third se w n to the en d s o f the others. The im p ressiv en ess o f such a robe is referred to by Little (1 6 6 :3 2 1 ) who d escrib ed the pelt as g iv in g “ the erroneous im pression o f co m in g from an anim al at least six feet in le n g th .”

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A lthou gh other an im als such as sa lm o n , w h a les and bears w ere con sid ered w orthy o f cere m o n ies in their h on ou r, the sea otter report­ ed ly w as not so revered , d esp ite the high esteem in w h ich it w as held. Sea otter hunting w a s co n sid ered a noble v o ca tio n , and if a lesser man k illed o n e he w ou ld g iv e the h id e to his c h ie f, rece iv in g in ex ch a n g e a sm all reward. C h iefs w ould fo llo w a ritual bathing routine before hunting a sea otter. T h ese w ou ld a lw a y s take p lace in salt w ater, being the habitat o f the a n im a l, and the Indian w ou ld fo llo w the shore line sw im m in g , floatin g and d iv in g “ like a sea otter" as lon g as he could stand the cold (7 8 :1 6 9 ). A ttem p ts h ave been m ade to estim ate sea otter p op u lation s in pre-fur trade d a y s. K en yon (1 4 6 ) id en tified 1741 as the year in w hich C aucasian pressure w as first exerted on the an im al. H e co n clu d ed that islan d s contribute m ore usable habitat than unbroken co a st and that the population o f sea otters in 17 4 0 m ay h ave been no m ore than fiv e tim es the pre-C aucasian num ber, probably b etw een 1 0 0 ,0 0 0 and 1 5 0 ,0 0 0 an im als for the entire w est coast from lo w er C alifornia to the A leu tians. A ccord in g to K enyon (1 4 6 :1 3 6 ): it appears . . . that a g ro w in g sea otter p opulation in an u n exp loited habitat m ay reach a tem porary d en sity o f 4 0 or more an im als per square m ile o f habitat . . .T hat a d ep leted feed in g habitat m ay support about 10 to 15 otters per square m ile is indicated by the fact that the fiv e d en sely populated areas dropped to that lev el. In the P acific Rim area. Phase II, the E ffingh am Islan d s, probably is c lo se st to the ideal habitat en v isio n ed by K en yon . C alcu latin g that the area o f Phase II is about 4 5 square m ile s, the sea otter population probably reached a m axim u m o f about 1800 and a m inim um o f about 4 0 0 . W hen the w h o le park is co n sid er ed , perhaps 2 5 0 0 to 3 0 0 0 sea otters m ay h ave liv ed in the area at a favourable tim e during the pre-C aucasian era. O f co u rse this estim ate is o n ly a g ro ss app roxim a­ tion but it is useful in the light o f the ten dency to en v isio n m uch higher otter p op u lation s prior to the co m in g o f the w hite m an.

Indians a n d Sea M am m als The natural orientation o f the N ootka w a s toward the sea and m any an im als o f the co a st and o cea n w ere u tilized w h ich cannot be c o n si­ dered in detail h ere, particularly fish and invertebrates. Plants a lso m ust be n eg lected in this d iscu ssio n . T he principal a n im als o f interest are the various w h a les, the hair se a l, sea lio n , fur seal and p o rp oise. T he hunted w h a les in clu d ed the gray hum pback, p o ssib ly B aird's beaked w h a le, and rarely the killer.

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T h e sperm w hale apparently w a s not hunted, nor the b lu e, w h ich was too b ig to handle. A ll hunted w h a les appear to have been caught in the sa m e w a y and to h ave had a sim ilar p lace in myth and ritual. T h e origin o f w h alin g reportedly lies in the w est coast villages w here there w as little or no a ccess to salm on stream s. The art d iffu sed to other tribes and b eca m e a sy m b o l o f a c h ie f’s greatn ess rather than an im portant sou rce o f su b sisten ce. A ccord in g to D rucker. " o n ly great w halers o f ancient tim es killed 10 w h ales ev ery se a so n . R ecent w h al­ ers. though they hunted d ilig en tly and had im proved eq u ip m en t, ob­ tained o n ly a few in their entire ca ree rs." D rucker relates the figu res for w h a le k illin g am o n g the A h ou sat tribe, given to him by an inform ant w h o w as the last w haler am on g that p eo p le. In o n e gen eration , on ly eigh t m em b ers o f the tribe w ere w h alers, and o f th e se, on ly tw o were su cc essfu l in k illin g a w h a le, and o n ly four w h a les were killed in all. In the p receding generation there had been three w h alers, on e o f w hom k illed thirteen w h a les o v er a period o f tw elv e years, and the other tw o k illin g three ea ch . S uch figures indicate that the im pact o f the preC aucasian N ootka on w h ale p op u lation s w as probably slig h t. T he m ethod o f hunting w a s as fo llo w s: C an oes w ou ld sc o u t the o cea n an yw h ere b etw een o n e and tw o m iles o f f the sh ore. On sigh tin g a w h a le, the ca n o e w as brought alo n g sid e the anim al and the harpoon w as payed out as the ca n o e took a void in g action in order that the injured w h a le did not sm ash the boat to p ieces. T h e w h ale was rarely killed by the harpoon, and it took several other thrusts to w eaken the anim al b efore a lance w as used to cut the ten don s o f the flukes and then driven under the flipper for the coup d e g ra ce. T h e carcass w as supported by flo a ts and the m outh tied shut in order that w ater did not fill the body and ca u se it to sin k . T o w in g to shore w as probably the m ost arduous task o f all. E ventu ally the anim al w as beach ed and butchered with m uch cerem o n y . W h a le hunting ritual in v o lv ed bathing in first running fresh w ater and then in the sea. T he rite took p lace o ver a period o f six m on th s, starting in N o v em b er in tim e for the w h alin g season in April. W h ales w ere con sid ered to " ru n " lik e sa lm o n , and this m ay reflect an understanding o f their m igratory habits alon g the eastern P a cific co a st­ lin e. T h ey w ere a lso b eliev ed to have h om es under the se a . as did hair se a ls, although the en tran ce to the h ou se o f the latter w as through a cave in a high island. T h is m yth has interesting p arallels am on g the plains Indians w h o b eliev ed the b ison (Bison bison b iso n ) cam e from beneath the grou n d , en su rin g a n ever-en d in g su p p ly. K iller w h a les w ere rarely h unted, ex cep t as a test o f s k ill: the meat and fat were ea ten . N on e o f D ruckcr’s inform ants had ev er heard o f one o f these a n im als attacking a c a n o e , as they are reported to d o by n o n -w h a lin g tribes o f northern British C olu m b ia and A la sk a , as w ell as m odern C au casian s. In g en eral. like the w o lf, the N ootka apparently

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con sid ered the killer w hale b enign and not particularly d angerous. T h e hair seal appears to h ave b een o f particular interest to the N oo tk a n s. T h ey were hunted at alm ost any tim e o f the year from can oes u sin g a harpoon and lin e. H avin g sigh ted o n e . the hunter paddled to w here the anim al last d iv ed , fo llo w in g the theory that an undisturbed hair seal w ill resurface in the sam e p lace. If the anim al reappeared, an attem pt w as m ade to harpoon it. A nother hunting m ethod w a s to harpoon seals that w ere stranded on rocks e x p o se d at low tide. There w a s a lso a hair seal rite in v o lv in g bathing in salt w ater and sw im m in g with head held high out o f the w ater, im itating the desired b ehaviour o f the sea l for the ea siest kill. A cco rd in g to D rucker, sea-Iion s were hunted m ost in K yuquot and C layoq u ot territory, w here they con gregated . A present-day colon y ex ists w ithin park boundaries on S ea-L ion R ock s a few m iles w est o f L ong B each . T h is c o lo n y probably has been u tilized for m any years by the C layoq u ot tribe, w hich p redom inates in P hase II. H o w ev er seaIions w ere gen erally less esteem ed than hair sea ls. T h e sam e is true for p orp oise w hich were not hunted h ea v ily . S o m e tim es they w ere taken w ith hair seal h arp oon s, as were sea-Iions. A nother interesting hunting m ethod w as to throw handfuls o f sand or fine gravel into the w ater in order to sim u late the n o ise m ade by sc h o o ls o f fish , w h ich attracted the p orp oise w ithin harpooning range. T h e fur seal apparently w as not hunted in aboriginal tim es and o n ly b eca m e im portant as a trade item in the latter h a lf o f the nineteenth century.

Indians a n d B irds Thanks to the w ork o f Pearse (2 5 6 ) m uch valu ab le inform ation on the num bers and sp e c ie s o f birds in the N ootka area in the late eigh teen th and early nineteenth cen tu ries has been co llected from the d iaries and lo g s o f early eastern P a cific ex p lorers. Extracts from P earse's w ork can be cited to fam iliarize the reader with the avifaun a at the tim e o f C au casian d isco v e ry . T h ese citation s were often m ade at different tim es o f the year and so m e o f the d ifferen ce in num bers am ong them undoubtedly is due to season al variations in the occu rrence o f sp e c ie s. On M ay I 1. 1 776. B roughton describ ed w ild fo w l as present in vast quantities in the N ootka area. H a sw e ll, at C layoq u ot on O ctob er 12. 1 7 9 1 , said that: T he natives were b ringing a few wild g e e s e and ducks for sale. T he fo w l indeed w ere s o p lentiful that our sp ortsm en seld om returned w ithout tw en ty or thirty du ck s and g e e s e .

W E ST ER N CA N A D I A N LA NDS CA PE

H a sk in s, a lso at C layoq u ot b etw een 1790 and 17 9 3 , g a v e a len gthy descrip tion o f b ird -life, co m m e n c in g w ith a statem ent at od d s with H a sw e ll’s im pression: T he feathered tribe are not very num erous nor do they form any great variety— raven s, c ro w s, brow n e a g les with a w hite head and tail, h eron s, rob b in s, h o u se and bank sw a llo w s are m ost num berou s [sic ] — b esid es these there are three sorts o f w o o d p eck ers, the V irginia red birds [presu m ab ly the cardinal— an im p o ssib le sig h t­ ing] , y e llo w or bastard canary | probably the A m erican g o ld fin c h ], sn o w birds [? ], lon g-tailed thrushes [?]. ground birds [? ], tom tits [probably the ch estn u t-b ack ed c h ic k a d e e ], sp arrow s, w ren s, blueja w s [S teller's ja y ], partridges [probably a sp e c ie s o f g rou se], q uails [? ]. a sm all sp ec ies o f h aw k , o w ls , p ig eo n s (probably the b and-tailed p igeon ] and d o v e s [probably the m ourning d o v e ], and several sorts [un lik ely] o f h u m m in g birds. T he w aterfow l are plentiful from the last o f A u gu st until the b eg in n in g o f M arch— there are tw o sorts o f g e e s e , the on e re­ sem b lin g the co m m o n w ild g o o s e found on our side o f the co n ti­ nent [ probably the C anada g o o se ] and the other brown and from its tam en ess w as denom inated the fo o lish g o o se by our sailors [w h ite-fronted g o o se ? ]— there are also brants [black brant], tw o sorts o f d u ck s, sh a g s [corm oran ts], sh illd rak es [?] and tcels [g reen -w in g ed and b lu e-w in g ed ], large lo o n s, several sorts o f d ivers and g u lls, se a p ie s [black o y stercatch er], plovers [k illd eer?], m urres, m arsh lark [?], p eep s, the large crested A m erican k in gfishers and a few flo ck s o f sw a n s w ere o n ce or tw ice seen . T here w as a lso a bird about the siz e o f a haw k with a large crest and o f dark b ottle green seen fly in g about the w o od s— this bird w a s scarce and se ld o m to be se en — w e w ere therefore never a b le to procure and o f cou rse on ly had a distant sigh t o f them [p o ssib ly the pileated w ood p eck er], B oit, a lso at C layoq u ot on S ep tem b er 2 0 , 1 7 9 1 , said: W e procured a constant su p p ly o f w ild g e e s e d ucks and teal. The d ucks and teal resem ble those at h om e [N e w E ngland] but the d u ck s w ere ex a ctly o f the sam e sp e c ie s with the tam e o f our country [m allard]. W e se e n on e o f any other kind. N o w and then w e shot a w ild turkey. T he latter sp ec ies is id en tified by Pearse as the sandhill crane (G rus

canadensis) w h ich is not on the present park sp e c ie s list. A lthough a num ber o f sp e c ie s in clu d ed in these d escrip tion s are

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I 13

terrestrial, very fe w o f the referen ces are to sm all p asserines w hich inhabit the forests. T h is m ay b e b ecau se the forbidding nature o f the terrain dissu aded the early exp lorers from travelling inland. T h e Indians used m any o f the birds for variou s p u rp oses. A ccord ­ ing to Drucker (7 8 :5 9 ): E a g les w ere caught in a num ber o f w a y s for their feathers and the flesh w as not disd ain ed as food in the fall w hen the birds w ere fat from eatin g sa lm o n . In fact, old er p eop le sa y a g o o d fat e a g le is quite as tasty as duck. S h o o tin g and snaring (w ith sim p le loop snares) w ere the usual m od es o f capture. A H esqu iat told o f ca tch in g e a g le s in a m anner rem iniscent o f the interior o f the m ainland: the hunter lay on the beach co n cea led by branches and se a w eed with a p iece o f salm on b efore h im . W hen an ea g le aligh ted on the bait, the hunter se ized him by the leg s. Drucker (7 8 :6 1 ) states that the se a g u lls were not eaten until recent tim e s, and there w a s a v agu e avoid an ce o f them by y o u n g adults b eca u se o f an asso cia tio n o f these birds with tw in n in g, but elderly p eo p le ate the b ird s, and children staged m ock battles with the e g g s. R av en s and cro w s w ere not eaten o w in g to the taboo on their flesh . D uring the sa lm o n -sp a w n in g season traps con tain in g salm on e g g s were set on sh a llo w p la ces for d iv in g d ucks and g u lls. A nother m ethod o f capturing w aterfow l w as to u se a net from a ca n o e. Here on a pitch black night tw o m en w ou ld approach a flo ck o f resting du ck s or g e e s e w ith a bright light attached to the prow o f the boat. T he birds were disturbed in to se ek in g the apparent sa fety o f the sh a d o w o f the b o w w here they were netted. At tim es o f the year ou tsid e the m igration se a so n , this m ethod dep en d ed upon storm s driving the birds to sh elter in the m any inlets and bays alon g the co a st, o f which G rice B ay and T o fin o Inlet bordering P hase I o f the park are im portant e x a m p le s. W hen there w ere no storm s and birds rem ained on the sea, but near the sh o re, a blind w as m ade o f a can oe by putting fir branches around it so as to screen the occu p an ts. The hunters circled w ell out. then drifted in tow ard a flock stern forem ost. T he d u ck s w ould u su ally be sw im m in g about just o u tsid e the lin e o f breakers, an d , w hen w ithin range, the hunters o p en ed fire with b o w s and arrows (7 8 :4 2 ). T he role o f birds in ritual and m y th o lo g y se e m s to have been p ron ou n ced . C erem onial use o f feathers w a s w id esp read . M ozin o d escrib es this and a lso rem arks on the tam ing o f e a g les to su p p ly feathers (2 5 6 :1 5 0 ). G ray, b etw een 1787 and 1790, a lso w itn essed the adornm ent o f a sacrificed s la v e 's head w ith ea g le feathers in honour o f the k illin g o f the first w hale o f the season (2 5 6 :2 5 3 ). M o zin o tells o f the im itation o f birds during d an cin g (2 5 6 :1 5 0 ).

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Indian Im pact on W ildlife: A Sum m ary At this point so m e su m m arizin g rem arks can be m ade about the im pact o f the Indian on w ild life in pre-C aucasian d a y s. T h is im pact w o u ld , o f cou rse, be govern ed by the siz e o f the native p op u lation , as w ell as Indian p ercep tion , a ttitu des, v a lu e s, institutional arrangem ents, and tec h n o lo g y . V ariou s attem pts h ave been m ade to reconstruct early Indian p op u lation s but these h ave been handicapped by the p au city and u n even quality o f early C aucasian ob servation s and other factors. A lthou gh the estim a te can serve o n ly as an illustrative approxim ation, at the end o f the eig h teen th cen tu ry, w hen an unknow n population d e c lin e had occurred after C aucasian arrival and the introduction o f virulent n ew d isea ses su ch as sm a llp o x , B rough ton 's exp ed ition re­ corded that at C layoq u ot there w ere fiv e settlem en ts each with a p opulation o f 1500 and o n e with as m any as 2 5 0 0 . S u ch populations ranged o v er large areas o f sea and co a st for su b sisten ce and on these grounds alon e are not lik ely to have had a h eavy im pact on fauna. Indian tech n o lo g y , although in g en io u s, a lso had lim itation s, as can be seen from p rev io u s d escrip tion s o f w hale and seal hunting; this also w o u ld lim it the pressure that the Indians placed on w ild life. W hen resources b eca m e lo w in an area the hunters w ou ld m ove o n . lea v in g the region to recover for later u se. O nly hair sea ls were the e x c lu s iv e property o f ch iefs and. in gen eral, gam e b ecam e the property o f the su cc essfu l hunter. O th erw ise no group o r person ow n ed gam e in the w ild , although tribal territories w ou ld be d efen d ed again st undue p ilferin g by n eigh b ours. W hen captured, all gam e w as honoured by cerem o n ies aim ed at p leasin g the spirit o f the trapped anim al so that the spirit w ou ld again let its body be captured. T h is cu stom w as b ased on the b e lie f in im m ortality o f anim al sp irits, and aim ed to c o n cilia te them for a llo w in g th e m se lv e s to be taken. It has already b een m en tion ed that killer w h a les and other a n im als traditionally held in superstition and fear by C au casian s were regarded by the N ootk a as frien d ly, benign spirits w ho did not attack m an. In co n se q u e n c e , sin ce the N ootk a are not noted for undue w aste or m ass killin g b efore the arrival o f the C au casian , there appears to have been no o veru se o f w ild life . E fficien t tech n iqu es in trapping and hunting w ere e v o lv e d , but not to the overall detrim ent o f any sp e c ie s. In so m e c a s e s, for exam p le w h a lin g or hunting sea otters, prestige and so c ia l h ierarchies were o f con sid era b le im portance in m otivating a hazardous task and in lim iting those w h o hunted to a fe w . W ith these sy ste m s in op eration , together with the role o f m yth and ritual, it can be said that the N ootkan relation sh ip 'to w ild life w as essen tia lly on e o f resp ect, toleran ce and. h en ce, sy m b io sis.

P A C IFIC RIM N A T IO N A L PARK

T he C aucasian and Wildlife The M aritim e F ur Trade Initially the B ritish , F rench, R u ssian s and A m erican s were principals in this trade. The im portant anim al sp ecies were primarily the sea otter and fur seal with the b eaver b ein g taken w here availab le. Intensive exp loita tio n began in 1741 with the v o y a g e o f V itus B ering and c o n ­ tinued unregulated for 170 years w h en it w as halted as far as the sea otter w as co n cern ed through an international treaty o f 1911 am on g the U nited S tates, Great Britain, R ussia and Japan. C ow an and G uiguet (58) d escrib e the se a otter as at on e tim e inhabiting the entire length o f British C olum bia c o a st, but note that the last records o f non-introduced in d ivid u als w ere m ade at N ootka Island in 1909 and at K yu q uot, sligh tly farther north on V an cou ver Island, in 1929. A s an eco n o m ic resource the anim al probably fin ish ed by the turn o f the century. A lthou gh K enyon (1 4 6 ) points to 1741 as the b egin n in g o f the trade, V a n co u v er Islan d 's w est co a st w as not in v o lv ed until C o o k ’s v o y a g e o f 1778. H is reports led to a series o f British and French ex p ed itio n s w h ich sought to sa tisfy the dem and for sea otter sk in s in C hina. A m o n g the m en w h o captained these ex p ed itio n s were M eares, Strange and Barkley from Great Britain, and La P erouse from France. T he num ber o f skins that w ere taken is hard to determ in e as is the place o f o rigin . For ex a m p le. La P erou se's exp ed ition ob tain ed 6 0 0 sea otter sk in s, and H anna’s 100 (1 6 6 :7 6 -7 8 ). B arkley, w h ile at N ootk a in 1787, “ obtained a large num ber o f sea otter sk in s " and sold 800 realizin g $ 3 0 ,0 0 0 in M a ca o , and M eares 357 sk in s realizin g S 14,702 (1 6 6 :8 0 and 9 1 ). M eares c o llected 140 sk in s w h ile at N ootka Sound b etw een M ay 13 and 2 8 ,1 7 8 8 . H e a lso visited W ickaninnish and the C layoq u ot secu rin g I 50 sea otter skins ( 16 6 :1 0 8 ). T h e su cc ess o f these ex p ed itio n s apparently dep en d ed upon the luck o f the sh ip in arriving at N ootk a . or so m e other productive port, at just the tim e w hen the sea otter p opulation had been able to recover from a p reviou s visit. S u ccess m ay h ave b een further co m p lica ted by the ten dency o f the sea otter to reproduce erratically, or p o ssib ly c y c lic a lly , g iv in g period ic h ighs and low s to the num bers cau gh t. C o n seq u en tly , con sid erab le rivalry d e ­ v elo p ed b etw een the sh ip ’s captains if it w as know n that m ore than one exp ed itio n w a s sc o u tin g the co astlin e at the sam e tim e. A s the nineteenth century p rogressed , the trade in ten sified , and the N ootka Indians b eca m e an integral part o f the exp an d in g C aucasian com m ercia l eco n o m y ; in fact, the e c o n o m y ’s s u c c e ss dep en d ed upon them . Prior to the incursion o f the C au casian , sea otter sk in s and hunting had been con sid ered fit o n ly for the n ob lem en am ong the

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trib es, and all sk in s obtained by n on -n ob lem en w ere surrendered to the c h ie f. T h e great valu e placed by the w h ite traders on the sk in s altered this and the in d ivid u al hunter w a s able to k eep those he cau gh t. T h e net result w as that there w as far m ore in cen tive for any man to kill a sea otter than form erly. A nother im portant in flu en ce on the N ootk a w as the d evelop m en t o f m ore in ten siv e hunting tech n iq u es. T h ese b ecam e h igh ly s y s ­ tem atized as the an im als b ecam e scarcer, and all hunters set out togeth er. A s m any as tw en ty ca n o e s took part in on e hunt, form in g a line from the e d g e o f the breakers seaw ard , and fo llo w in g the sh o relin e, so m etim e s a hundred yards apart and therefore o ver a m ile out to sea. An otter sig h tin g w as sig n a lled by a w aved paddle and transm itted to the en d o f the lin e. T h e ca n o e s then assem b led in a circle about the p lace w here the otter w as se en , and w hen it su rfaced , those nearest shot at it with b ow and arrow. A p p aren tly, several v o lley s o f arrow s were u su a lly n ecessary b efore the anim al w as hit, the first man to do so cla im in g the sk in . U su a lly the anim al w a s k illed by a harpoon, for it w a s rarely m ore than injured by the first o r seco n d sh ot. If it d ived under the ring o f c a n o e s , the circle w as reform ed about the area in w hich it had appeared, and o n e can sa fely say that fe w esca p ed . T h e e fficien cy w as ch iefly d erived from the hunt's thorough co v era g e , sw eep in g in a w id e area to find the quarry and coverin g the areas through w hich it m ight esca p e. V arious estim a tes have been m ade o f the num bers o f sea otters taken during the fur trade period. F isher (9 2 ) in an in com p lete stu d y, lists records o f 3 5 9 ,3 7 5 sk in s b ein g taken b etw een 1740 and 1916. L ensin k (1 5 9 ) presen ts figures and broad estim a tes w h ich p lace the take o f sea otters from A laska at o v er 9 0 6 ,5 0 0 an im als. K en yon ’s (1 4 6 ) study appears the m ost reasonable: If the annual increm ent that cou ld be crop p ed on a sustained yield b asis w as about 2 .5 percent per year (th e approxim ate yield o f the P rib ilo f fur seal [C allorhinus u rsin u s ] herd is 5 percent per year and fur se a ls norm ally bear on e pup each year, w ith tw o years ela p sin g b etw een births), then the take in 170 years cou ld have been b etw een 4 2 5 .0 0 0 and 6 3 7 .5 0 0 if crop p in g had been rational. The k illin g o f sea o tters, h o w ev er, w as unregulated and for periods o f m any years the take w as at the ex p en se o f the popula­ tion “ c a p ita l.” P robably certain p opulations w ere w iped out during an early part o f the exp loitation period. T hus the yield over the entire period w as less that it w ould have been if o n ly the annual increm ent had been taken. R eason in g on this b asis, it appears that the probable take o f sea otters betw een 1740 and 1911 w as less than a m illio n and m ore lik ely about a h alf a m illion an im als.

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T h e replacem ent o f b o w and arrow by the gun probably about the m id-nineteenth cen tu ry , undoubtedly hastened the p rocess o f exterm i­ nation; h o w ev er, as Pearse points ou t, guns w ou ld still h a v e been rarities until the tim e o f settlem ent o f V an cou ver Island, w hen they cou ld be relatively ea sily acquired. It se e m s , therefore, that in general the in ten siv e group hunting w as resp onsib le for the d eclin e o f the sea otter.

C aucasian S ettlem ent a n d A griculture A num ber o f Indian reserves are dotted a lo n g the co a stlin e w ithin and just ou tsid e the park at present, and these su g g est a fairly ev en ly distributed pre-C aucasian p opulation o f sm all groups w h o se effe cts upon lan d scap e apparently w ere quite lo ca lized . B efore the turn o f the cen tu ry, the C layoq u ot v illa g e settlem en t w as the m ost im portant for C au casian s and n a tiv e s, and sin ce that tim e T o fin o . U clu elet and B am field h ave been the cen tres o f pop u lation . Initial land su rveyin g for settlem en t w as don e in the 1 8 9 0 ‘s , and so m e o f the reports subm itted to the British C olu m b ia D epartm ent o f Lands and Forests have interest­ ing referen ces to w ild life con tained in general d escrip tion s o f the re­ g io n . G ore (1 0 6 ) reports d eer as b ein g “ num erous ev ery w h e re" Leach (1 5 5 ) d escrib es birds as: . . . very p len tifu l, e sp e c ia lly d u ck s and g e e s e . K ennedy Lake is the c h ie f resort o f these sp ec ies. T here are a lso w illo w g ro u se and sn ip e in fair num bers. D eer are fairly n u m erous, and bear and cou gar are to be found on the m ainland o f V an cou ver Island. T here are a lso a few sm all fur-bearing a n im als, such as m ink and m arten. A gain in 1913, L each com m ents: T h e w aters alon g the co a st abound in w ild fo w l, d u ck s, g e e s e and brant. . . . B lack bear arc num erous and are trapped or shot along the stream s w hen they are feed in g on the salm on . D eer are very scarce and d ifficu lt to approach on account o f the d en se brush. . . . Fur-bearing a n im als are w ell represented and co n sist o f otter, m arten, m ink and ra cco o n . T he p elts are inferior to those obtained in the co ld er p ortions o f the p rovin ce but bring fair prices. N ot all o f the early reports indicate that w ild life w as plentiful h o w ev er; for ex a m p le in referring to the Barkley Sound area in 1938. Jackson (1 3 6 ) w rites that:

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W E S T E R N CA N A D IA N LA NDSCAPE

It is very poor g a m e cou n try. There w ere few sig n s o f deer and hear and no an im als th e m selv es w ere se en . W e on ly sa w o c c a ­ sional grou se and a few p ig eo n s. D u ck s and g e e s e are said to be fairly p lentiful in so m e o f the islets in w inter. T here is so m e trapping, the a n im als taken are m ink . c o o n , m arten, and b eaver. T he fur-seal herd p a sses the sound on its m igration north and so u th , and a few are captured by the Indians with spears. During the tim e period covered by these reports, settlem en t did not progress q u ick ly . Abraham ( I ) d e sc r ib e sT o fin o and U ciu elet as " a little v illa g e o f a few stragglin g h o u ses, a life-b oat station and a road ," and " a sm all fish in g h am let" resp ectiv ely in 1919. V ery little land clearan ce w as p ractised , but so m e o f the origin al settlers o f T ofin o "ran herds o f cattle w h ich grazed on the v ita m in -d eficien t grass on the river fiats and the hay they raised on their slo w ly -clea red fie ld s " (2 8 0 ). Apparently there w as little in cen tive to settle the area, probably o w in g to the nature o f the terrain and lack o f regular co m m u n ica tio n s, w hich were all by sh ip to V ictoria or Port A lberni. Early agricultural land u se d o es not se em to h ave been sign ifican t en o u g h to alter habitat and d ep lete w ild life . E ven tod ay, m uch o f the P acific Rim area is u n d evelop ed agricu lturally. A ll large sc a le settle­ ment has taken p la ce in Phase I. T h is is partly attributable to the natural harbours at T o fin o and U c iu e le t. and partly to the flatn ess o f the land w h ich favoured co m m u n ication s b etw een them . It w as the p rom ise o f a road link to Port Alberni that brought m any h om esteaders to the area in 191 I. but m any o f these p eop le did not rem ain lon g. T w o unpublished reports by H illier (1 2 1 ) and M atterson (1 9 3 ) d escrib e the situ ation . Both refer to the influx o f settlers fo llo w in g the p rom ise o f a road to the e a st, and the hardship and even tu al failure o f attem pts to clea r the forest and use the land. R em o v in g the stu m ps o f hundreds o f felled trees must have been back -b reakin g and unreward­ ing w ork, co n sid erin g the to o ls that w ere then av a ila b le, and the rapid rate o f regeneration o f v eg etation in the m oist clim a te. T h e e ffe c ts upon w ild life habitat w ere therefore probably m in im al, actual clearan ce b ein g a ch iev ed during a period o f not m ore than fiv e y ears, and not over a particularly w id e land area. S o m e o f this m ay h ave been b en eficial in providing " e d g e " habitats w h ich deer and certain sp e c ie s o f passerine birds w ou ld readily co lo n iz e . O ne anim al that w as d ep leted as a result o f the a ctiv ities o f the C au casian s during the 1 9 2 0 's, I9 3 0 's and I9 4 0 's w as the cougar. Sharcott (2 8 0 ) in d icates that early settlers rarely had the fear o f the cougar ex h ib ited by later o n es; the o ld -tim er’s " ch ildren w alk ed for m iles through the w ild ern ess but no harm ca m e to th e m ." In the late

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I9 2 0 's a liver d isea se d ecim ated the deer population and m any cougar w ere seen around settlem en ts taking ch ick en s, d o g s and ca ts. T h is u n doubtedly contributed to the g ro w in g C aucasian fear o f the cou gar, but o n ly o n e hum an fatality is k n ow n to be d u e to the an im al, this being a K yuquot b oy w h o disturbed a cougar at a fresh kill so m e m iles north o f the T o fin o area. T he o fficia l attitude toward the cou gar in the I9 4 0 's probably is reflected in a B .C . T ravel Bureau docum ent (1 9 4 9 ? ) w hich describ ed the cou gar as " v e r m in , an ou tlaw with a price on h is h e a d ." Such attitu des and the p lacin g o f a bounty on the anim al undoubtedly led to a reduction in the pop u lation . O ne fa m ily is k n ow n to have k illed six ty tw o cou gars b etw een 1914 and 1 9 4 0 's in the area north o f Phase I. W hat other ch a n g es in anim al life occurred in the park area through C aucasian interference during the 1 9 3 0 ’s, 1 9 4 0 's and later is d ifficu lt to say on the b a sis o f the e v id e n c e availab le at this tim e. Bears m ay not h ave b een m uch d ep leted : they do not se em to have bothered settlers to any sig n ifica n t exten t; Abraham (1 :6 5 ) d escrib es them as “ fe w " in w inter and m ostly found at L ong B each or a w ay from com m u n ities su ch as T o fin o . T h e con stru ction o f the W orld W ar II R .C .A .F . b ase south o f T o fin o in v o lv ed clearin g about tw o square m ile s o f forest and shrub. T oday b lacktail d eer, ruffed grou se and other w ild life frequently can be o b served in the area. T h e " e d g e " or " e c o to n e " created by con stru ction and the production o f what is alm o st a " h ea th la n d ” site probably has prom pted in creases in anim al num bers. Road construction and its en cou ragin g e ffe c t on red alder and other lo w v eg eta tio n a lso has provided habitat for certain birds, o f w h ich W ilso n 's w arbler is m ost notable and therefore m ay be more num erous in the park area now than in the past. C aucasian settlem en t throughout North A m erica has en cou raged the.grow th o f the sa lm o n -fish in g industry o f T o fin o and U clu elet. W ith in creasing dem and for these fish , pressure on an im als w hich prey on them has built up. M an y fish erm en se e the predators as undesirable co m p etito rs, detrim ental to their e c o n o m ic interests. T h ey often hold the v ie w that the fur se a l, harbour seal and sea lion capture a large am ount o f sa lm o n . H o w ev er, S p aldin g (2 8 6 ) has estim ated that sea lion and harbour seal each year co n su m e on ly about 2 .5 percent o f the annual com m ercial ca tch . N ev er th eless, the S ea-L ion R ock s, a few m iles o ffsh o r e from L on g B each and Phase I o f P acific R im . h a v e been the sc e n e o f num erous sh o o tin g s o f se a -lio n s by fish erm en . R ecently pressure has been p laced on the fish erm en to abandon this p ractice (3 7 . 38). A nother m odern d ev elo p m en t has been the grow th in num bers o f " h ip p ie s" settlin g on or adjacent to the b ea ch es, so m e perm anently.

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but m ost during the m ore b en ign su m m er m on th s. Crude sh ack s are com m o n features. S o m e d eserted cab in s in the coastal S itk a spruce zo n e h ave been reoccup ied and a few are n ew ly built. R ecen tly park authorities have elim in ated m any o f the sh ack s and cabins as part o f general p o lic y , but this m ay not d iscou rage p rolonged visitation o f seclu d ed b each es in the future. N o stu d ies have been com p leted to determ in e actual o r potential w ild life disturbance by these p e o p le , but h aving taken the trouble to se ek se clu sio n , their d en sity on the b each es is far less than on th o se a c c e ssib le to cars, trailers and tents. D o g s ow n ed by the h ip p ies were seen to harass w ading birds and gu lls frequently and u n rem ittin gly, and u se o f rocky headland areas by hip pie fisherm en m ay d isco u rage so m e o f the m am m als u su ally found there, su ch as m ink , river otter and m arten. H o w ev er, it is the opinion o f the authors that a w aren ess o f d isturbing b eh aviou r is m uch greater am o n g these p eo p le than those o f the cam pertrailer type. A ctiv ities w ere a lso less n o isy and less w id esp read on the b each es. S w im m in g , fish in g and su n -b ath in g accou n ted for m ost o f these.

Logging T h e e ffe c ts o f lo g g in g are k n ow n to be e x te n siv e but are not w ell understood s o that o n ly som e o f the more im portant e ffe c ts ob served in the park area can be con sid ered here. A p p roxim ately 20 percent o f P hase 1 has been cut o v er during the last tw en ty years, and little lo ggin g w h atsoever occurred before that tim e. Fire has been used to clear slash and d eb ris and en cou rage n ew g ro w th , w h ich in turn, probably cau sed a greater variety o f bird sp ec ies to invade lo g g ed areas. Other birds asso cia ted with the original forest habitat p robably w ould be d isp laced . C h a n g es in forage co n d itio n s by lo g g in g a lso probably h ave cau sed an increase in the num ber o f b irds, deer and other anim als ( 9 8 , 9 9 , 109a). T his in turn cou ld have prom pted a recent upsurge in predators su ch as the cougar. R estock in g o f lo g g ed areas with D o u g la s fir h as been com p reh en ­ s iv e , excep t in certain ex p erim en tal plantations o f Sitka sp ru ce. A s a fo o d sou rce the D ou g la s fir is kn ow n to be b en eficial to the O regon ju n co . On the other hand lo g g in g w ill reduce the num ber o f old dead trees in the forest and so the habitat o f w ood p eck ers and other birds. L o g g in g a lso has caused c lo g g in g o f stream s w ith slash and other d eb ris, thereby creating sm all stagnant p o o ls alon g stream cou rses. T his undoubtedly has an effe c t on fish p op u lation s and perhaps on predators such as the black bear. D uring our field w ork birds were ob served in profusion around the p ools w h ile surrounding lo g g ed areas appeared m ore sp arsely p opulated.

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R ecreation a n d Tourism A ccurate records o f v isitor num bers are not availab le for any part o f P a cific Rim N ational Park. C am p sites are fe w ev en in the T ofin oU clu elet area and o n ly o n e ex ists w ithin Phase I boundaries. T h is is situated in a Sitka spruce forest o v erlo o k in g L ong B each , w ithin the c o n fin e s o f the form er W ick an in nish P rovincial Park. S o m e visitor data, prim arily for the su m m er, is availab le for this area, in d icatin g an in crease from about 14,1 12 to 4 6 ,0 4 8 users b etw een 1964 and 1970. H o w ev er, m any m ore v isitors n ow cam p on the b each es and their a ctiv ities and e ffe c ts are largely con fin ed to the near-shore z o n e . T h ese in clu d e auto traffic on the b each , airplanes on the b each , h orses on the b ea ch , m otor ra llies, unregulated c o lle c tin g o f foresh ore invertebrates, inadequate sanitation fa cilities, refuse and, sim p ly , con cen tration s o f hundreds o f h olid aym ak ers in areas that are too sm all to sustain them co m fo rta b ly and protect the beach from undue d am age. In term s o f w ild life , the su m m er m onths have m eant increasing n o ise and disturbance by a u tom ob iles and m o to rcy lces sp eed in g along the b ea ch es and frigh ten in g or so m etim e s k illin g flo ck s o f feed in g or lo a fin g w ading birds and g u lls. In ad d ition , refuse has attracted m any N orthw estern cr o w s and black bears to the o n e cam p site. In areas o f h ea v y d isturbance, bald e a g les se e m o n ly o c c a sio n a lly to u se the Sitka spruce frin ge from w h ich to su rvey the surrounding cou n try, although they are regularly seen fly in g overh ead . M any m ore sp e c ie s o f birds are seen from the rock y headland areas separating the tw o main b each es at F loren cia B ay and L ong B each than arc seen in the h eavy disturbance areas. T h ese ob serv a tio n s sh ou ld be carried further h o w ev er, and p o ssib le non-hum an con trols stressed m ore c lo s e ly . S im ilarly, m ink, river otter and marten can be seen near the rocky headlands foragin g. T here u n doubtedly is less disturbance in these prom ontories b ecau se o f their ru g g ed n ess and com p arative in a ccessib ility to m ost park visitors. A m ore p recise account o f this situation w ill be given later.

C aucasian Im pact on W ildlife: A Sum m ary N ot all o f the early effe cts o f the C aucasian on w ild life are w ell u n derstood, for the availa b le ev id e n c e d oes not perm it accurate reco n ­ struction o f the num bers and distribution o f an im als such as the bear, the w o lf, the d eer and the cou gar. N ev erth eless so m e sp e c ie s are know n to have b een d ep leted by the C au casian , although to an unknow n d eg ree, for ex a m p le the cou gar. Other an im als arc k n ow n to h ave been elim in a ted , notably the sea otter. V ery heavy pressures on fauna have arisen sin ce 1945 w ith the

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larg e-sca le introduction o f m odern tech n o lo g y and a set o f p ercep tion s, v a lu es, attitudes and institutional arrangem ents favourable to the d e ­ velop m en t o f lo g g in g , tourism and recreation. T h e resp ect, tolerance and sy m b io sis o f Indian and w ild life have b een replaced by an orien ta­ tion to grow th and d ev elo p m en t and a general lack o f sym p athy for an im als and lan d scap e even w hen the em p h a sis is on land use for recreation. A m ultitude o f ch a n g es in veg eta tio n , birds, m am m als and other elem en ts o f the eco sy stem are n ow underw ay w h ose range and detail are sim p ly n ot appreciated ev en by m any p eop le in national park m anagem en t. T h e Indians th e m se lv e s are in creasin gly drawn into the C aucasian valu e sy stem . T ech n o lo g ica l ch an ge has given them and the w h ite m en greater e ffic ie n c y in fish in g , hunting and other a c tiv itie s, at least so far a s short term y ield is con cern ed . A lm o st ev ery o n e se e m s to be in favour o f m ore roads, m ore cam p sites and m ore v isito rs, m ost o f w h om sh o w little appreciation o f or respect for habitat or w ild life , apparently h avin g co m e ch iefly for the sun and san d . T h is increasing u se is co m in g at a tim e w hen no zon in g plans h ave been prepared for the park and interpretation p rogram m es or other con trols or education d e v ic e s are not ava ila b le. O n ly the “ h ip p ies" stand asid e from the tech n o lo g y , the value system and the grow th syn d rom e, although their life -sty le probably w ill not lon g endure at P acific Rim .

Pacific Rim National P a rk as a Recreational and Conservational Unit T he tw o basic p u rp oses o f a n ational park are recreation and co n serv a ­ tion o f w ild life , v eg eta tio n and other elem en ts o f the lan d scap e or e c o s y ste m .T h e p rev io u s d iscu ssio n in d icates that these tw o u ses have c o m e into increasing co n flic t in P acific Rim . T he em p h asis on increas­ ing visitor num bers and on a u to m o b iles, ten ts, cam pers and other elem en ts o f tech n o lo g y is threatening to ch a n g e the fauna and wild character o f large parts o f P hase I. T he N ational and H istoric Parks Branch is w orking on a zon in g and m anagem ent plan for P acific Rim and is a lso co n sid erin g various control and m anagem ent m easures d esig n ed to m ake recreational and con servation al u ses m ore com p ati­ ble. But the introduction o f these m easu res m ay take a con sid erable am ount o f tim e and m uch undesirable ch an ge could occu r in the interim . O ne thing that is required for the ad van cem en t o f m anagem ent m easures is a theoretical and organ izational basis for m anaging the park, an e c o lo g ic a l cla ssific a tio n or m odel w h ich w ill bring so m e order to what se em s to be a m aze o f trees, shrubs, a n im als, rocks and water, and provide a foundation for z o n in g , p o ssib le ch an ges in boundaries and other m easures d esig n ed to m ake recreation and con servation more

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am en a b le. The m odel can a lso p rovid e a b asis for the d evelop m en t o f interpretation, education and research program m es and recreational en joy m en t. A ten tative m odel can be su g g ested on the basis o f the inform ation presented in this paper and related research on the e c o lo g y o f the west c o a s t. T h e m odel (F igure 8) in v o lv es d ivid in g the park into e le v e n basic habitats or zo n e s and a p p lies o n ly to P hase I o f P a cific Rim although su bsequent research m ay reveal its ap p licab ility in other se ctio n s o f the park. R esearch and use m ay a lso result in its m od ification for Phase I. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. I I.

T h e p ela g ic zo n e T h e near-shore unprotected zon e T h e protected zo n e betw een offsh ore islands and shore Estuaries Fresh water b o d ies such as lak es and stream s Intertidal beach es T h e beach - d une co m p lex Tidal m udflats T h e sitka spruce zone T h e ced ar-h em lock zon e T h e bog forest

S o m e co m m en ts w ill n ow be m ade on the ch aracteristics o f these z o n e s , their availa b ility w ithin the park area, any land u se problem s asso cia ted w ith them and any other m atters sign ifican t for m an age­ m ent. 1) The p ela g ic z o n e , like the near-shore unprotected and protected z o n e s , is e x c lu s iv e ly m arine. T h e p elagic z o n e d iffers from the other tw o z o n e s , h o w ev er, in b ein g located w ell out to sea and largely u n affected by and out o f sight o f land. A m on g the im portant an im als are transient or m igratory birds such as the tw o sp e c ie s o f albatross, certain shearw aters and a lcid s. O ther sign ifican t fauna are sea m am ­ m als. n otably the fur seal w hich rarely is found w ithin tw o m iles o f sh ore. T h e se a -lio n . hair s e a l, harbour seal and other an im als are found w ithin the z o n e , but m ore frequently clo se r to sh ore. P a cific Rim N ational Park ex ten d s at a m axim um just o ver a m ile from shore and thus provid es for so m e ob servation and protection o f the p ela g ic zon e e sp e c ia lly as a buffer around areas fa llin g w ithin the unprotected o ffsh o re zone. 2) T h e near-shore unprotected zon e in clu d es stretch es o f op en water and o cca sio n a l islands and rocks located w ithin sigh t and relatively

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ea sy reach o f sh o re. Here one fin d s an im als su ch as scoter d u ck s, as w ell as sea lio n s, harbour se a ls, cru isin g gray w h a les and p orp oises. R elatively large areas o f this zon e are included in Phase 1. Human use and disturbance is not as great as in other parts o f the park, but can be sig n ifica n t from the standpoint o f w ild life m anagem ent and co n se r­ vation. For ex a m p le the relatively rare sea lion s concentrate at Sea Lion R ock s in this zo n e and. ev en though the an im als are in the national park, they are still attacked by fish erm en . S ea Lion R ock s a lso is the o n ly k n ow n n estin g site o f Brandt's corm orant in Canada and the black oystercatch er, g la u co u s-w in g ed gu ll and p elagic corm orant a lso are recorded as n estin g there. A m arine patrol is n ecessary to en force w ild life protection in this z o n e and other offsh ore areas w ithin the park. All o ffsh o re zo n es w ill be used in creasingly by com m ercial and recrea­ tional watercraft and o il. garbage and other pollution problem s there­ fore w ill require m onitorin g and con trol in future. 3 ) The protected zo n e in clu d es the o ffsh ore islan d s and rocky head ­ lands o f Phase I. T he zon e is an im portant habitat for sea ls and other an im als. A lcid s such as the m urres and p eleca n ifo rm s, particularly corm oran ts, use the o ffsh o re islan d s and the nearby quiet w ater c lo s e to shore. T h e p rotective m easures describ ed for the unprotected offsh ore zo n e a lso apply to the protected z o n e . M oreover, b ecau se the rocky h ead lan ds can be approached on foot from land they could be su b ject to con sid era b le disturbance in future. T he p o ssib le e ffe c ts o f increasing recreational use on birds and other an im als is not w ell understood; with this in m ind a prelim inary study o f the tw o rock y headlands w as undertaken in su m m er, 1971. T h e study in volved in terview in g visitors to these areas, ob serv a tio n o f litter and other sig n s o f disturbance and bird c o u n ts. S o m e o f the results can be presented here in a general w ay. A total o f fifty -fo u r sp ec ies o f birds w ere ob served in the tw o h eadland areas. In general more birds o f all typ es were seen in the m ost rem ote parts, although so m e en viron m en ts w ere characterized by high population ev en w h en subject to relatively h eavy hum an u se, for exam p le intergraded beach and rock areas. T h e nearby offsh ore islands w ere seen to be points o f m uch avian a ctiv ity , particularly if variation in topograph y, water and other co n d itio n s p rovid ed m any nich es for the birds: steep c liffs for the corm orant, flat land and su rf-w ash ed areas for sle ep in g , lo a fin g , feed in g g u lls , turnstones, black oystercatch crs, and other sh o re birds. M am m als su ch as river otter and m ink w ere ob served on a few o c c a sio n s. S ca ts and trails were seen in m any p laces on the rock s. T h e a ssociation o f num erous birds with areas w here least p eop le w ere en cou n tered in d icates a probable cau sal relation sh ip but m ore

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in vestigation is required before m ore p recise results and recom m en d a­ tio n s can be presented. C aution in a llo w in g or en cou ragin g h eavy use o f the headlands se e m s w ise h o w ev er, until m ore k n o w led g e o f the effe cts o f disturbance are availab le. In the interim , observation and interpretation program m es cou ld be d ev elo p ed around certain high p oin ts con n ected by clearin g so m e trails through the forest behind the h ead lan ds, so that approaches cou ld be m ade w ithout the disturbance and alarm w hich u su ally o ccu r if the approach is m ade alon g the rocks. In general the rocky headlands and offsh ore islan d s are o f great im por­ tance to w ild life and it is essen tial that research and m anagem ent m easures be d ev elo p ed soon to m ake them a v ailab le for recreation and at the sam e tim e co n se rv e th em . O ne n ecessary m easure is to zone certain headland areas as w ild ern ess and apply more rigid con trols there. S eriou s con sid eration also sh ou ld be g iv en to ex ten d in g the boundary o f P hase I southw ard to include the entire headland area and asso cia ted w ild life at the south en d o f F lorencia Bay. 4 ) Estuaries are d ifficu lt to d efin e but are often describ ed as em b aym ents characterized by the m ixin g o f fresh and saltw ater: they are often asso cia ted with the tidal m udflats d iscu ssed separately in this park m o d el. Estuaries are im portant sp aw n in g and feed in g areas for fish and p rovid e valu ab le n estin g sites for m igratory birds. Large estuaries are not w ell represented in Phase I w h o se northern boundary is con tigu ou s w ith T o fin o Inlet and B ro w n in g P assage w hich are not part o f the park. T he entrance to Nitinat Lake in P hase III rep resents a p o ssib le addi­ tional estuary but is sm all and narrow. Estuaries are im portant for the harbour seal. 5 ) Freshw ater b o d ies are not w ell provided for in Phase I o f the park so that the p o ssib le in clu sio n o f N itinat Lake takes on added sig n ifi­ c a n ce. N o co m p lete drainage basin o f any large river is in clu d ed in the park. A sm all part o f K en n ed y Lake is in clu d ed in Phase I; seriou s con sid eration sh ou ld be giv en to m akin g ad d ition s here as sw im m in g and cam p ing op p ortu n ities are g o o d , with fog and w ind less com m on than near the sea . A rare n estin g c o lo n y o f M ew g u lls a lso is located on a sm all island in K en n ed y L ake, ou tsid e the park.* 6 ) Intertidal b each es are w ell represented in P hase I. In fact the sp len d ou r o f uninterrupted sand stretching for m iles is seen as the principal attraction by m ost v isito rs, park o ffic ia ls and h ip p ies, being best d ev elo p ed at L o n g B each and F loren cia B ay. P ools so m etim e s

*The K ennedy L ake s e c to r u n fo rtu n ately h a s sin ce b een rem oved fro m P h a se I.

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several hundred yards in length are found at lo w tide in d ep ression s in the sand. T h ey not u n com m on ly are fed by sm all freshw ater stream s flo w in g ou t on to the b ea ch . T h ese have been seen to attract num erous loafing and bathing glaucous-winged gulls Heerman’s gull, California gull and Bonaparte’s gull. Killdcer, semi-palmated plover and various “ peeps” can also be observed in or around them, feeding on thread worms. The b each es th e m selv es attract flo ck s o f p eep s and g u lls regu­ larly. On three su c c e ssiv e m orn ings in early A u g u st. 1 9 7 1, in e x c e s s o f three thousand g u lls o f all typ es were ob served loafin g in this habitat type on S ch o o n er C o v e. It is on the b each es that the greatest and m ost o b v io u s human disturbance is present. On July 13, 1967. the T ofino-U cluelet P ress d escrib ed the sc en e thus: On the stretch o f L on g B each b etw een G reen Point and S ch oon er C o v e there w ere hundreds o f tents set up on the sand with a population running into the thousands. A count taken last w eek sh o w e d 283 tents and cam p ers on the beach b etw een G reen Point and S ch o o n er C o v e . A veragin g o n ly 3 persons per cam p this w ou ld g iv e a total o f 8 4 9 persons. T h e im pact o f su ch con cen tration s is ev id en t. F locks o f g u lls and sandpipers are co n tin u o u sly harrassed by a u to m o b iles, p edestrians and d o m estic d o g s, the latter b eing particularly prone to ch asin g and putting to flig h t all flo c k s o f birds w ithin range. On several o c c a sio n s drivers w ere seen to head straight for flo c k s o f birds on the b each . On at least o n e o cca sio n so m e birds were k illed by the purposeful act. S erious con sid eration should im m ed iately be g iv en to ex clu d in g au tom ob iles and sim ilar v e h ic le s from the beach as w ell as from cam p in g w hich c o u ld be provided inland. Certain b each es sh ou ld a lso be zon ed as w ild ern ess or sp ecial e c o lo g ic a l areas and u se carefu lly con trolled . 7) T h e beach -du n e co m p lex in clu d es the area betw een the intertidal beach and the b eg in n in g o f the Sitka spruce z o n e . A s such it in corp o­ rates a num ber o f p o ssib le w ild life habitats. O n e d etailed research project has been carried out by K uram oto (1 4 8 ) on what apparently is the o n ly large activ e dune area in P hase I, at L ong B each . T h e em p hasis in this study w as on v eg eta tion and relatively little se em s to be know n about the faunal attributes o f this and any sim ilar areas. T h e rufous hum m ingbird and ruffed grou se appear to be relatively n u m erous and the so n g sparrow is co m m o n . O ld relatively stable du n es are located at C o x B a y . F lorcncia Bay and other sites in Phase I but little is know n about their g eo m o rp h ic o rig in , distribution or b io lo g ica l character.

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D u n es are often p erceived as fragile areas, su scep tib le to hum an distur­ bance and accelerated erosion and require in vestigation in this regard both for sc ien tific and park m anagem en t purposes. 8) T he tidal m udflats in the park are located on G rice Bay next to the T o fin o W aterfow l M anagem ent R eserve. T he reserve, w hich is ou tsid e the park, w as esta b lish ed in 1956. and en larged in 1958 and 1964. It is run for the b en efit o f duck and g o o se hunters. A s a resting p lace for g e e s e the G rice B ay m udflat area has been im portant for cen tu ries. H o w ever recent inform ation su g g ests a p o ssi­ ble dow nw ard trend in the num ber o f d ucks and g e e s e u sin g the area. A report o f the regional w ild life b io lo g ist for V an cou ver Island, I.D . S m ith , in clu d es the fo llo w in g cou n ts m ade in the general area o f the reserve:

G eese N ov. D ec. N ov. N ov.

1 6 /'6 0 2 1 /'6 0 1 1/’61 1 6 /’67

3 ,4 6 7 486 4 ,8 1 0 5 50

D abbling D ucks 12,637 5 ,3 0 2 5 ,3 6 8 1,000

T h ese figures are far from co m p lete; m oreover a num ber o f variables m ay be resp on sib le for the su g g ested trend. H o w ev er, local opinion s e e m s to confirm the indications o f d eclin e. T he T ofino-U cluelet Press o f D ecem b er 5 . 1 9 6 8 . reports that cou n ts have d w in d led from 1 0 ,0 0 0 g e e s e to 5 0 0 in about the tim e period covered by S m ith 's report. I f this is s o , human disturbance could be resp on sib le as hunting pressure has increased. T h e ex clu sio n o f the W aterfow l R eserve from the park probably cam e about as a result o f pressure from hunters and com m ercial interests. W hether the ex clu sio n is n o w ju stified on con servation al and e c o n o m ic grounds is , h o w ev er, q u estion ab le. F inancial returns from recreational use o f Phase I are increasing stead ily and cou ld override any lo ss in in co m e resulting from the ex clu sio n o f hunting from m ost o f the G rice B ay area. A lternative hunting opportunities a lso are availab le in T o fin o Inlet and other areas ou tsid e the park. T h e relationships b etw een the T o fin o W aterfow l M anagem ent R eserve and P hase I o f P acific R im d eserv e careful re-exam ination . 9 ) T he S itk a spruce zon e occu rs in a tw en ty -fiv e to six ty yard w ide band in salt spray areas adjacent to b each es and rock y h ead lan ds. The Sitka sp ru ce in the z o n e are often bent and d eform ed and con seq u en tly have been little disturbed by lo g g in g . N o stu d ies appear to h ave been

PA C IFIC RIM N A T IO N A L PA RK

129

undertaken on the fauna o f the z o n e , although C ord es is co m p letin g a d etailed study o f the e c o lo g y o f the S ilk a spruce in the Phase I area. The zo n e is reco g n ized as providing im portant n estin g sites for bald ea g les. T he d en se undergrow th c h ie fly sa la l, lim its hum an u se and a lso un­ d ou b ted ly provid es valu ab le habitat for m any birds and the raccoon , m ink , river otter and other a n im als. C utting o f the Sitka spruce can e x p o s e inland red ced ar, h em lock and other less tolerant trees to un sigh tly d am age and death from salt spray. For all these reasons and its attractive appearance the Sitka spruce zo n e d eserves careful m an­ agem en t. 10) T h e ced a r-h em lo ck zon e c o n sists o f the inland forests con tain in g these sp e c ie s p lu s A m ab alis fir and other trees.T h is zo n e is the on e w h ich has been m ost a ffected by lo g g in g in Phase I. with the higher q u ality stan d s, although the anim al life o f the zo n e is not w ell known and research is n eed ed . T he cutting o ver o f the Sitka spruce stan d s in P hase I also m akes a stronger ca se for the in clu sion o f the Nitinat trian gle w hich is said to still have areas o f undisturbed tall red cedarh em lo ck forest. A m ajor problem arises with respect to the revegetation o f logged o v er areas in the red ced ar-h em lock zon e in Phase I. Should so m e o f th e se b e kept in shrub and n on -forest vegetation by cutting and fire in order to m aintain the d iv erse bird and anim al life n o w found there? If the areas are replanted sh ou ld the D ou glas fir be u sed , as is u su ally the c a s e , with co n seq u en t in crease in the O regon ju n co and other ch an ges in w ild life? O ther faunal e ffe c ts w h ich m ight fo llo w from su ch replant­ ing d eserve further stu d y, as d o the p ossib le ch a n g es arising from con tinu ed use o f the lo g g in g roads in the ced ar-h em lock area by trucks com m u n ica tin g w ith lum ber op eration s around the park boundaries. I 1) T h e bog forest (3 1 4 ) c o n sists principally o f shore p in e, Labrador tea and other plants tolerant o f poor drainage. It apparently is present o n ly in Phase I o f the park but se e m s fairly safe from h eavy disturbance or drainage b eca u se o f the bog co n d itio n s. A n im als kn ow n to regularly occu r in this zo n e are black bear and oran ge-crow n ed w arbler. The trees are w ell spaced and shrubs com m on and the zo n e se e m s to be used rela tiv ely frequently by transient or m igratory birds and so m e anim als w h ich u tilize other ad join in g z o n e s , for ex a m p le the b lacktail deer. M ore research on the zon e w ould be u sefu l; it se e m s p rom isin g for interpretation p u rp oses from both the plant and anim al stan d p oints. O ther w ild life co n sid era tio n s should be kept in m ind in thinking about b o u n d a ries and land use p o licy in P acific Rim N ation al Park (F ig u re 8 ). O ne is the p o ssib ility offered by the N itin a tT r ia n g le and the L ifesavin g T rail a rea fo r p reservation o f the V a n co u v er Island w o lf

Figure 8: Boundary C hanges, Phase 3, Pacific Rim National Park

PA C IFIC RIM N A T I O N A L P A R K

13 1

and w o lv erin e. T h e w o lf has been cla ssifie d as a threatened sp e c ie s by the International U nion for the C on servation o f Nature. Its n um bers are estim ated at no m ore than a few hundred in ail o f the Island by D onald B lood o f the British C olu m b ia Fish and W ild life D epartm ent. A nother sp e c ie s w orthy o f sp ecial care is the bald e a g le. A lthou gh the park has a relatively large population com pared with m any other North A m erican areas w here it w a s form erly c o m m o n , sou rces su g g est that its num bers are d w in d lin g (T o fin o -U clu elet P ress, A u gu st 1, 1963). T h e bird is particularly num erous in the E ffingh am Islands (P h ase II) w h ich afford naturally favourable habitat and sh ou ld be zon ed and m anaged for their p rotection . It is a lso co n ceiv a b le that a sea otter p opulation m ight thrive in this group o f islan d s. Introduction o f these typical w est coast m am ­ m als w ou ld be a boon to co n servation and recreation in the area. A nother fitting addition w ould b e on e or several o f the lak es north and w est o f N itinat Lake that are resting grounds for trum peter sw a n s.

Appendix 1 M am m al Species T he fo llo w in g is a list o f m am m als eith er know n or b elieved to range through the park area [5 8 ], T h o se marked with an asterisk have been recorded in a part o f the northern section o f the park by the naturalists B u ffam [23] and C am p bell [ 3 7 ,3 8 ,3 9 ) . O r d e r : in s e c t iv o r a : F a m il y : s o r ic id a e

Sorex cinereus cin e re u s — C in ereu s Shrew * S. vagrans iso la tn s — W andering Sh rew S . p a lu slris brooksi — N avigator Shrew O r d e r : c h ir o p t e r a ; F a m il y : v e s p e r t il io n id a e

M yotis californicus caurinits — C aliforn ia M yotis Bat M . evotis p a c ific u s — Long-eared M yotis Bat M . lucifugus a la scen sis — Little Brow n M yotis Bat M . y u m a n en sis sa tu ra tu s — Y um a M yotis Bat O r d e r : r o d e n t ia ; F a m il y : s c iu r id a e

T am iansciurus hudsonicus lanuginosus— R ed S q u irrel* F a m il y : c a st o r id a e

C astor canadensis leucodontus — B eaver

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F a m il y : c r ic e t id a e

P erom yscus m aniculatus a n g u stu s — W h ite-footed D eerm ou se* P . m . interdictus M icrotits tow nsendi la in g i — T ow n sen d V ole M . t. tetram erus O ndatra zibethica osoyoosensis — Muskrat f a m il y

: m u r id a e

R attus norvegicus — N orw ay Rat M us m u scu lu s — H o u se M ou se o r d er

: c e t a c e a ; su b o r d e r : o d o n t o c e t i; f a m il y : z ip h id a e

B erardius b a ird i — Baird Beaked W hale* M esoplodon stejn eg eri — S tejn eger B eaked W hale Z ip h iu s ca viro stris — C uvier W hale fa m il y

: ph y s e t e r id a e

P h yseter cato d o n — Sperm W hale* fa m il y

: d e l p h in id a e

Sten ella eu p h ro sn e — L on g-b eak ed D olphin D elphinus b a ird i — Baird D olphin L agenorhyncus obliquidens — P a cific Striped D olphin G ram pus recti p in n a — P acific K iller W hale* G lobicephala sc a m m o n i — S cam m on B lackfish P hocaena v om erina — Harbour Porpoise* P hocaenoides d a lli — Dali P orpoise G ram pus g riseu s — R isso D olphin subo rd er

: m y s t ic e t i; f a m il y : r h a c h ia n e c t id a e

E schrichtius g la u c u s — G ray W hale* f a m il y

: b a l a e n o p t e r id a e

B alaenoptera p h y sa lu s — C om m on Finback W hale B. b o re a lis — S ei W hale* B. a c u to ro stra ta — S h arp -n osed Finner. M inke or Pike W hale S ibbaldus m u scu lu s — Blue W hale M egaptera nova ea n g lia e — H um p b ack W hale E ubalaena sieb o ld i — P acific Right W hale o rd er

: c a r n iv o r a : f a m il y : c a n id a e

C anis lupus c ra sso d o n — V an cou ver Island W o lf

PA C IFIC RIM N A T IO N A L PA R K f a m il y

133

: u r s id a e

U rsus am ericanus vancouveri — A m erican B lack Bear* f a m il y

: pr o c y o n id a e

P rocyon lotor vancouverensis — R accoon * f a m il y

: m u s t e l id a e

M aries am ericana c a u rin a — Marten M ustela erm inae a n g u in a e — Short-tailed W easel M . vison eva g o r — M ink* G ulo luscus vancouverensis — W olverin e L utra canadensis p a c ific a — C anadian R iver Otter* FA MILY : FEL ID A E

F elis concolor vancouverensis — C ougar* o rd er

: PIN N IPE D IA ; f a m i l y : o t a r i d a e

C allorhinus ursinus cynoceplialus — Northern Fur S eal* E um etopias ju b a ta — Northern S ca-L ion * Z alophus c a lifo rn ia n u s — C aliforn ia Sea-L ion f a m il y

: p h o c id a e

P hoca vitulina rich a rd i — Hair Seal (H arbour S eal*) M irounga angustirostris — N orthern Elephant S eal o rd er

: a r t io d a c t y l a ; f a m il y : c e r v id a e

O docoileus herm ionus co lum bianus — C oast D eer or C olu m b ian B lacktail D eer*

Appendix II B ird Species T h is list is that g iv en by Stirling [2 9 3 ]. It is probably in com p lete, and o n ly a part o f the northern section o f the park is referred to. H ow ever, the occu rrence o f the various s p e c ie s is not lik ely to vary substantially betw een the three park se c tio n s. T w o ex cep tio n s to this general rule m ight b e cited . T h e first co n cern s those sp ec ies associated with the tidal m udflats o f G rice B a y . w hich is a habitat type availab le o n ly sparingly in the other sectio n s. The seco n d con cern s the sp ec ies associated with the m ore e x ten siv e ced a r/h em lock forest o f the northern se c tio n , and the d eg ree to w h ich it has b een lo g g ed . D ifferen ces as a result o f the

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W E S T E R N C A N A D IA N LA N D SC A PE

latter factor m ay not b e in sp ec ies co m p o sitio n but rather in num bers o f in d ivid u als. T h o se sp e c ie s w ith an asterisk are ad d ition s to S tirlin g's list that have b een o b serv ed by the first author. o rd er

: g a v iif o r m e s : f a m il y : g a v id a f .

Gavin im m er — C o m m o n Loon G. a rc tic a — A rctic L oon G. ste lla ta — Red-throated L oon o r d er

: po d ic ip e d if o r m e s ; f a m il y : po d ic ipe d id a e

A ech m o p h o n ts occidentalis — W estern G rebe P odiceps g riseg en a — R ed -n eck ed G rebe P. a u ritu s — H orned G rebe o r d e r

: pr o c e l l a r iif o r m e s : f a m il y : d io m e d id a e

D iom edea n ig rip es — BI ack- footed AI batross fa m il y

: h y d r o b a t id a e

O ceanodrom a fu r c a ia — F ork-tailed Petrel O. leuco rh o a — L ea ch 's Petrel o r d e r

: p e l e c a n if o r m e s ; f a m il y : ph a l a c r o c o r a c id a e

P halacrocorax a u ritu s — D ou b le-crested Corm orant P. p e n c illa tu s — Brandt's Corm orant P. p e la g ic u s — P ela g ic Corm orant o r d e r

: a n s e r i f o r m f .s ; s u b - f a m i l y : c y g n i n a e

O lor buccin a to r — Trum peter Sw an su b

-f a m il y : a n se r in a e

B ra n ta ca n a d en sis — Canada G o o se B . nig rica n s — B lack Brant A n ser alb ifro n s — W h ite-fron ted G oose C hen hyp erb o rea — S n o w G o o se su b

-f a m il y : a n a t in a e

A nas p latyrhynchos — Mai lard A . a c u ta — Pintail A . caro lin en sis — G reen -w in ged Teal A . d isco rs — B lu e-w in g ed T eal* sub

-f a m il y : a y t h y in a e

A ythya m a rila — Greater Scaup

PA C IFIC RIM N A T IO N A L PA RK

B ucepluila isla n d ic a — B arrow 's G old en eye H istrionicus histrio n icu s — H arlequin Duck M elanitta degla n d i — W h ite-w in g ed S coter M . p ersp icilla ta — S u rf S coter O idem ia n ig ra — C o m m o n S coter su b

-f a m il y : m e r g in a e

M ergus m erg a n ser — C om m on M erganser M . s e n a to r — R ed -b reasted M erganser L o p lw d ytes c u cu lla tu s — H ooded M erganser ORDER: FA LCO N1FO RM ES; FAMILY: ACCIPITRIDAE

A cc ip iter stria tu s — Snarp-skinned H aw k B uteo ja m a ic e n sis — R ed-tailed H aw k H aliaeetus leuco cep h a lu s — B ald E agle f a m il y

: pa n d io n id a e

P andion lialiaetus — O sprey f a m il y

: fa l c o n id a e

F aleo p e re g rin u s — P eregrine Falcon F . colu m b a riu s — P ig e o n Hawk F . sp a rve riu s — Sparrow H aw k (A m erican K estrel) o r d e r

: g a l l if o r m e s ; f a m il y : t e t r a o n id a e

D en dragapus o b se u ru s — B lue G rouse B onasa itm bellus — R uffed G rouse o r d er

: c i c o n i i f o r m e s ; f a m i l y : •a r d e i d a e

A rdea h e ro d ia s — Great B lue Heron o rd er

: g r u if o r m e s ; f a m il y : r a l l id a e

R alhts U m icola — V irgin ia Rail o rd er

: c h a r a d r iif o r m e s ; f a m il y : h a e m a t o p o d id a e

H aem atopus b a ch m a n i — B lack O ystercatchcr f a m il y

: c h a r a d r iid a e

P luvialis d o m in ica — A m erican G old en P lover S quatarola sq u a ta ro la — B la ck -b ellied P lover C haradrius sem ipalm attts — S em i-p alm ated P lover C . vociferus — K illdeer

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W E S T E R N C A N A D IA N L A N D SC A PE

FA M IL Y : SC OLO PAC ID AE

N um enius p h a e o p u s — W him brel A ctitis m a cu la ria — Spotted Sandpiper H eteroscelus in ca n u m — W andering Tattler T otanus m e lanoleucus — G reater Y e llo w leg s L im nodram us g rise u s — Sh ort-b illed D ow itch er A phriza virgata — S u rfb ird A renaria interpres — Ruddy T urnstone A . m elanocephala — B lack T urnstone E rolia p tilo c n em is — Rock Sandpiper E . m elanotos — Pectoral Sandpiper C alidris c a n u tu s — K not E rolia a c um inata — Sharp-tailed Sandpiper E . a lp in a — Dunlin C rocethia a lb a — Sanderling E rolia b a ird ii — B aird 's Sandpiper E . m inu tilla — Least Sandpiper E reunetes m a u ri — W estern Sandpiper f a m il y

: p h a l a r o po d id a e

P halaropus fu lic a r iu s — Red Phalarope L obipes lob a tu s — Northern Phalarope f a m il y

: st e r c o r a r iid a e

S tercorarius p a ra siticu s — Parasitic Jaeger 5 . p o m a rin u s — P om arine Jaeger fa m il y

: l a r id a e

; s u b - f a m il y : l a r in a e

L a ru s glaucescens — G la u co u s-w in g ed Gull L. h yp erb o reu s — G la u co u s G u ll* (E d w ard s, 1968) L. o ccidentalis — W estern Gull L. a rg en ta tu s — H erring Gull L. califo rn icu s — C alifornia Gull L. c a n u s — M ew G ull L. h eerm a n n i — H eerm an ’s Gull R issa trid a ctyla — B la ck -leg g ed K ittiw ake X em a sa b in i — S a b in e 's Gull L arus p h ila d e lp h ia — B onaparte's Gull su b

-fa m il y : s t e r n in a e

H ydroprogne ca sp ia — C aspian Tern (27 5 ) f a m il y

: a l c id a e

U ria a a lg e — C o m m o n Murre

PA C IFIC R IM N A T IO N A L PA R K

C epphus co lu m b a — P igeon G u illem ot Lundha c irrh a ta — T u fted Puffin C erorhinca m onocerata — R h in oceros Auklet P tychorum phus a leu tica — C a s sin ’s Auklet B rachyram phus m a rm o ra tu m — M arbled M urrelet o rd er

: c o l u m b if o r m e s ; f a m il y : c o l u m b id a e

C olum ba fa s c ia ia — B and-tailed P igeon Z enaidura nuicroura — M ourning D o v e o rd er

: s t r ig ifo r m e s ; f a m il y : strig id a e

B ubo virg in ia n u s — G reat H orned Owl N yctea sc a n d ia ca — S n o w y O wl o rd er

: C A PR1M U 1.G IFO RM ES; FA M IL Y : C A P R IM U L G ID A E

C hordeiles m in o r — C om m on N ighthaw k o r d er

: a p o d if o r m e s ; f a m il y : a po d id a e

C ypseloides n ig er — B lack S w ift C haetura vauxi — V aux S w ift f a m il y

: t r o c h ilid a e

Selasphorus ru fu s — R u fous H um m ingbird o r d e r

: c o r a c iif o r m e s ; f a m il y : a l c e d in id a e

M egaceryle a lcy o n — Belted K ingfisher o rd er

: p ic if o r m e s ; f a m il y : pic id a e

C olaptes ca fe r — R ed -sh afted F licker D ryocopus p ile a tu s — P ileated W ood p eck er Sphvrapicus v a riu s — “ R ed -b reasted " S apsucker D endrocopos villo su s — Hairy W ood p eck er D. p u b e sc en s — D o w n y W ood p eck er o r d er

: p a s s e r if o r m e s ; f a m il y : t y r a n n id a e

E m pidonax d ifficilis — W estern F lycatcher fa m il y

: h ir u n d in id a e

H irundo ru stic a — Barn S w a llo w P etrochelidon p yrrlio n a ia — C litf S w a llo w Tachycineta th a la ssin a — V io let-g reen S w a llo w Iridoprocne b io co lo r — Tree S w a llo w Stelgidopteryx ru fico llis— R ou gh -w in ged S w a llo w

138

fa m il y

W E S T E R N C A N A D IA N L A N D SC A PE : c o r v id a e

r C yanocitta ste lle ri — S tcller's Jay ■ C orvus co ra x — C o m m o n R aven C . cau rin u s — N orthw estern Crow fa m il y

: p a r id a e

P a n ts ru fescen s — C h estnut-backed C h ick ad ee f a m il y

: c e r t h iid a e

C erthia fa m ilia r is — Brow n C reeper fa m il y

: t r o g l o d y t id a e

T roglodytes tro g lo d ytes — W inter Wren fa m il y

: t u r d id a e

Turdus m ig ra to riu s — A m erican Robin Ix o reu s n a e viu s — Varied Thrush H ylocichla g u tta ta — H erm it Thrush H . ustu la ta — S w a in so n ’s Thrush fa m il y

: s y l v iid a e

R eg u lu s sa tra p a — G o ld en -crow n ed K inglet R . c a len d u la — R u b y-crow n ed K inglet fa m il y

: m o t a c il l id a e

A n th u s sp in o letta — W ater Pipit f a m il y

: b o m b y c ill id a e

B om bycilht ced ro ru m — Cedar W axw in g F A M I L Y : S T U R M DA E

S tu rn u s vulgaris — Starling F A M I L Y : PA R U LI D A E

V erm ivora c ela ta — O ran ge-crow n ed Warbler D endroica p e te ch ia — Y e llo w W arbler D . a u d u h o n i — A u d u b o n ’s W arbler D . tow nsendi — T o w n sen d 's W arbler G eothlypis triclias — Y ellow th roat* W ilsonia p u silla — W ilso n 's W arbler f a m il y

: ic t e r id a e

M o lo th ru s a te r — B row n-headed C ow bird

P A C IFIC R IM N A T IO N A L PA RK

f a m il y

: f r in g il l id a e

H esperiphona vespertinei — E ven in g G rosbeak S pinus p in u s — P in e Siskin S . tristis — A m erican G old fin ch L oxiu c urvirostra — Red C rossbill P ipilo eryth ro p h th a lm u s — R u fou s-sid ed T o w h ee P asserculns sa n d w ich en sis — Savannah Sparrow ,I unco o reg a n u s — O regon Junco Z onotrichia leucophrys — W h ite-crow ned Sparrow Z. a trica p illa — G o ld en -cro w n ed Sparrow P asserella ilia c a — Fox Sparrow M elospiza m e lo d ia — S o n g Sparrow

.

7

C a n a d ia n N ational P a r k s an d R elated Reserves: R esearch Needs an d M anag em ent* J . G. Nelson

Introduction IN this rev iew paper the fundam ental aim is to em p h a size topics w here m ore research w ou ld sig n ifica n tly add to general k n o w l­ ed g e and a lso assist with pu b lic p olicy and practice. T h e r ev iew is largely based on personal ex p erien ce and research in W estern C anada, O ntario, the U nited S tates, U nited K in g d o m , Central A m erica, N ew Zealand and Australia. M y o w n approach to national parks and other land u se is b a sically historical (tem p oral) and e c o lo g ic a l. Stress is placed on the role and e ffe c ts o f m an, e sp e c ia lly C aucasian m an, and on the relevan ce o f the research results to m anagem en t.

T he Model A m ajor need in such stu d ies is an organ izational fram ew ork , or m odel, w h ich w ill bring order to the m aze o f p o ssib ly relevant th eories, m ethods and term in o lo g y d erived from su ch potentially pertinent d is­ cip lin es as a rch a eo lo g y , h istory, g eograp h y, e c o n o m ic s, g e o lo g y , b otany and z o o lo g y . T h e m odel sh ou ld be broad and in tegrative, useful to con cern ed a ca d em ics, con su ltan ts, adm inistrators and citizen s with d iv erse education and background. T he m odel sh ou ld provide for as m uch mutual understanding and interaction am ong these p eop le as p o ssib le . T h e m odel a lso sh ou ld be flex ib le and cap ab le o f u se at d ifferen t le v e ls o f g en era lization . It sh ou ld b e a p p licab le to a relatively sm a ll topic like M an, B irds a n d M am m als in P acific R im N ational P a r k , or to a larger o n e , such as the study o f the C anadian N ational Park sy stem undertaken in this paper. O ne m odel that se e m s to m eet these ♦T h is p a p er w as prep ared fo r th e c o n feren ce on C a n a d ia n P u b lic L a n d U se in P e r sp e c tiv e , H um an E n v iro n m en t C o m m itte e , S o cial S cien ce R esearch C oun­ c il, O tta w a, O c to b e r, 1973. T h e P ro ceed in g s w e re p u b lish ed by th e C ouncil in Ju n e, 1974. G ra n ts from the N ational R esearch C o u n cil and T h e U n iv ersity o f W estern O n tario aid ed in the p re p a ra tio n o f this paper.

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requirem ents, and h as, in fact, been used in both these stu d ies co n sists o f four basic parts: e c o lo g y ; strategies and institutional arrangem ents; p ercep tion s, attitudes and v a lu es; and tech n ology.

E cology T h e co n cep t o f e c o lo g y is fundam ental to the m odel and is m eant to focu s attention on the identification o f th c elem ents and p ro cesses in the sy stem , and the interrelations am on g th em , e sp e c ia lly as these pertain to m an. T he term , e c o lo g y , is used in both the p h ysical and cultural se n s e . It reco g n izes the potential im portance to land use problem s o f elem ents such as plant and anim al sp e c ie s, their population and d is­ tribution, v o lca n o es and other lan d form s. p o d zo ls and other so il ty p es, as w ell as v illa g e s, road s, dam s and other hum an con stru cts. E c o lo g y com p reh en d s p ro cesses such as plant su c c e ss io n , fluctu ations or " c y ­ c le s " in anim al p o p u lation s, w ild life m igration s, stream erosion and eutrophication o f lak es. M any o f these p ro cesses can be a ffected by both the so -ca lled physica l (b io p h y sic a l) and cultural (hum an) a g en cies. T h u s. fire, a p h ysical p ro cess, can be cau sed or in flu en ced by ligh tn in g or w eath er, or by hum an attem pts to hunt, cam p or operate railroad e n g in e s. C ultivation o f so il w as carried ou t by prairie d o g s, and other an im als in the pre-C aucasian northern p lain s, but not to the sam e exten t and d egree as later by man and the p lou gh. T he term , e c o lo g y , thus lead s in a c o n sc io u s w ay to the problem o f d istin gu ish in g lan d scap e ch a n g es independent o f man from those d e ­ pendent on h im . T he id en tification o f these typ es o f ch an ge is no easy task and has b eco m e m ore d ifficu lt as man and the various p h ysical ag en cies have interacted with pro cesses such as fire, flo o d in g , erosion and earthquakes, to affect v e g eta tio n , w ild life , landform s and other interrelated elem ents o f landscape and eco sy stem . T h is brings us to the verge o f th e cla ssica l q u estion o f w hether man is b a sica lly a natural or cultural en tity. T h is problem cannot be d is­ cu ssed at length here. It is relevan t, h o w ev er, to national park m an­ a gem en t, as w ill be seen later. M y o w n present position is that the term , natural, is co n fu sin g and not particularly h elp fu l. M an 's culture d oes not really separate him from other life , in that he is fundam entally d ependent on air. w ater and other vital elem en ts, w hich ev en the m ost sop h isticated tech n o lo g y must transform from s o m e ultim ate b io p h y si­ cal state. Man and his e v o lv in g ideas and tech n o lo g y have been a part o f the g lo b a l eco sy stem for ten s o f thou san d s o f years. He has e v o lv ed and ch an ged like other an im als and in that se n se se e m s as natural as they are. H aving m ade these c o m m e n ts, it se e m s that particular concern about man arises w hen h is e ffe c ts b egin to d om in ate the sy stem , w hen veg eta tio n , w ild life , and other inter-connected e lem en ts and p rocesses b egin to b eco m e su b stan tially d ependent on en ergy con trolled by man

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and h is elaborating tech n o lo g y rather than on sou rces in d ep en dent o f him . M a n A s E c o lo g ic a l A g e n t

T he fo regoin g d iscu ssio n m akes it clear that, in the m odel used in this paper, man is con sid ered a s an e c o lo g ic a l agen t, an adapter to and a m o d ifier o f the e c o s y ste m . H o w ev er, in order m ore fu lly to understand h ow man adjusts to and ch a n g es the w orld , w e must id en tify and characterize h is a ctiv ities m ore p recisely , in this ca se in term s o f strategies and institutional arrangem ents; p ercep tion s, attitudes and va lu es; and tec h n o lo g y . T h ese categories se em co m p reh en siv e, but the d istin ction s a m o n g them are not a lw a y s clear-cut and can be arbitrary. S t r a t e g i e s a n d I n s t i t u t i o n a l A r r a n g e m e n ts

B riefly , s t r a t e g i e s refer to hum an g o a ls and broad m eans o f a ch ievin g them . In the very general se n se these g o a ls can be thought o f as relating to liv elih o o d (e c o n o m ic ), other m en (so c ia l) and the w orld , u n iverse or larger en viron m en t in w hich w e liv e (supernatural, relig io u s, sc ie n ­ tific ). For ex a m p le, ec o n o m ic a lly w e w ou ld be interested in k n ow in g w h eth er a group under study w as su b sisten ce or com m ercial in orienta­ tio n , for the production o f a surplus for external m arkets can lead to m uch landscape c h a n g e. S im ilarly, so c ia lly w e w ou ld be interested in k n o w in g w hether a group w a s b asically com m u n al or ca p ita listic, w ar-like and ag g ra n d izin g , or oth e rw ise, as these trails can have an im pact on the sy stem . From the standpoint o f the larger en viron m en t, w e w ou ld be in terested , am ong other th in gs, in w h eth er the group w as an im istic, m o n o th eistic or id e o lo g ic a l in orien tation . C hristianity, with its em p h a sis on the idea that the earth w as created for the use o f m an. has b een id en tified , rather inaccurately in the light o f other contributing factors, as the b asic ca u se o f resource and environm ental p rob lem s in areas su ch as North A m erica. T h e term , in s t i t u t i o n a l a r r a n g e m e n t s . refers to form s o f g o v ern ­ m ent. a g en cies, c iv il and crim inal la w s, legislation and other m ean s o f in flu en cin g hum an beh aviou r and land u se. T h e term in clu d es what have b een referred to as “ so cial g u id e s" : rules and regu lation s, penal­ ties and other en fo rcem en t, p erform ance standards, su b sid ies, taxes and other m ean s o f inhibiting or en cou ragin g ch an ge. A lso to be reco g n ized as institutional arrangem ents are social p h en om en a w h ich often have an indirect and unappreciated e ffe c t on land use and la n d scap e. An ex a m p le is the neutral ground or buffer zo n e separating native hunting p eop les in parts o f w estern North A m erica in pre- and early C aucasian tim es. W ild life reportedly was

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m ore p lentiful in th ese zo n es than in a grou p ’s h om e territory w here danger o f attack w as le s s, and hunting m ore frequently carried out (2 3 1 ).

P erceptions, A ttitudes a n d Values G eograp h ers, a n th rop ologists and other social scien tists h a v e long reco g n ized the in flu en ce o f m a n 's caste o f m ind on land u se and lan d scap e. D ifferent in d ivid u als and groups dem onstrab ly h a v e ap­ praised resources d ifferen tly in sim ilar e c o s y ste m s. C om pare the sop h istica ted civ iliz a tio n o f Egypt and the N ile w ith the corn grow ers and co llecto rs o f the lo w er C olorad o V alley in pre-C aucasian tim e s .I n the 1 9 5 0 ’s this cultural appraisal approach elaborated into stu d ies o f ind ivid u al and group percep tion s and attitudes, notably with regard to flo o d s and other hazards to hum an settlem en t and eco n o m y . Inter­ v ie w s . q u estion n aires and other m ethods w ere em p lo y ed to study p rofessional and pu b lic p ercep tion s o f the attitudes tow ards le v e e s and other co m m o n adjustm ents to flo o d s (3 2 2 ). T h e results were linked with increasing u se o f flo o d p la in s, at even higher co st to the citizen . O ne co n se q u en ce o f this research has been a broadening o f the range o f flo o d adjustm ents; fo r ex a m p le, m ore em p h a sis is n o w p laced on z o n in g , land use regu lations and other n on -en gin eerin g tech n iq u es. T here are o b v io u s problem s in d efin in g and w ork in g with the term s, p e rcep tio n s and attitudes ( 2 7 6 .1 6 9 ,3 2 2 ). T he word perception has often been used to refer to an in d ivid u al's or grou p 's sen sory and c o g n itiv e im pressions o f a situ ation . T h e term com p reh en d s what one " s e e s ,'' " fe e ls " and is aware o f. A ttitudes are g en era lly seen as being stronger reactions. T h ey are p referen ces and o p in io n s, based on per­ ceptual or other d ifferen ces a m o n g -p eo p le. A ttitu d es m ay be habitual and o v ert, q u ick ly and su b co n scio u sly acted upon. T h ey a lso m ay be rationalizations o f an action after it has occurred (1 2 ). Values are fundam ental b e lie fs and g u id es to hum an b eh aviou r, strong in flu en ces on the percep tion s and attitudes w e exhibit toward land u se. landscape or e c o sy ste m . For e x a m p le, so m e p eop le b asically valu e growth in in co m e and tech n o lo g y and se e su ch ch an ges as m easures o f so c ia l progress. O thers valu e trees, w ild life and the rural sc en e and w ou ld o p p o se grow th w hen it a ffected these thin gs funda­ m en tally. O b v io u sly any co m p reh en siv e approach to land u se prob­ lem s. national park or o th e rw ise, m ust in v o lv e con sid eration o f such im portant human in flu en ces on d ecision -m ak in g.

Technology T h is term is often d efined as the organ ized use o f k n o w led g e for

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practical purposes. It is, h o w ev er, an im p recise term w h o se u sage in the broad se n s e en co m p a sses m uch o f what w e call culture (2 0 3 ). V arious kinds o f m ech an ical and other to o ls are clearly in v o lv ed in tech n o lo g y . S o m e w ou ld a lso exten d its m ean ing to include program s and arrangem ents n ecessary for op eratin g m ach ines such as the co m p u ­ ter |so ftw a re]. S o m e o f the latter group w ou ld also extend the m eaning to en co m p a ss an entire cultural orientation. T h e French scholar, Jacques Ellul (8 5 ) has used the word technique to refer to the em p hasis on standardization and e ffic ie n c y , w hich he s e e s as characteristic o f in creasingly tech n ical W estern culture. M ost technical ch a n g es can be cla ssifie d as m ech an ical, b io lo g i­ cal or ch em ica l, or a com b ination thereof. In the national parks the outstanding m ach ine in terms o f e co sy stem e ffe c ts probably has been the au to m o b ile. E xotic plants and an im als have been used as to o ls to “ im prove' scen ery and fish in g . H erbicides and other c h e m ic a ls have a lso been em p lo y ed to m o d ify the landscape. Let us n ow turn to a b rief review o f the state o f k n ow led ge o f C anadian national parks and related pu b lic reserves in term s o f the four part m odel: e c o lo g y , strategies and institutional arrangem ents; percep­ tio n s, attitudes and v a lu es; and tech n ology.

C an adian National P a rk s and Related Reserves E cology T h e C anadian national park sy stem co n sists o f tw o b asic elem en ts: national and h istoric parks. T h e national parks are o f greatest interest here. H istoric parks arc m ore n u m erous, but rem ain little studied. N ational parks ty p ica lly are large, often e x c e e d in g 1.0 0 0 square m iles in area, although so m e such as P elee, on Lake Erie, and Elk Island, near E d m on ton , en co m p a ss less than 100 square m iles. In contrast. W ood B u ffa lo N ational Park, in northern A lb erta, e x c e e d s 1 7 .0 0 0 square m iles. A bout tw en ty-n in e national parks are located throughout C anada, notably in the w est and the M aritim es. A p p roxim ately I p ercen t o f the co u n try ’s land area is in national parks and perhaps 5 p ercen t is d evoted to both national and p rovincial parks. (F igure 4 ). O ntario and Q u eb ec are c o n sp icu o u s for their sm all national park area, esp e cia lly in light o f their relatively large p op u lation s. S o m e large provincial parks are found in these p rovin ces but fe w are m anaged alon g “ w ild ern ess" lin es and they gen erally are located m any m iles from c itie s. Polar B ear P rovincial Park, on Jam es B ay. is isolated and w ild and has been cla ssed by the govern m en t as a prim itive (w ild er­

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n ess) park. Q u etic o , w est o f Lake Superior, has recently been c la s­ sified as p rim itiv e, and con trols on lu m b erin g, sn o w m o b ilin g and other extra ctiv e or tech n ica l a ctiv ities introduced. Jacques Cartier P rovincial Park, north o f Q u eb ec C ity , appears to have largely escap ed industrial e ffe c ts but is n o w prop osed as the site o f a dam and h yd roelectric fa cility . O nly four n ational parks. W ood B u ffa lo , K luane, N ahanni and B affin Island, are located in the north, w here territorial and p rovincial parks are rare as w ell. A sm all num ber o f national and p rovincial parks h ave b een esta b lish ed a lon g the P a cific, A tlantic and G reat Lakes co a sts. Large national and p rovincial parks w ere created in Canada in tw o m ajor periods; ap p roxim ately 1 8 8 5 -1 9 3 0 and 1955-1973 (2 3 2 ). L ess than h a lf the national parks w ere set up in the first period, c h ie fly in the w e s t, w here the federal govern m en t con trolled large b lo ck s o f public land fo llo w in g con fed eration in 1867. In contrast, in the ea st, in 1867, settlem en t had been underw ay for d ecad es and m ost public land d is­ p osed o f to in d uce settlem en t and pay govern m en t e x p e n se s. H ow ever, so m e large b lock s rem ained in p rovincial hands late in the nineteenth cen tu ry , and part w as set asid e as parkland, n otably A lgon q u in P rovin­ cial Park in 1893. T h e national and provin cial parks created in this first period have sin c e been under h ea v y pressure for lu m b erin g, m in in g, p ow er and other u ses. A s a result m any boundary ch a n g es h ave been m ade and so m e parks elim in ated (3 2 ). T h e seco n d period o f park d evelop m en t cam e after W orld W ar II. w hen risin g m o b ility , in co m es, leisu re and other in flu en ces all c o m ­ bined to a ccelerate recreation d em and . T h is pressure resulted in new federal and provin cial in itiatives. For ex a m p le, in O ntario in 1955, about 2 0 parks w ere in op eration . B y 1973 the num ber had increased to about 120. A p p roxim ately 12 n ew national parks have been proclaim ed by the federal govern m en t in coop eration with the p rovin ces in the last four years. T h ese are ch iefly located in the M aritim es and the north w here o n ly W ood B u ffa lo ex isted prior to 1971. P ukaskw a has been p roclaim ed , on the north sh ore o f Lake S u p erior, as w ell as La M auricie and F o rillo n , the first n ational parks in Q u eb ec. Large national and provincial parks o f w ild ern ess type are un­ e v e n ly distribued w ith respect to p op u lation , as w ell as lan d scap es and c c o sy stm e m s. S tu d ies are n eeded to determ in e the relative le v e ls o f a c c e s s that citiz e n s in differen t parts o f the country h ave to forests, h igh land s and co a sts in public reserves. A num ber o f la n d sca p es and eco sy ste m s are not in clu d ed in the large national and p rovincial parks. N otab le gap s ex ist in the short and m ixed grass areas o f S ask atch ew an and A lberta, the C yp ress H ills, the A lberta fo o th ills, the dry southern v a lley s o f British C olu m b ia, the

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M a ck en zie R iver V a lle y , the Barren G rounds o f the N orthw est Ter­ ritories, the taiga forests o f Q u eb ec and O ntario and the islan d s o f the G u lf o f Saint L aw rence and the M aritim es. S o m e potential parks are k n o w n to have been under con sid eration for years. O ne is Val M arie about o n e hundred m iles south o f R egina. T his park w ould include e x ten siv e areas o f short grass, rolling glaciated terrain and rare a n im als such as the prairie d o g . T h is burrow ing rodent appears to h ave been relatively num erous in the sou th w estern Canadian plains until the introduction o f liv esto ck , cu ltivation and " p e st" c o n ­ trol program s. A nother potential national park is the forest and lake country o f the B lo o d v ein area. M anitoba and western O ntario. T he estab lish m en t o f su ch potential parks apparently has been slo w e d and perhaps b lock ed by op p osition from m ineral, agricultural and other interests. For e x a m p le , the S ask atch ew an N D P govern m en t reportedly w ish es to retain rights to d ev elo p p ossib le oil and gas d ep o sits in Val M arie. T his d o es not appear to be accep tab le to the federal govern m en t. M ore d etailed research is required on the history o f these proposed parks in order that w e m ay better understand the factors that o ffset the creation o f public reserves. S u rv ey s h ave recently been carried out by a g en cies such as the C anadian W ild life S erv ice on potential sites for national parks in the north, in clu d in g the A rctic archipelago: so m e tw en ty-n in e sites report­ ed ly w ere identified in o n e report. D isc u ssio n s h ave been underw ay for so m e tim e about a p o ssib le G u lf Island M arine Park in the coastal w aters o f southern British C olu m b ia. The status o f this proposal is v agu e and p o ssib ly has been a ffec ted by c o n flic ts with fish in g and sh ip p in g , in clu d in g potential e ffe c ts o f oil sp ills from tankers destined to m o v e A laska o il to Cherry P oin t, W ash in gton . E c o lo g ica l k n o w led g e o f ex istin g and potential national and pro­ vin cial parks is u n even and inadequate (5 7 ). O ld er national parks such as B an ff. Jasper and W aterton have lon g attracted g e o lo g ists , g la c io lo g ists, b io lo g ists and. m ore recently, geograp h ers, so c io lo g is ts and other scholars. M uch p ublished sc ien tific inform ation is therefore av a ilab le on these parks, but not alw ays in a form appropriate for m anagem ent. Im portant w ork has been d on e on the character and b eh aviou r o f a n im als such as m ountain sh eep and g rizzly . T h is has b een used to predict the e ffe c ts o f proposed road con stru ction and other p rop osals on a n im als. Y et m uch rem ains to be learned about the park fauna, e sp e c ia lly the sm aller a n im als upon w hich the e x iste n c e o f large m am m als d ep en d s. T he vegetation o f parks such as B an ff and Jasper is still not w ell u n derstood, although these parks h ave been in ex iste n c e for d ecad es. Prelim inary forest m aps w ere prepared for B an ff in the 1 9 5 0 's. But d etailed v eg eta tio n m apping in the B o w V a lley has been undertaken

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o n ly recen tly , by con su ltan ts in v o lv ed in environm ental im pact studies relating to the prop osed tw inn in g o f the T rans-C anada H ig h w a y . The potential use o f such stu d ies to m anagers is prejudiced by the fact that they appear to have been undertaken after a d ecisio n had been m ade to proceed with a m ajor land u se ch an ge; the outstanding q u estion s presum ably co n cern in g its character and lo ca tio n , not w h eth er the project sh ou ld in fact g o forward. R ecen tly, d etailed vegetation studies h ave been undertaken for W aterton. but n oth in g appears to be on the im m ed iate horizon for Jasper. K ooten ay or G lacier. On the other hand, the N ational and H istoric Parks Branch n ow has a resources inventory group and is org a n izin g w id e-ran gin g stu d ies o f veg eta tio n , lan d form s, s o ils and other lan d scap e elem en ts for u se in park planning and in­ terpretation. R elevant studies have a lso been sp on sored on lim eston e cavern s in B an ff, G lacier, and other parks. Q u estion s rem ain, h o w ­ e v er. about the c la ssific a tio n s, the m ethods and the sc o p e o f this in ven tory w ork. Id eally such research sh ou ld y ield a high lev el o f understanding o f p ro cesses and rates o f ch an ge so that p red ictions can be m ade about the e ffe c ts o f a road or an in flu x o f visitors on plant sp e c ie s , erosion and other asp ects o f the eco sy stem [ 10 .2 9 , 3 0 ,6 5 ,7 1 ,7 9 ,1 2 2 ,1 3 2 ,2 0 1 ] . O ther relevant elem en ts or p ro cesses rem ain unstudied. A notable exam p le is flo o d in g and a sso ciated erosion and d ep o sitio n . T h is has cau sed lon gstan d in g problem s in parks such as P elee w here m any attem pts h ave been m ade to control w ave erosion alon g the approxi­ m ately six by o n e m ile p en in su la. T he history o f these attem pts and their e ffe c ts is not w ell know n and rem ains u nevaluated in term s o f p o ssib ly better flo o d and erosion control altern atives. S im ilar remarks c o u ld be m ade about attem pts to control stream flo o d in g and erosion in B an ff and W aterton, c h iefly u sin g en gin eerin g m ethods. In so m e parks m uch in ven tory data are availab le to m anagers, but not en ou gh is know n about d y n am ics. An ex a m p le is the inform ation on birds o f the P acific Rim N ational Park area, V an cou ver Island. B io lo g ists have co n d u cted bird studies along this coast for y ears. M uch is k n ow n about the sp e c ie s that occu r and their m igration and b eh aviou r patterns. But m ore k n o w led g e o f their e c o lo g y is required i f the p op u lation s o f oy sterca tch ers, w andering tattler, tufted p u ffin , ruddy turnstone and other birds are to be m aintained as recreation pressure in creases in this n ew park. W hat types o f disturbances cau se such birds to d eclin e? Can these disturbances b e m anaged e ffe c tiv e ly ? S u ch ' q u estio n s require d etailed stu d ies, in clu d in g m onitoring. Inventories sh ou ld b e carried out as so o n as p o ssib le b efore or after the esta b lish ­ m ent o f a park and sp e c ie s with p otentially high se n sitiv ity to distur­ bance q u ick ly id en tified in term s o f num bers and d istribution. O b serva­ tion or m onitoring o f these p op u lation s sh ou ld a lso begin q u ick ly so as

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to m easure the effe cts o f recreational and other u se and lay the b asis for e ffe c tiv e m anagem ent by z o n in g or other m ean s. S uch research can be c o s tly . But early exp en d itu res here m ight be m ore useful than in v est­ m ent in rapid and e x ten siv e d evelop m en t o f roads and other facilities w h ich could attract users in num bers su fficien t to ca u se u nw anted and u n foreseen deterioration in the features w hich prom pted park estab ­ lish m en t o rigin ally. P lants, a n im als and other elem en ts and p ro cesses o f park land­ sca p es are related to past as w ell as recent co n d itio n s. W ild life sp ecies com p o sitio n and distribution m ay be ch an gin g n ow as a result o f ec o sy ste m ch a n g es w h ich began d eca d es or cen tu ries ag o , perhaps as a result o f the in vasion o f the C aucasian and his com m ercial and tech n i­ cal sy stem . P lants and a n im als n ow in the park m ay not h ave been there so m e years a g o . A n im a ls present earlier a lso m ay h ave b eco m e ex tin ct, w ith uncertain e ffe c ts on plants or other lan d scap e elem en ts grazed or used by them . In order to id en tify and understand su ch ch a n g es, and be in a position to m ake d ecisio n s on th em , h istorical ecological studies are n ecessary. Such stu d ies in v o lv e tracing ch a n g es in human use o f an area and its e ffe c ts on the e c o s y ste m . T h ese stu d ies require som e k n o w led g e and ex p ertise in all four parts o f the m odel used in this paper. In thinking about the valu e o f e c o lo g ic a l research it is im portant to reco g n ize that the results can o n ly contribute to a d e c isio n , w h ich a lso w ill be in flu en ced by other factors, notably the p ercep tion s, attitudes and v a lu es o f interested in d ivid u als and groups. An illustrative ex a m p le can be cited from N e w Z ealan d . In about 1906 a sm all herd o f elk w as introduced to Fiordland N ational Park, South Island. S u ch a large m am m al had not been k n ow n in this area before and it m ay h ave b egu n to ca u se so m e ch an ges in vegetation by gra zin g on plants not su b jected to such use for thousands o f years. H o w e v e r , any ec o sy ste m ch an ges are not lik ely to have been nearly as great as those caused by the deer w h ich a lso w as introduced into N ew Z ealand for the first tim e during the nineteenth century. In this type o f p rob lem , the b io lo g ist and other scien tists can study and d ocu m ent at least so m e o f the e ffe c ts o f deer or elk , and perhaps estim a te what ch a n g es arc lik ely in future. T h e b io lo g ist can a lso point out that the d eer is an e x o tic , a refu gee from another e c o s y ste m , and not a preferred resident if the aim is to preserve the lan d scap e and e c o s y s ­ tem o f earlier tim es, as is often the c a se in national parks. But the ultim ate d ecisio n on h o w to m anage the deer and elk sh ou ld a lso in v o lv e co n sid eration o f the v ie w s o f citiz e n s. P eop le may like and want m any deer ev en if so m e ch an ge in the character o f the pre-European eco sy ste m results. W here such ch an ges are so se v ere as to ca u se erosion o f the sca le and in tensity induced by the deer in N ew

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Z ealan d , a preference for deer is very c o stly e c o lo g ic a lly and e c o n o m i­ ca lly and con trol program s are lik ely to b e w id ely recogn ized as d esira b le. On the other hand, the ex ten sio n o f such con trols to the rare e lk . and its probably m inor e ffe c ts on lan d scap e, is m ore debatable from the standpoint o f p ercep tion s, attitudes and valu es. Little co m p reh en siv e research in historical e c o lo g y has been car­ ried out in C anadian o r A m erican national parks and related reserves. O ne major study w as co m p leted recently for the m oun tain ou s Y o sem ite N ational Park, C aliforn ia (100). H istorical records, old photographs and b io lo g ica l tech n iqu es were used to reveal rem arkable ch a n g es in vegeta tio n and sc en ery , e sp e c ia lly on the v a lley flo o rs. In pre- and early C aucasian tim es an oak savannah association w as w idespread there, b ein g m aintained largely by fires started by lightning and Indian hunters. W ith im proved fire control and other ch an ges fo llo w in g A m erican settlem en t, the oak savannah has largely b een replaced by forests o f cedar, pine and other sp ec ies. T h ese c h a n g es, in turn, have had their effe cts on so ils and other elem en ts, and a n ew landscape has e v o lv e d . Parks m anagers have recently d ecid ed , on the b asis o f these research fin d in g s, and their perception o f what the Y o sem ite V a lley lan d scap e sh ou ld be lik e, to introduce con trolled fires and attem pt to recreate the oak savannah o f old . S o m e historical e c o lo g ic a l stu d ies have been carried out in B an ff and P acific Rim N ational Parks (3 2 ,2 3 3 ,2 3 6 ). S im ilar work has been co m p leted in part o f the Porcupine H ills Forest R eserv e, and for the C yp ress H ills area, southern A lberta and S ask atch ew an ( 8 0 ,2 3 1 ). S o m e o f this work is less d etailed than the Y o sem ite stu d ies and relies le ss h ea v ily on v eg eta tio n m app in g, d en d roch ron ological work and other m ore ex p e n siv e tech n iq u es. A co m p reh en siv e study o f this type by M cK en zie for W aterton Lakes N ational Park is nearing com p letion (M c K e n z ie , M .S c . th e sis, G eograp h y, U n iv. o f C algary). In general the results o f these Canadian stu d ies arc sim ilar to those for Y o sem ite. T h ey reveal that C aucasian im pact on the frequency and exten t o f tires, as w ell as other elem en ts and p r o cesses, had e ffe c ts that reverberated through the ec o sy ste m . T h e research results have been applied to m anagem ent problem s in several w a y s. First, it has been p oin ted out that the results are u sefu l in estab lish in g land use zo n e s in parks: areas rela tiv ely little a ffec ted by C aucasian man h ave q u alities w h ich m ake them attractive can d id ates for w ild ern ess cla ssific a tio n . S eco n d , road p rogram s h ave b een op p osed on the b asis o f their destruc­ tive im pact on areas rela tiv ely little disturbed by C aucasian a ctiv ities (2 3 7 ). T h e results o f historical e c o lo g ic a l stu d ies a lso are relevant to m anagem ent p h ilo so p h y and to p ercep tion s and attitudes that p rofes­ sio n a ls and citizen s hold about national parks. T h ese percep tion s and

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attitudes effect the p o sitio n s that p eop le take on m anagem ent propos­ als. Y et so m e o f their v ie w s are h istorically inaccurate, as later d iscu s­ sio n w ill sh o w (2 2 5 ).

Sira regies a n d Institu tio n a l A rrangem ents N o co m p reh en siv e study o f the d evelop m en t o f the national park sy stem has been p ublished in C anada, althou gh this is not the ca se in other cou n tries such as the U nited States ( 1 3 3 ). Stu d ies o f the d ev e lo p ­ ment o f Canadian p rovincial parks are rare, w ith so m e com p leted research rem aining unpublished ( 1 4 9 ,2 7 4 ,3 2 8 ). W e also lack c o m ­ prehensive stu d ies o f the history and use o f fo rest, grazin g and other p ublic reserves, lik e those com p leted by C la w so n for the U nited States (4 8 ). N or has any federal or provin cial govern m en t seen it as d esirable to support broad ev a lu a tio n s o f p u b lic land p o licy and p ractice in the m anner o f the A m erican in v estigation s o f the last d ecad e ( 2 5 8 ). Stu d ies like that o f the historian, C hester Martin (1 8 8 ) are ex cep tio n s. But M artin's research on D om inion Lands P olicy en d s about 1930. K n o w l­ ed g e o f public land is o n ly indirectly and u n even ly ad van ced by studies o f related to p ic s, for ex a m p le, railw ay d ev elo p m en t or w estern settle­ m ent. W e also lack critical in tellectu al histories o f relevant co n cep ts or ideas su ch as " n a tu re" or “ w ild e r n e s s.” Huth ( 1 3 0 ), N ash (2 1 7 ,2 1 8 ) and Shepard (2 8 2 ) h ave co m p leted revealin g stu d ies o f such co n cep ts in the U nited S tates. T his research h elp s A m erican s understand h ow their e v o lv in g p h ilosop h ical id eas about nature and lan d scap e have in flu en ced the character and distribution o f national parks and other land u ses. A s a result o f the dearth o f h istorical stu d ies, little is k n ow n about the strategies in v o lv ed in the C anadian n ational park sy stem . One prelim inary study (2 2 9 ) has su g g ested that the strategies can be thought o f as b a sica lly three part: 1) A rchitects and planners have aim ed to m eet the anticipated recreational needs o f the p eop le. 2) B u sin ess and govern m en t have aim ed at generating in com e from B a n ff and other parks. 3 ) S o m e adm inistrators and citiz e n s h ave been con cern ed with the preservation and protection o f nature or w ild ern ess. M ore research is d efin itely required to evalu ate the role o f arch itects and planners. M uch o f what w e k n ow about them really d eriv es from the U nited States. H o w ev er, authorities from Europe were invited to C anada in the early tw entieth cen tu ry to a d v ise on city and

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lan d scap e p lanning and so m eth in g approaching a w ild ern ess p olicy w as recom m en d ed for the G atineau Park area, near O ttaw a. W e need d etailed work on such in flu en ces on parks o f all ty p es. N ot one com p reh en siv e study o f the d evelop m en t o f an urban park system appears to have been p u b lish ed in Canada. D etailed stu d ies o f in flu en ­ tial b od ies such as the C o m m issio n o f C on servation , C anada, w hich m ade m any recom m en d ation s on recreation, city and landscape plan­ n in g , a lso are lack in g. O n ly prelim inary work has been don e on the aim s and im pact o f b u sin ess and g o v ern m en t. In a short, in cisiv e paper, the historian, R. C . B row n (2 1 ) has presented ev id e n c e for a m ajor shift in thinking about national parks am o n g p olitician s and high level governm ent o ffic ia ls during the late nineteenth and early tw entieth cen tu ries. In the late 1 8 8 0 's and 1 8 9 0 ’s , m inin g and other extractive u ses w ere pro­ m oted in the park's, as w as the d evelop m en t o f fa cilities to attract tourists and in co m e from m any parts o f the w orld . Later, in the early tw entieth century, there w as a turn to m ore con servation al thinking, w ith strong utilitarian rather than p reservationist overton es. Concern w as ex p ressed , h o w ev er, about the appropriateness o f com m ercial a ctiv ities in national parks. P o licies a im in g at the protection o f nature d o not se e m to have p layed a prom inent part in national park or other land use m anagem ent in Canada until the tw entieth cen tu ry. In O ntario, A lexan d er K irkw ood and others did introduce far-sigh ted legislation for A lgon q u in which stipulated that the park w ould be a plant and anim al refuge as w ell as a p lace for ed u ca tio n a l, sc ien tific and health purposes (1 4 9 ). B ut, from a very early stage A lgon q u in se e m s to have been m anaged on m ultiple u se grou n d s, with preservationist thinking g iv in g w ay in creasingly to the pragm atic and the utilitarian.-T he reverse appears to h ave occurred w ith respect to B a n ff and other national parks. At first B an ff National Park w as a m aze o f lu m b erin g, m in in g, hunting and other a ctivities. But fire control and other p rotective practices w ere shortly introduced. J. B. Harkin began to em p h a size the sc ie n tific , aesth etic and spiritual valu es o f the " w ild " about 1911, w hen ap p ointed first C om m ission er o f D om in ion Parks. H e d ev elo p ed a strategy for park d evelop m en t w hich co m b in ed an interest in nature and w ild ern ess protection with the d evelop m en t o f fa cilities for tourism and in com e. T h is co m b in ed p o licy o f protection and d ev elo p m en t, w h ich w as en shrined in the N ational Parks A ct o f 1930. has cau sed m uch con flict and d isagreem en t. But it has an interesting ring in relation to the S to ck h o lm C o n feren ce o f June 1972. with its call for a com b ination o f C onservation a n d D evelopm ent in resource m anagem ent throughout the w orld. Harkin and his c o lle a g u e s supported strong fire control p o lic ie s and p ra ctices, as w ell as w ild life protection program s, excep t

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for predators and " n o x io u s a n im a ls" such as w o lv e s , cou gars and co y o te s. H is adm inistration a lso w orked for the rem oval o f m uch o f the hu n tin g, trapping, m inin g and other extractive activities w h ich had substantially a ffected w ild life and landscape in B a n ff and other parks by 1911. Private u ses and " rig h ts" in the park were dim in ished con sid era b ly in the years lip to W orld War II. T his included Indian hu n tin g, w hich w as p erceived as a m ajor ca u se o f w ild life dep letion early in the nineteenth century. O ther m o v e s w ere m ade to protect w ild life and “ n a tu re.” For e x a m p le, betw een about 1910 and 1920. three national parks w ere estab lish ed in the A lberta grasslan d s to protect d eclin in g a n telo p e p o p u lation s. Later, in pan b ecau se o f an increase in a n telope num bers, these parks w ere elim in ated . V ery little has been published on the history o f national park institutional arrangem ents. O rigin ally a separate act w as passed for each new " D o m in io n P ark .” But co m p reh en siv e legislation has been p roclaim ed and am en ded on a n um ber o f o cc a sio n s sin ce 1 9 1 1. The relation sh ip b etw een these leg isla tiv e ch an ges and ch an ges in p o licy , p ractice and p o litica l, social and other in flu en ces on the system rem ains u n k now n. What govern m en t d epartm ents the national parks branch has p assed through o v er the years, and h ow the present N ational and H istoric Parks Branch (n o w Parks C anada) b ecam e part o f the D epart­ m ent o f Indian A ffairs and Northern D ev elo p m en t a lso is a subject for further research. W hen historical parks were first esta b lish ed , and h ow they relate to the rest o f the sy stem is another q u estio n , as indeed are the ch a n g in g relations b etw een the w ild life se r v ic e , Indian affairs and n ational parks. A lm o st all land in Canadian national parks is p u b lically ow n ed and h as b een lea sed to residents and b u sin essm en in a variety o f w ays sin ce the I8 8 0 's . T he leasin g sy stem h as had a fundam ental in flu en ce on the character o f the national park sy stem . Y et it rem ains un stu d ied, ex cep t for unpublished co n su ltan ts’ , reports on govern m en t in the parks, and S c a c e ’s (2 7 3 ) work on the d evelop m en t o f B a n ff tow n site. S c a c e ’s study sh o w s that the leasin g sy stem has e v o lv e d in su ch a w ay as to prom ote an array o f b u sin esses and structures w h o se grow th and distribution are d ifficu lt to co n tro l, as in d eed , are their e ffe c ts on lan d scap e. A b a sic ch a n g e in the sy stem , in order, apparently, to p rovid e for more govern m en t land u se p lan nin g, and reduce profiteer­ ing w hen leased lots and a sso ciated b u ildin gs and im provem en ts were transferred, or " s o l d .” w as taken to the S u prem e Court o f C anada by so m e Jasper resid en ts during the late 1 9 6 0 's, and d isa llo w ed . M ore govern m en t su c c e ss appears to h ave been a ch ieved in O ntario, where cottagers in p rovincial parks su ch as R on d eau , on Lake Erie have been inform ed that their lea ses w ill be ren ew ed for on e m ore term , w h ere­ upon their b u ild in g s and im provem en ts w ill b e subject to purchase

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an d /or rem oval in order to provide for greater pu b lic a c c e ss to beach es and other park resou rces by the p u b lic. C om p arative stu d ies o f leasin g and licen sin g sy stem s in different parts o f C anada, as w ell as the U nited States and other parts o f the w orld , w ou ld b e instructive. T h e first interpretation o f the N ational Parks A ct, k n ow n as the National Parks P o lic y , w as issu ed by the M in ister resp on sib le for national parks in 1964. The d ocu m ent is apparently an important gu id elin e for adm inistrators and others interested in parks. In recent years it h as frequently been referred to by m any p eop le participating in pu b lic hearings on proposed m aster p lan s for C anadian national parks. It is a so m ew h a t a m b igu ou s d ocu m ent. W hen and h ow w a s it d ev elo p ed ? W hat purposes w as it seen as servin g? H ow has it been used and what e ffe c ts has it had? Should a revision o f th is p olicy statem ent by undertaken, as ad vocated by s o m e , or should the A ct itself be rewritten? Park zo n in g sy stem s a lso d eserve study. T h e Canadian systen is a m o d ification o f an A m erican m odel and d iv id es parks into sp ecial e c o lo g ic a l and cu ltural, w ild ern ess recreation, natural en viron m en t, recreation and in ten siv e use z o n e s . T h e d escrip tion s o f p erm issib le land use in these zo n e s are very general and v a g u e, and co u ld be im p roved , e sp e c ia lly with regard to con trollin g the e ffe c ts o f large num bers o f visito rs and recreation tech n o lo g y . A variety o f tech n iqu es are gradually co m in g into use to am eliorate su ch e ffe c ts , a m o n g them the settin g o f v isitor lim its, p roh ib ition s again st u se o f non-burnable m aterials in the b ack -coun try, and rotation o f trails and cam p grou nd s. A lternative zo n in g sy ste m s, sp e c ific a lly incorporating such tech ­ niq u es, d eserve stu d y , as d o new park cla ssific a tio n sy stem s w hich m ore clea rly d istin g u ish a m o n g park u ses and so red u ce co n flic t am ong th em . V arious ty p es o f recreation are in creasin gly in com patib le with on e another and sh ou ld be sp atially or tem porally zon ed . S cien tific work often in v o lv es ch a n g es in lan d scap e not w anted b y other users and so is not d esirable in all types or parts o f parks (6 0 ). T h e International U n ion for the C on servation o f Nature ( I .U .C .N .) is p rom otin g the d ev elo p m en t o f a parks cla ssific a tio n aim ed at these prob lem s. T h e public hearings th e m selv es are a prim e subject for study. T h ey appear to h ave d e v e lo p e d , lik e s o m any other asp ects o f Canadian land u se p o licy and p ractice, from precedents in the U nited S tates, sp e c ific a lly the m anagem en t and planning ch a n g es m ade in that co u n ­ try in the 1950"s and early I9 6 0 's . T h e first Canadian hearin gs were held for K ejim kujik and other M aritim e parks, and ev en tu a lly c u lm i­ nated in h earings for the four R ock y M ountain Parks. B a n ff, Jasper, Y oh o and K ooten ay, and for the proposed V illaga Lake L o u ise, a project in v o lv in g hotel and m otel con stru ction to a ccom m od ate about 1 0 ,0 0 0 p eo p le, largely tourists. T h e su b m issio n s and the records for

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these hearings are a v a ila b le, as are so m e park d ocu m en ts relatin g to d e c isio n s m ade fo llo w in g the h earin gs. The original p u rp oses, e ffe c ts , and current status o f public h earin gs, as w ell as the m aster planning program , con stitute an im portant research area. T h is research is rele­ vant to current q u estio n s about m eth od s and e ffe c ts o f pu b lic partici­ pation in d ecisio n -m a k in g . M ethods o f a ssessin g the valu e o f national parks and related reserves a lso d ese rv e the attention o f social scien tists. B e n e fit/co st tech n iq u es h ave been applied to m any A m erican and overseas reserves (1 3 ,4 9 ,1 1 7 ,1 2 4 ,1 2 5 ,2 2 6 ,2 9 8 ) . There arc p rob lem s in ap p lyin g these tech n iq u es to p sy c h o lo g ic a l, s o c ia l, health and other so -ca lled in tan gi­ ble v a lu e s. R esearch aim ed at the im provem ent o f tech n iq u es is desira­ ble ( 5 2 ). Few b en efit/co st stu d ies se em to have been undertaken on C anadian national, parks, although o n e has been com p leted for G ros M orne, N ew fo u n d la n d . T his d ocu m ent is restricted to use by park and govern m en t o ffic ia ls , a handicap to th ose interested in m ore fu lly understanding the ad van tages and d isad van tages o f parks and other typ es o f land u se. T he reasons for such restrictions on research p u b lica­ tio n , and the e ffe c ts on d ecisio n -m a k in g , d eserve stu d y. In other cou n tries A c c e ss to Inform ation A cts have been passed to deal with this problem . C om parative study o f su ch A cts, and their e ffe c ts , w ou ld assist in id en tifyin g ad van tages and d isad van tages for Canada. A nother priority research area is the u se o f ea sem en ts and other m eans o f providing p u b lic a c c e ss to private land. T h e purchase o f rights to recreation and other public u ses, w ithout h a v in g to bear the higher e x p e n se o f outright p u rch ase, se em s attractive at this tim e o f rapidly risin g land c o sts. E asem en ts appear to have been reason ably su cc essfu l in N ew B ru n sw ick , but reportedly h ave en countered problem s in W is­ co n sin . F ew d etailed studies o f easem en t ad van tages and d isad van tages appear to have been co m p leted in areas where they h ave been used for so m e tim e. U sefu l ca se stu d ies cou ld be carried out in areas such as N ez Perce National Park. Idaho, w here ea sem en ts apparently h ave been co m b in ed with pu b lic land ow n ersh ip to create an unusual national park, at least from the North A m erican standpoint. S tu d ies o f e x p eri­ e n ce in Britain— w here ea sem en ts and land u se regu lations are the basis for the operation o f national parks on private land— w ou ld b e a valuable g u id e. O n e such study reports favourably o n their use in the Peak D istrict and su g g e sts that they hold p rom ise for North A m erica (1 4 1 ). A nother im portant research area is intergovernm ental and re­ gion al planning (1 1 4 ,3 4 ). T he fed eral-p rovin cial co n feren ces arc often cited as a forum for the ex ch a n g e o f id eas. But their e ffe c tiv e n e ss has been q u estion ed and they merit research. S tu d ies a lso co u ld be carried out on the U nited S tates' W ild ern ess A ct, as w ell as the C ountryside A ct in the U n ited K in g d o m , in order to evalu ate their e ffe c ts on

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recreation and other park u ses and their p o ssib le utility in Canada ( 7 6 ,8 1 ,1 4 1 .1 2 6 ) . T h e U . S. W ild ern ess A ct is an attem pt to bring " w ild a rea s” separately m anaged by the L'. S . N ational Park S erv ice, the F orest S erv ice and other govern m en t a g e n c ie s, under a com m on p olicy fram ew ork. Perhaps this type o f legislation cou ld be used to e ffe ct better relation sh ip s b etw een the federal and p rovincial g overn ­ m ents in Canada. E nabling leg isla tio n by the federal g overn m en t, sp e c ify in g standards to be m et for d esign ation as a Canadian W ild er­ n ess A rea, cou ld be backed w ith offers o f financial support, in order to protect m ore w ild land in Canada. At an even d eep er level in the sy stem are the relation sh ip s b etw een the m u n icip a lities, the p rovin ces and the federal g overn m en t. O ne m ech an ism w hich reportedly in v o lv e s the coop eration o f the three m ajor le v e ls o f govern m en t is the C O R T S sc h e m e w h ich provid es arrangem ents for research and m anagem ent o f the Trent and Rideau river sy stem s, O ntario. The o rig in , ad van tages and disad van tages o f this sc h e m e d eserv e study in term s o f its ap p licab ility elsew h ere. N ational park boundary areas, such as the C anm ore C orridor, a rou gh ly tw en ty by five m ile stretch leading alon g the B ow V a lley into B an ff National Park, d efin itely require so m e type o f coop erative m an­ agem ent and plan nin g. S everal years ago w hen the federal govern m en t issu ed its proposed m aster plans for B an ff and the other m ountain parks, very little con su ltation apparently took p lace am on g the provin ­ cial g o v ern m en t, the C algary R egion al Planning C o m m issio n , and other co n cern ed en tities. Paradoxical su g g estio n s were m ade about proposed land u se zo n in g in B a n ff in relation to o n g o in g or planned use on provincial and private land ad join in g the park. T h e recent Alberta govern m en t public hearings on land use in the R ock y M ountain fo o t­ h ills, ea st o f B a n ff Park, also se em to have in volved little con su ltation w ith the federal g o v ern m en t, at least in the preparation o f background papers.

P erceptions, A ttitudes a n d Values T he first point that c o m e s to m ind is that m any C anadians undoubtedly are unaw are o f national parks and other types o f pu b lic land and have o n ly the vagu est idea o f their p urposes. M ore in v o lv ed p ro fessio n a ls and citizen s have greater k n o w led g e but often differ w id e ly in p ercep tion s, attitudes and valu es respecting these reserves. T heir v iew p o in ts o b v io u sly in flu en ce their p o sitio n s on park land use issu es and therefore are very im portant in d e c isio n ­ m aking. Yet m any o f their percep tion s and attitudes are erron eou s in the historical se n s e , failin g to sh o w an understanding o f the co m p lex ity o f park o rigin s and d ev elo p m en t.

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T h u s, there are those w h o p erceive the national parks as b asically h avin g been estab lish ed for recreation. M any o f these people w h oleh earted ly support the introduction o f m ore roads and other fa c ilitie s, ev en though they m ay ca u se fundam ental ch an ges in the b io lo g ica l character o f parks, a central concern o f m anagem ent sin ce at least J. B . H arkin's d a y . On the other hand are those w h o p erceive the parks as “ pristin e” or “ u n tou ch ed ” nature, the protection o f w hich has been the b asic g o a l o f park m anagem ent from the b eg in n in g , in the 1 8 8 0 's. T h o se p eo p le gen erally are o p p osed to m ore roads and other d ev elo p m en t. Y et park p o lic ie s, p ractices and lan d scap es clearly h ave changed through the years ( 3 2 ,1 8 7 ,2 2 5 ,2 4 3 ) . For ex a m p le, origin ally in B an ff and other w estern parks, c o y o te s, w o lv e s , b ad gers, sk u n k s, cou gar and other predators w ere regarded as n o xiou s an im als. P rogram s were introduced to control or elim in ate th em . T h ese program s, cou p led with regrow th o f poplar, and other vegetation fo llo w in g e x ten siv e forest Fires in " p io n eer d a y s ,” have contributed to an increase in elk num bers in particular. By 1 940, b io lo g ists su ch as C ow an (5 6 ) co n clu d ed that the num erous elk w ere overgrazin g range. Population control program s w ere introduced and co n tin u e today. M ore recently it has been con ten ded that lon g-con tin u ed national park fire control program s h ave produced e x ten siv e a g ein g forests. T h is has led , in turn, to su g g estio n s that these p o lic ie s be term inated and that con trolled burning or lum bering b e used to recreate the shrub and other v eg etation m ore favourable to m any kinds o f w ild life. A ll these su g g estio n s for ch an ge raise q u estio n s w h ich require stu d y. W ill con trolled fires or lum bering h ave the sam e e ffe c ts on veg eta tio n and w ild life as “ w ild " fires? If introduced, sh ou ld lum ber­ in g be carried out by govern m en t or private enterprise? H ow w ould citizen s p erceive and react to lum bering? It se em in g ly threatens the “ w ild ern ess id e a l” o f national parks w hich has grow n stronger in Canada in recent years. T he fo regoin g d iscu ssio n raises the problem o f h o w to d efine w ild ern ess, o r, m ore im portantly, landscape g o a ls gen erally in national parks. H isto rica lly the trend has b een to bar or m od ify lum bering, hunting and other cultural p ractices p erceived as in com p atib le w ith the e v o lv in g im age o f a national park, w h ile oth erw ise a llo w in g the e c o s y s ­ tem to g o on ch a n g in g , w ithou t m uch thought o f end p oin ts or land­ sc a p e g o a ls. In other w ord s, the ten dency has b een to v ie w national parks as areas w h ere certain hum an practices do not o ccu r, rather than to think about what type o f landscape or eco sy stem is e v o lv in g as a result o f an essen tia lly n egative m anagem ent p o licy . T h is approach has

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led to m any u n foreseen ch a n g es and to m uch co p in g and uncertainty am o n g m anagers and the public. In the United States the L eop old C om m ittee (1 6 0 ,1 6 1 ) addressed this problem o f natural park lan d scap e g o a ls during the 19 6 0 ’s . T h e C om m ittee co n clu d ed that the desirable national park landscape w as that extan t w hen the “ w h ite m an ” cam e to North A m erica. E stablish­ ing the character o f such an early landscape can provide fruitful re­ search op p ortu n ities for geograp h ers and e c o lo g is ts ( 1 0 0 ), but the L eopold C o m m ittee recom m en d ation d o es p ose certain p rob lem s. For o n e thin g, it is not a lw a y s e a sy to d eterm in e the state o f the e c o s y ste m at the tim e o f C au casion in v a sio n . In w estern C an ad a, for ex a m p le, Indian trade routes m ade it p o ssib le for the B la ck feet, the Sh osh on i and other n ative p eo p les to ch a n g e from a su b sisten ce, sto n e-a g e culture to com m ercia l iron-age hunting o f b eaver and other an im als w h ile the European fur trade p osts w ere still hundreds o f m iles aw a y . A fine tem poral d iv isio n o f the Indian and the w h item an ’s landscape is therefo te hard to estab lish and perhaps not realistic. A nother problem w ith the L eop old sch em e is its sc ie n tific and ed u cational restrictiven ess. L an d scap es other than those existin g at the tim e o f the C aucasian arrival are o f great in tellectu al interest, as arc lon ger term ev o lu tio n a ry ch a n g es occu rrin g in the en viron m en t. C h an g es in vegetation and w ild life sp e c ie s, in ero sio n , and in land form s, h ave lo n g occurred in resp onse to ch an ges in clim a te and other b iop h y sica l p r o c e s se s , as w ell as in resp onse to hum an a ctivity. In this c o n te x t, any d ecisio n to control or prohibit hum an a ctiv ites in national parks can be q u estio n ed in relation to in d igen ou s native groups w h ose hu n tin g, burning, and other action s h ave had a fundam ental p lace in the ec o sy ste m for cen tu ries. W hat do w e m ean by the term “ nature" under these circu m stan ces? Is it not quite arbitrary to d ecid e at what point in tim e human a ctio n s and effe cts are “ unnatural” : and subject to control? A final reason for q u estio n in g the value o f a park p o licy aim in g at the estab lish m en t and m ainten an ce o f lan d scap es as they w ere at the tim e o f arrival o f the w hite man is the lack o f en th u siasm su ch a g o a l is lik ely to generate am o n g n on -w h ite grou p s. T h ese p eop les are lik ely to co n c e iv e o f la n d sca p es that are o f m uch greater historical sig n ifica n ce to them . In the U nited States and C an ad a, attem pts h ave been m ade to deal with the problem o f g o a ls through the co n cep ts o f era and evolu tion ary lan d sca p es (2 2 0 ). Era la n d scap es are those w here d isea se, fire and other p ro cesses are m anaged in order to m aintain the land as it w as at the tim e o f the fur trader, the rancher or early gold m iner. E volutionary lan d scap es are those w h ere no hum an interference is con tem p lated and

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the landscape is a llo w ed to ch an ge " n a tu ra lly ." independent o f m an. Such evo lu tio n a ry lan d scap es are, o f cou rse, still b ein g m anaged by m an, w h o has sim p ly taken the p o licy d ecisio n not to interfere directly in their d ev elo p m en t. R ela tiv ely few parks or reserves actu ally se em to be d elib erately m anaged as era or evo lu tio n ary lan d scap es, in part b ecau se o f lack o f the n ecessary historical e c o lo g ic a l research. O ne excep tion is Y osem ite N ational Park, w here co n tro lled burning is n ow b ein g con d u cted on the v a lley floor in an attem pt to rem ove the con ifers and recreate the oak savan n ah s o f early C aucasian tim e. In Y e llo w sto n e N ational Park, large evo lu tio n a ry zo n e s have been set asid e w h ere g rizzly bear, b ison and other a n im als roam freely. R ecreational u se is con trolled and hum an interference is m in im ized . S o m e roads traverse these areas, a llo w in g for sig h tse e in g . But visitors are w arned n ot to venture far from cars at risk o f injury from w ild life . T h e p o licy is to let fire, c y clic variations in anim al p o p u la tion s, “ o v e r -g r a z in g ,” and other p ro cesses run their co u rse, although if su ch p ro cesses occu r on a sc a le large en ou gh to threaten the v ia b ility o f a particular sp ec ies or the character o f the landscape rem nant as a w h o le, con trol m easures w ou ld be introduced. B efore lea v in g the topic o f p ercep tion s, attitudes and va lu es, their potential im portance in form u latin g zon in g and other land use regu la­ tions should be pointed out. A ttem pts to em p lo y land u se con trols en cou n ter the b asic problem o f h o w the kinds and lev els o f u se in an area are to be d eterm in ed and esta b lish ed . O r. to phrase the problem d ifferen tly , h ow do w e d eterm ine the carrying cap acity o f a zo n e or a park (7 4 )? T he p resen ce o f too m any p eop le, or o f certain typ es o f a ctiv ities or m a ch in es, for e x a m p le sn o w m o b ile s, can alter vegetation and eco sy ste m s as w ell as detract from recreational en joym en t p sy c h o lo g ica lly . But h ow do w e m easure and determ in e w h eth er a c h a n g e in v eg eta tio n or w ild life is sign ifican t? H ow e x te n siv e must erosion be before it is v iew ed as d angerous or d am agin g? S om e b io lo g ists speak o f " irrev ersib le " or " irretrievab le" eco sy stem ch a n g es as a result o f hum an a ctivity (3 1 5 ). W hat d o es this m ean in term s o f recovery tim e and character? W ill the sy stem never return to so m eth in g approxim ating its predisturbance co n d itio n , or w ill this o ccu r in tw en ty , or forty, o r o n e hundred years? H ow can on e m easure and determ in e w h en m a n ’s en joym en t has d ecreased sig n ifica n tly as a result o f cro w d in g , n o ise, or so m e other p rocess (1 9 )? H ow m any p eo p le m ust share this perception before m anagem ent con trols are introduced? R ela tiv ely few stu d ies h ave b een carried out on such prob lem s. T h e cla ssic research o f L ucas in the isolated Boundary W aters C an oe A rea o f northern M ich igan still rem ains a m ost instructive

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ex a m p le o f p erceptional d ifferen ces am ongst users and the relevan ce o f these d ifferen ces to zo n in g ( 1 7 3 ). Apart from lo g g in g , the m ain activity in the forests, stream s and lak es o f the Boundary W aters C an oe A rea is recreation , in clu d in g ca n o e in g , m otor boating and ca m p in g . L u ca s’ study reveals sig n ifica n t d ifferen ces in the w a y in w hich the various typ es o f users d efin e and d elim it w ild ern ess. H e in terview ed c a n o e ists, m otor boaters and others, in various parts o f the area, and co n clu d ed that, from a perceptual standpoint, there w ere tw o w ild ern esses: that o f the can oeist and that o f the m otor-boater. T h e ca n o eist's w ild ern ess w as the m ost se n s itiv e , being reduced by road co n stru ction , encounters with m otors and sim ilar c h a n g es. R em o ten ess and sig n s o f lo g g in g were not as im portant in flu en ces on the ca n o e ist’s w ild ern ess. A s a result of-his stu d y, Lucas su g g ested that, in order to c o n se rv e the c a n o e ist's w ild ern ess, the U .S . Forest S erv ice sh o u ld zo n e the Boundary W aters C anoe Area into the tw o p erceived w ild ern esses and regulate the type and am ount o f use in each zo n e acco rd in g ly .

Technology Little d etailed research is a v ailab le on the im pact o f tech n o lo g y on national parks and related reserves in C anada. R ecen tly the s n o w ­ m o b ile and other all-terrain v e h ic le s ( A .T .V .) h ave attracted attention b ecau se o f their w id e-ran ging environ m en tal effe cts ( 6 .3 1 .4 3 . 4 4 ,1 9 1 ) . T h e n o ise, w eigh t and m obility o f the sn o w m o b ile , and its u sers, have ch an ged v eg eta tion and w ild life . S tu d ies have sh ow n that the v e h ic lc a lso has a ffected sn o w ch aracteristics, so il tem peratures, sn o w m elt, so il ero sio n , n o ise , and other ecosystem , elem en ts and p ro cesses. T he sn o w m o b ile is o f sp ecial interest in the light o f current con cern about tech n o lo g y and environ m en tal im pact, for parks m ana­ gers gen erally fa iled to fo resee all the direct and indirect e ffe c ts o f the v eh icle and the reaction s these ch an ges ca u se am on g park users. After b ein g introduced rather q u ick ly into B an ff and other national parks during the I 9 6 0 's . sn o w m o b ile trails have been d rastically reduced in recent years. T h e e ffe c ts o f other te c h n o lo g y , for ex a m p le a u to m o b iles and trains, is often in tu itiv ely grasped but really not w ell understood quan­ tita tiv ely . B etw een the tim e o f its introduction about 1910, and 1970, the a u to m o b ile transform ed m uch o f B an ff Park. R oads were built alon g m any o f the m ajor v a lle y s in the 192 0 ‘s , I9 3 0 's and I9 4 0 's , a llo w in g a ccess to large num bers o f visitors. T h ese p eop le w ere then provided with g as sta tio n s, m o tels, restaurants, cam p sites and other fa c ilitie s. The e ffe c ts o f these fa cilities on w ild life and other a sp ects o f

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the eco sy stem h ave not been stu d ied in d etail. S im ilar d ev elo p m en ts occurred in other parks such as Point P elee, Elk Island and J asp er.(S ee F igu res 9 . 10, 11.) A major ch a n g e in p olicy se em s to have been m ade in 1971-72 w hen proposed major roads for the R o ck y M ountain and other national parks were ca n celled o n the b a sis o f p rofession al and citizen representa­ tions about their potential effe cts on lan d scap e. M ajor problem s still arc asso cia ted w ith ex istin g roads as w ell as to w n sites. and d ow n h ill ski areas, w ith their high tech n o lo g ica l load. G reater use o f pu b lic trans­ port w ill ea se so m e o f these e ffe c ts , but not others asso cia ted with increasing concentration o f large num bers o f p eop le in sm all areas. S u ch effe cts have led to the d evelop m en t o f environ m en tal im pact stu d ies in the U .S . and Canada ( 7 3 ,2 2 2 ). T h e aim is to foresee and take into account as m any potential environ m en tal ch a n g es as p o ssib le in m akin g a d ecisio n for o r again st land use ch an ge. Environm ental im pact studies are required by law in the U nited S tates, w h ere the Environm ental P rotection A ct ( E .P .A .) w as sig n ed by the P resident in 1970. T h is A ct requires the preparation o f a Statem ent o n the e ffe c ts o f a proposed d am , road, or other tech n ology on w ild life or other asp ects o f the eco sy ste m . C om m en ts are ca lled for on su ch th in gs as the “ irretrievable" nature o f any anticip ated e ffe c ts , long-term lo ss o f resou rces and p lan nin g altern atives. Initially the b iop h ysical ch an ges w ere o f greatest con cern , although the stu d ies are n ow b ein g exten d ed to in clu d e ch a n g es in em p loym en t opportunities and other social ph en om en a. In the U nited States, environ m en tal im pact statem ents are required to be circu lated to other con cern ed a g en cies for re v ie w . The statem ents are a lso a v a ilab le to the pu b lic for co m m e n ts. S o m e ch an ges h ave been m ade in proposed projects as a result o f a gen cy and citizen criticism , but others h ave g o n e forw ard , u n m od ified . E ven though C anada d oes not have E nvironm ental Im pact A s­ sessm en t leg isla tio n lik e that o f the U nited S ta tes, a num ber o f e n ­ vironm ental im pact stu d ies have been carried out in various parts o f the D o m in io n , for ex a m p le on the Jam es Bay P ow er S ch em e and the p rop osed tw inn in g o f the T rans-C anada h igh w ay through B an ff N a­ tional Park. T h ese C anadian stu d ies have certain d e fic ie n c ie s. In m ost ca ses they w ere prepared after a particular land use d ecisio n had been m ade, so that the opportunity to co n sid er a range o f alternatives w as lim ited . T he need for the d ecisio n often w as not dem onstrated c o n v in c ­ in g ly . T h e stu d ies a lso tend to be hastily prepared and provide in su ffi­ cien t data and an a ly sis for d ecisio n -m a k in g . S o m e stu d ies have been treated a s co n fid en tia l and not released to other govern m en t a g e n c ie s, nor the p u b lic, for com m en t. R esearch on m eth od s o f co n d u ctin g en viron m en t im pact stu d ies w o u ld be u sefu l, e sp e c ia lly w h ere this in v o lv es stu d ies o f proposed

Figure 9: Facilities Development in Banff National Park, 1930

Figure 10: Facilities Development in Banff National Park, 1960

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Campgrounds

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Picnic Sites

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Visitor Services

0

Ski Slopes

Cabins-Lodges

............. ....Railroad --------

Major Highway

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Secondary Highway

--------Public Access

Is miles

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Non-Public Access

i — Read—

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Proposed Roads

10 Mile Corridor

Figure 11: Facilities Development in Banff National Park, 1971

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projects in national parks and sim ilar reserves. Such research is a lo g ica l ex ten sio n o f historical e c o lo g ic a l stu d ies, and w ou ld probably ben efit from this type o f approach. E valu ation s o f the e ffe c ts o f en v i­ ronm ent im pact stu d ies on d ecisio n -m a k in g and resource m anagem ent a lso w ould be useful in d eterm in in g their overall social valu e. A few very general p oin ts should be m ade in co n clu d in g this paper. In m y v ie w , m uch m ore research on n ational parks, and other pu b lic reserv es, is required, if w e are to understand and better m anage this type o f resource. M uch o f the research sh ou ld be m ulti­ d iscip lin a ry . w h eth er carried out by a team o f sch olars, or an indi­ vid u al. M uch o f the research sh ou ld also have an applied orientation. A g e n c ie s su ch as the N ational R esearch C ou n cil tend to g iv e such w ork lo w priority. H op efu lly Canada C ou n cil w ill be m ore receptive. T h e D epartm ents o f Indian A ffairs and Northern D evelop m en t (D .I . A .N .D .) , E nvironm ent and Urban A ffairs sh ou ld en cou rage such research, a lo n g with their provin cial counterparts. Funds sh ou ld be provided to p ublish m ore o f the g o o d th eses that often rem ain unused in un iversity libraries. G overn m en t departm ents su ch as D .I .A .N .D . do not have a p u b lish ing program for departm ental and consultant reports and sh ou ld introduce o n e in order to bring m ore inform ation to the attention o f p ro fessio n a ls and the p u b lic, in the interest o f betler d ecisio n -m a k in g .

8. Som e B a c k g ro u n d T h o u g h ts on E n v iro n m e n ta l Im p a c t S tatem ents* J . G. Nelson

Intro d u ctio n In recent years d eterg en ts, p esticid es, all terrain v e h ic le s , dam c o n ­ struction projects and other tech n ical ch an ges have had far-reaching effe c ts on en viron m en t and have created a strong interest in the better prediction and m anagem en t o f tech n o lo g y . T h is interest is still co n c e n ­ trated, h o w ev er, on b iop h ysical and b ioch em ical ch an ges and not on so c ia l o n es. There are probably various reasons for th is, am on g them the b asic idea, at least in w estern s o c ie ty , that social organization and valu es sho u ld change in resp onse to tech n ical d ev elo p m en ts and c o m ­ m ercial o p p ortu n ities. Certain e x istin g social sy stem s are co n c e p ­ tualized as “ o ld ,” “ p rim itiv e” and “ back w ard ” and are often per­ ce iv e d as im pedim en ts to “ p ro g ress,” w here this is g en erally d efined as tech n ical and e c o n o m ic grow th . N ot to say that there have not been departures from this type o f thinking. B ut they really con stitute m o d ifi­ cation s on the b asic th em e rather than true ch a n g es in it. T h u s, in d iscu ssin g b en efit-co st an a ly sis o f proposed water p rojects, the e c o n o m ist, H o w e, refers to the need to con sid er the c o sts o f social c h a n g es, such as the d islo ca tio n o f p eop le from a j o b , a h om e area and a life s ty le , but in a cryptic and u n im p ressive w ay com pared to his d iscu ssio n o f p o w er c o s ts , b en efits o f recreational u se o f reservoirs and other factors that w e have learned to quantify in various w a y s (1 2 8 ). R ecen tly , certain “ futurists" h ave prom oted the con cep t o f tech ­ n o lo g y a ssessm en t, i.e . the study o f the effe cts o f tech n ical ch a n g es not o n ly on the p h ysical en v iro n m en t, but a lso on p opulation distribution, o ccu p a tio n s, in co m es, m arriage, the fa m ily , recreation and life sty les (9 6 ). M any o f these p eo p le urge a m uch stronger orientation to the future in planning. T h ey tend to denigrate the value o f h istoric stu d y. T h ey say that w e sh ou ld state what w e want the future to be and then work to a c h ie v e this rather than con tinu in g to think in term s o f co p in g with or m o d ify in g the present and the past. T h ey ad vocate the u se o f sim u lation tech n iqu es and scen arios in se lectin g the ideals or g o a ls for the future. W hile su ch thinking has m any attraction s, it a lso brings *G .I.R .M .S., D epartm ent o f G eography, W aterloo Lutheran University, W aterloo, 3, 1972 - 7 3 , 128 - 142. 165

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w orries and p ro b lem s. A b asic o n e is, do w e really want to d ecid e upon and know the d eta iled shape o f thin gs to c o m e , and work to in flu en ce their occurrence at the lo ss o f w h o k n ow s what potential even ts, ch a n g es and v alu es? D o w e h ave the k n o w led g e and w isd om to foresee and ju d g e the co n se q u en ce s o f our im ages o f the future? Rather rigid, d eterm in istic, g o a ls-o rien ted thinking b egs problem s covered by men like L e w is M um ford in their stu d ies o f ideal futures (2 1 3 ). S u ch utopias are often c o n c e iv e d in co m p letely and w ithout adequate aw aren ess o f their d isad v a n ta g es. Indeed, u top ias m ay be nearly attained and found w an tin g. If w e do want to plan d eterm in istically for the future, by w h om and h ow are the c h o ic e s to be m ade? W hat w ill b e the role o f the ex p erts, the p ro fessio n a ls and the public o fficia ls? What w ill be the role o f the in d iv id u a ls, the c itiz e n 's grou p s, the public? In this c o n te x t, there is a very real d an ger that determ in istic futuristic thinking w ill pull us farther aw ay from the careful con sid era­ tion o f the present and the past that is essen tial to understanding what and w here w e are so c ia lly , p sy c h o lo g ic a lly and en viron m en tally. W e cou ld very w ell pay ev en less attention than w e d o n ow to the often unappreciated u tilities and ad van tages o f certain social or cultural arrangem ents. A s p ro fessio n a ls, w e h ave tended to overlook the e c o lo g ic a l and cultural ad van tages o f certain p rim itive form s o f agricu l­ ture. such as the m ilp as, or o f " o ld " d ow n tow n residential areas or market p la ces. A s p ro fessio n a ls, w e often liv e apart from su ch things and so h ave great d ifficu lty in appreciating them until they are g o n e and w e h ave to c o p e with the e n su in g p rob lem s. S u rely this is one reason for the g row in g interest in p u b lic participation; those w h o are affected by proposals can provide a differen t v iew o f the nature and valu e o f things.

T h e E nvironm ental Im p act S tatem en t: Som e Difficulties E nvironm ental im pact stu d ies and statem ents are related to fundam en­ tal co n sid era tio n s like those ju st d escrib ed , but the present surge o f interest in them in Canada and other cou n tries arises c h ie fly from e v en ts leading up to and fo llo w in g the p a ssa g e o f the U n ited States ( U .S .) National E nvironm ental P olicy A ct on January I, 1970 (7 3 ). John Steinhart has describ ed the p olitical interplay am on g m em b ers o f C o n g ress, various govern m en t a g en cies and the U .S . P resid en t's o ffic e regarding this and a sso cia ted ch a n g es in environ m en tal p o licy and institutional arrangem ents ( 2 9 1 ). C reated w ere the C ou n cil on En­ vironm ental Q uality ( C .E .Q .) . a three man group o f high ex ecu tiv e rank, h ou sed in the E x ecu tive O ffic e o f the P resident; a C itizen 's A d v iso ry C om m ittee on E nvironm ental Q uality; and an O ffic e o f

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Environm ental Q u ality co n sistin g o f support sta ff for the C o u n cil. The E nvironm ental P rotection A g e n c y ( E .P .A .) a lso w as estab lish ed about th is tim e and g iv e n resp on sib ility for Federal W ater Q uality A d m in is­ tration, a group o f p esticid e program s, the N ational Air Pollution C ontrol A d m in istration . S o lid W aste, and other program s. T h ese had been h ou sed in other departm ents such as Interior; A griculture; H ealth, E ducation and W elfare; and C om m erce. T h eir rem oval has b een a s­ sociated with m uch hurly burly, attem pts to protect the bu d get, pow er p lays and other traditional institutional a ctiv ities. M any a g en cies or program s rem ain in rather aw kw ard states. For ex a m p le, the National O cea n ic and A tm osp h eric A g en cy rem ains in the D epartm ent o f C o m ­ m erce w here it operates the W'eather Bureau, the Bureau o f C o m m er­ cial F ish eries. M arine Sports F ish eries and other program s, in an en viron m en t that d iffers from that in E .P .A . A prim e instrum ent for en viron m en tal im provem en t under the general su p ervision o f the n ew C ou n cil on E nvironm ental Q u ality is the E nvironm ent Impact S tatem en t, w h ose character is d ifficu lt to d efine and m ay co n tin u e to be for so m e tim e. Part o f this d ifficu lty results from the adjustm ents n ecessary in govern m en t and private groups w h en ev er any major n ew requirem ent is p laced upon them . P eop le h ave to b eco m e aw are o f the legislation at all le v e ls o f resp onsib ility. P ersonnel have to be found and trained to work with the n ew system . M ore fu n d am en tally, the general legislation has to be con verted into reason ably w ell understood g u id e lin e s, procedures and practices, som eth in g that is p rovin g very d ifficu lt w ith E nvironm ental Impact S tatem en ts b eca u se o f the broad and e lu siv e nature o f the con cep t o f environm ent and its relation to cla u se s in the A ct. S o m e o f the d ifficu lty arises from the general introduction w hich b egin s the A ct. There it is said that the con tin u in g p olicy o f the federal govern m en t sh o u ld be to co-op erate with other le v e ls o f govern m en t and private org a n iza tio n s and use " a ll practicable m ean s" to m eet its o b je ctiv es. Is it p o ssib le to co -op erate in any e ffe c tiv e w ay w ith the im plied array o f state, local and private groups on environ m en tal m atters w ithout at least incurring very large n ew personn el and operat­ ing c o s ts . and this is at a tim e o f budgetary constraint in govern m en t in the U .S .? And w hat d o es “ p racticab le" mean in this co n tex t? T he Act also aim s to p ro v id e, " w h erev er p o ssib le , an en viron m en t w hich supports d iversity and variety o f individual c h o ic e ” , and to "approach the m axim u m attainable recy clin g o f d ep letab le reso u rces.” What do these cla u se s m ean in operational term s? H ow are they to be ap p lied on the different parts o f the U .S .? T h e sp e c ific cla u se in the A ct regarding the u se o f E nvironm ental Im pact Statem ents p o ses sp ecial d ifficu lties in interpretation and ad­ m inistration. T he relative cla u se . S e c . 102. C . reads:

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(C ) in clu d e in ev ery recom m en d ation or report on p rop osals for leg isla tio n and other m ajor Federal action s sig n ifica n tly affectin g the q u ality o f the hum an en viron m en t, a d etailed statem ent by the resp on sib le o fficia l on— |i] the environm ental im pact o f the proposed action . [ii] any ad verse environ m en tal e ffe c ts w h ich cannot be avoid ed sh ou ld the proposal be im p lem en ted , [iii] altern atives to the proposed action , [iv] the relationship b etw een local short-term u ses o f m an's en viron m en t and the m ainten an ce and en h an cem en t o f the long-term p rod u ctivity, and [v] a n y irreversible and irretrievable com m itm en ts o f re­ so u rces w h ich w ou ld b e in v o lv ed in the proposed action should it be im plem en ted . Prior to m akin g any d etailed statem ent, the resp on sib le Federal o fficia l shall con su lt with and obtain the co m m en ts o f any Federal a g en cy w h ich has jurisd iction by law or sp ecial exp ertise with respect to any en viron m en tal im pact in v o lv ed . C o p ies o f such statem ent and the co m m en ts and v ie w s o f the appropriate F ederal. S tate, and local a g e n c ie s, w hich are authorized to d ev elo p and en fo rce en viron m en tal standards, shall b e m ade availab le to the P resident, the C ou n cil on E nvironm ental Q uality and to the public as provided by section 5 5 2 o f title 5 U nited States C o d e, and shall a ccom p an y the proposal through the e x istin g a g en cy rev iew proc­ e s se s (73: 146-47). O b v io u sly , a host o f d efinition al problem s h ave to be w orked out here. M ost fundam ental is the sim p le q u estion o f w hat is an im pact? A m on g the array o f ch a n g es o f all typ es and m agnitu d es that fo llo w from the construction o f a road or the introduction o f a n ew ch em ica l, w h ich are to be id en tified as sig n ifica n t? On what b asis or criteria? A nd h ow are they to b e described? C la u se C a lso states that a Statem ent sh ou ld be prepared for major Federal a ctio n s. W hat d o es this m ean? In itially, it w as p erceived as a p p lying to federal a g en cies o n ly , but is n o w apparently b ein g in vok ed for h ou sin g d ev elo p m en ts and other projects carried out by private groups tied to fed eral funding and legislation . A m on g the other q u estion s that have arisen are the fo llo w in g . At what stage in the co n sid eration o f the various e ffe c ts o f a project should a Statem ent be prepared for circu lation to departm ents and the public for co m m en t? W hat sh ou ld be d on e w ith the com m en ts? S o m e State­ m ents appear to have b een m od ified after rece iv in g them . In other c a s e s , the co m m en ts se e m sim p ly to have b een attached to the original

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S tatem en t. The effe ct that the Statem ent and co m m en ts have had on the nature o f the project is d ifficu lt to determ ine in m any c a s e s, although there is so m e data, to b e co m m en ted on later, w h ich indicate m o d ifica ­ tions by the sp on sorin g a g en cy to reduce en viron m en tal im pacts. C la u se C a lso requires that ad verse environ m en tal im pacts be id en ­ tified . Physical and cultural p r o cesses, for ex a m p le flo o d s and apart­ m ent co n stru ctio n , are not a lw a y s readily d istin gu ish ab le in to ’’g o o d ” and “ b ad " im p acts, but m ay have intertw ined elem en ts o f both. H ow is " a d v e r se ” to be determ ined? A ltern atives a lso are to be provided for the proposed action . A g a in , there is the q u estion o f what range o f altern atives can fea sib ly be con sid ered ? Sim ilar d ifficu lties apply to other term s in the A ct, for e x a m p le, " irrev ersib le” and " irretriev a b le.” The b io lo g ists often speak o f irreversible ch a n g es. D o they m ean no exact return to present con d itio n s? If s o , is this reason able? D o they m ean return to som eth ing app roach in g a present clim a x forest or clear trout stream , and if so . b eyond h ow m any lifetim es or cen tu ries m ust w e pass for a return to such co n d itio n s b efore the ch an ge is con sid ered irreversible? A series o f other b asic q u estion s arose in the U .S . after the introduction o f the E nvironm ental Impact Statem ent requirem ent. S o m e o f these h ave been con sid ered in the C ourts. O ne w as when w ou ld the Act actu ally b eco m e e ffe c tiv e ? A test ca se with the A tom ic Energy C o m m issio n resulted in the ju d gm en t that the Act w as in force upon its date o f p assage and that all projects in p rogress or in the p lanning stage required an Environm ental Im pact S tatem en t. T h is has not b een a popular d ecisio n with th ose large a g en cies w h ose projects often require eigh t or ten years to co m p lete and are d ifficu lt to m od ify at a late planning stage. A nother q u estio n co n cern ed the ad eq u acy o f the Environm ental Im pact S tatem en ts. S o m e a g en cies in itially filed very su p erficial re­ ports with unsupported, sim p listic and rather standardized com m en ts 011 p o ssib le im pacts. For e x a m p le , " C on stru ction projects w ou ld in­ clu d e environ m en tal stip u lation s preventing p ollu tion o f stream s and lak es by fu e ls, o ils , bitum en . . . and by erosion after con stru ction is c o m p le te ." A num ber o f leg a l suits on su p erficial S tatem en ts resulted in ju d gm en ts that tend toward the " letter o f the L a w .” T h u s, in a proposed dam project for the A rkansas R iver the ju d ge noted that the d efen dan t m ust, u tilize a sy stem a tic and interdisciplinary approach u sin g natural and social sc ie n c e s and environ m en tal d esig n art. in clu d in g d is­ cu ssio n o f the value o f the river w ithout the d am , in clu d e all environ m en tal im pacts o f dam con stru ction , exp lore all alterna­ tiv es to dam co n stru ctio n , inclu d e all irreversible com m itm en ts o f

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reso u rces, and in clu d e co m m en ts o f fed eral, state and local ag en ­ c ie s (324: 2 5 -2 6 ). A nother early q u estio n co n cern ed the role o f the C ou n cil on E n viron ­ m ental Q u ality. At the m om en t its m ain aim apparently is to see that the environm ental im pact procedure w ork s, that overall g u id elin e s and inform ation flo w are a d eq u ate, and not very carefu lly to rev iew all S tatem en ts w hich are su b m itted , o f w h ich there are thou san d s. It and the O ffic e o f E nvironm ental Q uality are a clea rin g h o u se, a sou rce o f g u id a n c e, not om b u d sm en c o m m e n tin g on w h eth er or not a project sh o u ld g o forw ard. T h e C .E .Q . and its sta ff clearly do take a stronger interest in certain p rop osals, h o w ev er, and ad m itted ly work with a g en ­ cies on E nvironm ental Im pact Statem ents. What the d etails o f such w ork in gs are and w h eth er they co m p ro m ise C .E .Q . in any w ay is un k now n.

E valuation o f the E nv iro n m en tal Im p act S tatem en t T h e Environm ental Im pact Statem ents are b ein g evalu ated in a num ber o f w a y s. O ne is by the sp on sorin g agen cy its e lf w h ich can recon sid er its plan on the b a sis o f reaction to its initial S tatem en t. A nother m ean s is by C o n g ress, w h ich m ay use the E nvironm ental Im pact Statem ent as one o f the criteria for d ecid in g upon the funding o f projects subm itted by various a g en cies. H ow often th is has occurred in the U .S . is not k n o w n . E valuation can a lso b e m ade by another a gen cy w h ich is in a p ositio n to m ake its op in ion felt through its control o f licen sin g or so m e other m ech a n ism . T h e C oast Guard is the a g en cy charged with ju d g ­ m ent co n cern in g n avigation hazards on m arine w ater b o d ies. The E .P .A . ev a lu a tes m any S tatem en ts, for e x a m p le , those in v o lv in g p o s­ sib le air and w ater p ollu tio n or the harm ful e ffe c ts o f p esticid es or solid w a ste. A s w e h ave se e n . S tatem en ts a lso can be evalu ated and a ffected by the C ourts and by public op in ion in general.

Som e Effects of E nviro n m en tal Im pact S tatem en ts A lthough fe w . if a n y . scholarly stu d ies o f the e ffe c ts o f E nvironm ental Im pact S tatem en ts h ave yet been m ade, the results have been w id eranging and im portant. For ex a m p le, the en viron m en tal im pact re­ quirem ent has forced far m ore d etailed studies o f the e ffe c ts o f projects such as the Trans A laska p ip elin e . T he result has been a d elay in the con stru ction o f the p ip eline and probably the introduction o f a series o f m easures d esig n ed to reduce su b sid en ce o ver perm afrost, earthquake

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disturbance and other d a m a g es from p o ssib le oil sp ills. A g e n c y and pu b lic d isagreem en t o v er the need for the p ip elin e co n tin u es, h ow ever. T h is d isagreem en t probably a lso ex ten d s to the matter o f w hether or not the environ m en tal im pact requirem ent h as, in fact, been a good thing in the light o f the co m m o n percep tion o f the m agnitu d e o f the U .S . en ergy crisis and the need for fossil fu els to m eet it. Public a ccessib ility to the o v er forty v o lu m e s o f the E nvironm ental Im pact Statem ent on the p ip elin e h as b een d ifficu lt. A lim ited num ber o f c o p ie s w ere prepared and they can be con su lted at o n ly a sm all num ber o f location s in the U .S . H o w ev er, the W ild ern ess S o c ie ty , the Friends o f the Earth and other c itiz e n ’s g ro u p s have studied the Statem ents and used them in legal suits to d ela y and am end the project. Certain a g en cies h ave stated that so m e o f their procedures and p rojects have been m odified as a result o f the en viron m en tal im pact requirem ent. O ne is the C orps o f E n gin eers w h ich , am on g other th in gs, reportedly has ( 1)

R ev iew ed and ch an ged m any reservoir operation sch e d u les to en h an ce fish sp a w n in g, hold higher water le v e ls during the recreation se a so n , m in im ize late su m m er exp osu re o f mud flats, and provide additional flo w s for d ow nstream water quality.

(2)

Incorporated in all construction con tracts “ environm ental p rotection sp ec ifica tio n s with sp e c ific safegu ard s on e n ­ vironm ental degradation related to the con stru ction ac­ tiv itie s ."

(3)

Held “ pre-construction co n feren ces with the contractor to review and d iscu ss en viron m en tal asp ects o f the w o rk , the plant la y o u t, location o f construction roads, and livin g areas to m in im ize their im pact on en viron m en t" (154: 5 3 -6 0 ).

T h e C orps a lso h as m o d ified a num ber o f projects. For e x a m p le, a dam site w as m oved in the B ig W alnut R eservoir project. Indiana. O pen sp ace w as provided to save “ unique w ild life habitat” at M orrison C reek. C aliforn ia. At La Farge R eservoir. M in n esota, a m ultiple level outlet is to be provided w hich w ill create a n ew trout fishery d o w n ­ stream . In the ca se o f the C olu m b u s Lock and D am , M ississip p i, a dam site w a s m oved upstream to protect a valuable arch aeological site, w h ich the C orps has recom m en d ed for registration as a National Nature A rea. S o m e C orps projects a lso h ave been term inated. T w o ex a m p les are the B u ffa lo Bayou project. T e x a s, w hich in v o lv ed channel m od ifi­

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ca tio n s to increase d isch arge c a p a city , and the p rop osed ch an n elization and lev eein g o f the Jack and S im m erly S lo u g h s, C alifornia.

Som e P roblem s in M ethodology: T he P re p a ra tio n o f a S tatem ent M uch attention has been paid to the problem s associated with the preparation o f E nvironm ental Im pact S tatem en ts. L eopold and his c o lle a g u e s provided an early m o d e l, based on a m atrix, w hich id en ­ tified a large num ber o f ex istin g ch aracteristics and co n d itio n s o f the en viron m en t and proposed action s w hich m ay cau se environm ental im pact. T his m odel apparently has been u sefu l, e sp e c ia lly in c o n c e p ­ tualizin g and org a n izin g the interplay betw een the prop osed project or program , and the en v iro n m en t. B ut, the m odel is static and d o e s not really provide for an alysis o f p h ysical and cultural p ro cesses through tim e, nor o f the affect o f a tech n ical ch an ge on them , at least not w ithou t separate study and the preparation o f additional m aterial. The matrix a lso is d ifficu lt to use in ranking the im portance o f.th e various e ffe c ts. T he fault in the last se n s e lies as m uch in our lack o f k n ow led ge o f the various b io p h y sica l, b ioch em ical and so c ia l p rocesses as in the m atrix. S o m e c itiz e n 's groups have found the matrix m ethod overly d etailed and co n fu sin g . S o m e o f this co m p le x ity and uncertainty is, o f co u rse, very m uch a part o f the prop osed ch a n g es. B ut, it can be argued that a clearer m ethod cou ld be d ev elo p ed for pu b lic use. A nother m ethod o f preparing S tatem en ts has been d ev elo p ed by the B a telle Institute in the U .S . ( 3 2 3 ). Here the effe cts are d ivid ed into four m ajor c a teg o ries; e c o lo g y , environ m en tal p ollu tion , esth etics and hum an interest. W ithin each o f th ese categories a hierarchy o f other en viron m en tal c la s se s is id en tified for use in estim atin g the e ffe c ts o f a tech n ica l ch a n g e. A w eig h tin g sy stem is applied to these e ffe c ts in acco rd a n ce w ith ju d gm en ts on their sig n ific a n c e . The sy stem w as prepared sp e c ific a lly for use by the Bureau o f R eclam ation and has m any ad van tages and d isa d v an tages. A notable problem throughout is the perceptual o n e; for ex a m p le the w eigh t g iv en the various asp ects o f en viron m en t in determ ining the o verall sig n ifica n ce o f ch an ge is bound to vary con sid era b ly am o n g grou p s. T o illustrate, the e c o lo g y and hum an interest ca teg o ries are a ssig n ed 315 and 2 0 5 points out o f a p o ssib le 10 0 0 for the four c la sses. W hy? A pparently this allocation w as based largely on the p rofessional op in ion o f the study team , after so m e con su ltation with a lim ited sam p le o f co n cern ed citizen s. T he m eth od s and the results are ch a llen g ea b le. An exam in ation o f so m e o f the E nvironm ental Im pact S tatem en ts w h ich h ave been prepared by various a g en cies in d icates little apparent u se o f m ethods such as that o f L eop old or B atelle. T h e organ ization o f

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the S tatem en ts g en era lly parallels the operational clau se in the N .E .P .A . A ct; there is a presentation on the environ m en tal im pact o f the prop osed a ctio n , any adverse e ffe c ts , altern atives, and s o o n . A con sid era b le am ount o f research o b v io u sly has g o n e in to the prepara­ tion o f so m e o f the statem ents presented under these h ead in gs. But, there are clearly grou n d s for im provem ent in procedures. N eil O rlo ff, an o ffic e r in E .P .A ., has recently review ed problem s asso cia ted with E nvironm ental Im pact S tatem en ts and raised a number o f q u estio n s and recom m en d ation s co n cern in g their im provem ent (248; 2 9 -4 1 ). U nder the h ead in g. D ecision on P reparing A n E nviro n ­ m ental Im pact S ta te m e n t, O rlo ff m akes a num ber o f co m m en ts and su g g estio n s regarding the d ecisio n to prepare or not to prepare. First, he su g g ests that each a g en cy or organization c la s sify its activities in term s o f their lik elih o o d o f ca u sin g environm ental e ffe c ts . S eco n d , he rec­ o m m en d s that sulpher d io x id e e m iss io n s , therm al fluctu ations or other ch a n g es a sso cia ted with each o f these activities or groups o f a ctiv ities be id en tified . Third, he ad v ises id en tifyin g the b asic data w h ich w ill be used to m easure these e ffe c ts and the initiation o f proced u res to gather them (w h ere, by w hom and w hen in the planning p ro cess). Fourth, he su g g ests that a sp e c ific point in planning be selecte d for d ecisio n as to w hether or not to prepare a Statem ent. The fifth step is to provide d etailed gu id an ce on the criteria to be used in m aking the d ecisio n to prepare or not to prepare a S tatem en t. O rlo ff a lso u n d erscores another b asic problem in preparing S tate­ m en ts. i.e . what is the “ proper project en tity” ? H ow sh ou ld an interre­ lated series o f projects w ithin an overall w atershed m anagem ent project by han d led? Into h o w m any se ctio n s sh ou ld it be broken? Such q u estio n s h ig h lig h t major problem s and p itfalls. A too broad d efin itio n o f a project m ay m ake an E nvironm ental Im pact Statem ent quite su p erficia l, c o s tly , or d ifficu lt to d o . ev en g iv en long-term stu d ies. An narrow d efinition raises the p o ssib ility o f lea v in g out valuable inform ation and p o ssib le altern atives. In this co n tex t, O rloff su g g e sts tw o le v e ls or types o f E nvironm ental Im pact Statem ent. The first w ou ld be a broad o v e r v ie w and the se co n d a m ore d etailed treatm ent. He a lso supports the idea o f the a g en cies preparing Hand­ b o o k s o r G uides on projects that co m e up o ften . P resu m ab ly, these H andbooks w ou ld include con cep tu al fram ew ork s for preparing S tatem en ts at the tw o le v e ls o f sig n ific a n c e . O rlo ff d o es not say so ex p licitly but o n e feels that he is in favour o f honest ad m ission o f d e ficien cies in data o r in theoretical or other k n ow led ge n ecessary to predict and deal with certain environ m en tal im p acts. There has b een a ten d en cy to g lo ss o v er such problem s in the past. Failure to se e them reco g n ized in reports on major projects in future sh ou ld arouse su sp i­ cio n .

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O rlo ff a lso stresses that any en viron m en tal im pact fram ew ork sh o u ld b e m od elled in such a w ay as to provide for fuller consideration o f altern atives. H e recom m en d s that o b je ctiv es be id en tified for a project, w ith reason s for the settin g o f th ese g o a ls. T he fram ework sh ou ld describe the range o f alternatives gen erally to be con sid ered and sh ou ld require detailed d escrip tion s o f all alternative action s that w ill acco m p lish the o b je c tiv e s, in clu d in g estim a tes o f relative c o s ts . He recom m en d s in clu d in g the results o f any b en efit-co st a n a ly sis. Many w ou ld feel that su ch an an a lysis sh ou ld be an integral part o f en viron ­ m ental im pact appraisal. A b ib liograph y is a lso con sid ered d esirable by O rloff. H e a lso stron gly supports n otifyin g the public o f the d ecisio n as to w hether or not an Im pact S tatem en t is to be prepared. A negative an n ou ncem en t w ill do no harm , he sa y s, and cou ld result in the su b m issio n o f inform ation w hich m ight cau se the a g en cy to ch an ge its m ind. Injunctions and other p rob lem s cou ld fo llo w a con tested d ecisio n not to prepare and publish a S tatem en t. O rlo ff fe e ls the announcem ent to prepare should be m ade early in order to g iv e the public a ch an ce to respond in the b eg in n in g sta g es o f d ecisio n -m a k in g , perhaps providing “ n e w " in sigh ts, id ea s, p ercep tion s, attitudes or other inform ation. O rlo ff n otes that an an n ou ncem en t o f intent to publish or not to publish is not n o w required in the U .S . leg isla tio n , b u t, lie feels that it should b e. F in a lly , O rlo ff recom m en d s a com m on c o d in g and inform ation sy stem for E nvironm ental Impact S tatem en ts. T h is w ould m ake a ccess to and u se o f them ea sier. Such a sy stem now se e m s to be in increasing use in the U .S .

E nvironm ental Im p act S tatem en ts in C a n ad a A s far as Canada is co n cern ed , the A m erican exp erien ce raises -a num ber o f q u estio n s. S h ou ld the federal and provin cial govern m en ts require E nviron­ m ental Im pact S tatem en ts like those in the U .S .? S h ou ld these be asso cia ted with leg isla tio n like that in the U .S .. w h ich requires circu la­ tion o f the Statem ent am ong_intcrested a g en cies and the p u b lic? S h ou ld the leg isla tio n in clu d e the estab lish m en t o f a group such as the C ouncil on E nvironm ental Q uality and the O ffic e o f E nvironm ental Q uality? A v a ila b le inform ation on the e ffe c ts o f the u se o f the Statem ents su g g ests that they h ave co n sid erab le social v a lu e. S om ew h at sim ilar E nvironm ental Im pact S tatem en ts h ave already been prepared in Canada for projects su ch as the prop osed P ickering airport. B ut. these are quite superficial in so m e w a y s, for ex a m p le , in term s o f e c o n o m ic and so cia l e ffe c ts . M oreover. lliey w ere not prepared until very late in

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the planning p ro cess. A g e n c ie s such as the parks departm ents in vari­ o u s p rovin ces o f C anada, or the N ational Parks B ranch, do not now require S tatem en ts, although the National Parks Branch has c o ­ operated with the D epartm ent o f Public W orks in preparing o n e on the p rop osed tw inn in g o f the Trans Canada H igh w ay through B a n ff Na­ tional Park. A cc e ss to co m p leted Impact S tatem en ts is not e asy in C anada. The E nvironm ental Im pact Statem ents for the prop osed tw inn in g o f the Trans Canada apparently are not to be con sid ered at a p u b lic hearing or m ade availab le to the p u b lic, althou gh they are being sent to certain c itiz e n 's groups for criticism and evalu ation . G oin g to court o v er any o f these m atters, in C anada, is not lik ely to b e fruitful for the p lain tiff, in part, b ecau se o f traditional Canadian legal and sociZil attitu des, and in part b ecau se o f a lack o f a legal b asis like that provided by the U .S . N .E .P .A . A nother serio u s problem is that if the Court finds in fa v o u r o f the d efen d an t, the p la in tiff can b e held resp onsib le for the c o s ts o f any resulting d ela y . S uch c o sts can be very high for projects costin g m illio n s o f d ollars. A cco u n tab ility for such c o s ts is said to b e n ecessary to protect c o m p a n ies and a g en cies and to prevent friv o lo u s su its. On the other hand, it has the effect o f lim itin g public ch a llen g es against co n ten tio u s p rojects, so m e o f w h ich could h ave large unw anted im ­ pact. In su m . there se e m to b e a num ber o f reason s w hy legislation like N .E .P .A . sh ou ld be passed in C anada and w h y C ou n cils on E nviron­ m ent Q uality sh ou ld be con sid ered for estab lish m en t at the level o f the Prem iers and the Prim e M inister. Environm ental Im pact Statem ents sh o u ld be m ore frequently prepared and w id ely availab le. At this tim e, they se em in g ly need not be associated with any cen tralized d e c is io n ­ m aking function in g o v ern m en t, but can sim p ly p rovid e the inform a­ tion n ecessa ry for m ore e ffe c tiv e participation by p olitician s and the p u b lic in land u se and en viron m en tal p rob lem s. T h e A m erican sy stem o f p u b lish in g lists o f a vaila b le S tatem en ts through a central o ffic e is a m odel that cou ld be fo llo w ed in C anada. T h e lists could be sent to p u b lic libraries, u n iv ersities, tech n ical c o lle g e s and interested people or g rou p s. Not all citizen s can be ex p ected to take advantage o f them . Indeed that is not a reasonable v ie w o f p u b lic participation. But m any w o u ld , as is n orm ally the ca se in a dem ocratic system . T h e fo regoin g co m m en ts are no m ore than personal resp on ses m ade at a stage in the d ev elo p m en t o f environ m en tal im pact studies and an a ly sis. M any th in g s m ay ch a n g e. It m ay be that m ore legal teeth w ill be required in order to prevent unw anted en viron m en tal e ffe c ts . Such leg isla tio n m ay b e e sp e c ia lly n ecessary in the ca se o f the social effects o f p roposed d ev elo p m en ts. Cultural an th rop ologists, in the I9 5 0 's and I9 6 0 's w ere co n cern ed with a ssessin g the im pact o f technical ch an ge

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on various kinds o f le v e ls o f s o c ie ty , prin cip ally from the standpoint o f ea sin g the transition to “ m odern w a y s " and m in im izin g injuries to in d ivid u als and grou p s in the p rocess. In spite o f this interest and w ork, the e ffe c ts o f tech n o lo g y h ave g o n e o n , and m any cu ltu res, n eigh b our­ hood s and p eo p le h ave been ch an ged in w ays they did not w ant. M ost o f these groups w ere m inorities like the n atives in C anada's north, m any o f w h om are n ow sa y in g that they d o not want to ch an ge their way o f life . T h ey d o not want d a m s, h ig h w a y s and the w hite m an’s prog­ ress. B ut, they are fighting against con tinental and international ec o n o m ic forces and an id eo lo g y accep ted by very large num bers o f p eo p le. T h ey are the o n es w h o are raising the test ca ses in Canadian C ourts on environ m en tal m atters and land rights in areas su ch as Jam es B ay. D etailed and w ell written stu d ies o f the im pact o f tech n o lo g y and western culture upon the native p eop les cou ld result in their future being con sid ered m ore c a refu lly . W e m ust ask w h y they sh ou ld ch an ge at all i f they d o not w an t, e sp e c ia lly as so m e o f them live on lands never con sid ered in any treaty with the C anadian govern m en t. And s o w e return to the ideas set forth in the Introduction. H o p efu lly , the S tatem en ts w ill not b eco m e so standardized, so c e n ­ tralized , s o oriented to sp e c ific o b je ctiv es that they b eco m e to o m uch a part o f our tech n o lo g ica l thrust, o f the tech n iqu e w h ich worried Jacques Ellul (8 5 ). E nvironm ental Im pact S tatem en ts cou ld be used principally as a m eans o f id en tify in g and m o d ify in g or elim in atin g action s that reduce cultural and p h ysical d iversity rather than as part o f a planning p ro cess leading to a set o f d eterm in istic overall o b je ctiv es. In practice, such o b je ctiv es m ay be in co m p letely thought ou t, illu sory, or d ecep ­ tiv e, and o f rela tiv ely m inor operational im portance. T h ey g iv e the accountant an opportunity to ca teg o rize his b u d get. But, the m anipula­ tion o f funds and adm in istrative action am on g line item s is u su ally a con tin u o u s p ro cess. M oreover, m any projects are ju stified in term s o f go a ls that are o n ly part o f the m otivation for undertaking th em . For ex a m p le, m any stu d en ts, and other c itiz e n s, are hired by govern m en t a g en cies not so m uch to a c h ie v e certain thin gs as to have so m eth in g to do and to earn in co m e. M any h igh w ay projects are undertaken with su ch em p lo ym en t very m uch in m ind. If this em p loym en t is a b asic o b je c tiv e , a fundam ental part o f pu b lic p o lic y , then let that be stated as a g o a l. T h e various alternative w a y s in w hich such em p loym en t can be provided can then b e put forward and exam in ed in term s o f their environm ental e ffe c ts . Such em p lo y m en t program s and other public and private projects c o u ld b en efit from the preparation o f E n viron m en ­ tal Im pact S tatem en ts. T h ey w ou ld be one m ean s o f a llo w in g the citizen to a ssess g o a ls, altern atives and e ffe c ts , and to participate along with the p ro fessio n a ls and p o litician s in in flu en cin g the future. In this w a y , E nvironm ental Im pact S tatem en ts cou ld p rovid e a m eans o f

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g a in in g k n o w led g e o f public p ercep tion s, attitu des and v a lu es and a v o id in g undesirable ch a n g es in en viron m en t and lan d scap e, as w ell as preventing lo ss o f flex ib ility , op p ortu n ity, c h o ic e and freedom in C anada. A s a fo cu s o f inform ed d iscu ssio n , am on g p ro fessio n a ls, p o liticia n s and c itiz e n s, E nvironm ental Im pact S tatem en ts can contri­ bute m uch toward better resou rce and en viron m en tal m anagem en t in C anada.

9 A C ritiq u e o f the E n v iro n m e n ta l Im p a c t S tu dy, T r a n s - C a n a d a H igh w ay , Miles 0-7.8, B anff National P a rk * J . G. Nelson

In tro d u ctio n T H E preparation o f this E nvironm ental Im pact Statem ent is a m ileston e in land u se m anagem ent in C anadian national parks. A lthou gh the Statem en t can b e subjected to strong criticism , this criticism , and any socia l va lu es that accrue from it, w ou ld be im p ossib le if the Statem ent had not b een prepared. T he National and H istoric Parks Branch is to be congratulated for h avin g requested the Statem ent as is the D epartm ent o f Public W orks for co-op eratin g in carrying the n ecessary studies out. In this critique w e intend to evalu ate the Statem ent from the standpoint o f b asic m eth o d o lo g y , so m e o f its con ten ts and the co n clu ­ sio n s. The criticism s on m eth o d ology are based on so m e k n o w led g e o f the em erg in g literature on en viron m en tal im pact assessm en t. Partly b ecau se o f its recent d ev elo p m en t, en viron m en tal im pact assessm en t en co m p a sses a variety o f approaches and tech n iqu es that largely are still in the testin g sta g e. A num ber o f these m ethods are not w id ely k n ow n . T h is handicaps con su ltan ts and adm inistrators charged with their use and interpretation. T he E nvironm ental Impact Statem ent under con sid eration here is based on a variation o f the overlay tech ­ n iq ue, associated w ith the architect and planner, Ian M cH arg, and lon g em p lo y ed by geographers in various land use projects. Other m eth od s, such as that o f L e w is, the architect and planner, h ave been review ed in various p u b lication s as h ave the problem s associated with en viron m en ­ tal im pact a ssessm en t in general (1 0 ,7 3 ). In the near future w e can ex p ect new environm ental a ssessm en t m ethods to be d ev elo p ed as w ell as useful com b in a tio n s o f ex istin g m ethods.

T he Scope o r the P roject EntityO n e o f the basic problem s in environm ental im pact a ssessm en t is d efin in g the appropriate sc o p e o f the stu d y. T o state this problem in another w a y , what is the proper project entity? In d iscu ssin g a proposal *T his p a p e r o rig in ally a p p eared in P a rk N e w s , 9 , 2 (1 9 7 3 ): 13-24. 178

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for a p ow er d am , fo r e x a m p le, sh ou ld o n ly that dam be co n sid er ed , or the entire series o f dam s and assorted fa cilities o f w hich it is o n ly a part? In the co n tex t o f this critiq ue, w hat is the proper project en tity for the proposed additions to the T rans-C anada H igh w ay? The consultants apparently have been asked to prepare a Statem ent o n ly for the short 7 .8 m ile se g m en t o f the Trans-C anada betw een the East G ate and the h igh w a y interchange to B a n ff to w n site. But the prop osed tw in n in g has im p lication s for the rem aining ap p roxim ately o n e hundred m iles o f the T rans-C anada through B a n ff park, as w ell as the hundreds o f m iles from the w est boundary o f the park to V an cou ver. S ection s o f this h igh w a y pass through G lacier N ational Park in the Selkirk ran ge. B .C . and the Fraser C a n y o n . T h e problem s in h ig h w a y con stru ction and operation through G lacier Park and the Selk irk s are reasonably w ell k n ow n . The rugged, steep terrain m akes con stru ction co sts h igh . S n o w d ep th s and avalan ch e shelters h ave been built across the h ig h w a y at the base o f avalan ch e tracks leading from the surrounding m ountains. It is doubtful w hether these avalan ch e paths w ill con tin u e to conform to the tracks that they o ccu p ied w hen the h igh w ay sh elters were con stru cted . C osts o f adjusting the shelters to a ccom m od ate to natural sh ifts in the tracks can be ex p ected to be h igh , as can any attem pts to tunnel to avoid avalan ch e e ffe c ts . S n o w and ice con d ition s also m ake it d ifficu lt to use the Selkirk sectio n o f the Trans-C anada con tin u ou sly and safely through the w inter and spring. S im ilar cautionary remarks co u ld be m ade about further construction in the steep -w a lled Fraser C anyon leading to V an cou ver. C onstruction and m ainten an ce co sts associated w ith rock falls. w a sh o u ts and other p ro cesses su rely must be su b stan ­ tial. A nother problem w ith preparing an environ m en tal im pact as­ sessm en t for o n ly the 7 .8 m iles b etw een the East Gate and B an ff tow n site is that this constrains o n e 's v ie w o f the sig n ifica n ce o f ch an ges w ithin this area for the park as a w h o le . Thus the con su ltan ts com pare v egeta tio n ty p e s, w ild life habitat, drainage con d ition s and aeq u ifers am o n g the various parts o f the 7 .8 m ile study unit, but they d o not relate these characteristics to the rest o f the B o w V a lle y , nor to the park as a w h o le. F ew data are provided on the veg eta tio n , w ild life or other characteristics o f the rest o f the B ow V a lley . But en ou gh is k n ow n from other stu d ies to raise so m e sign ifican t q u estio n s. For in stan ce, at one point in the report, it is noted that “ all the w hite tail d eer, tw o thirds p f the w ap iti, and o n e third o f the m ule deer are found b e lo w an elevation o f 4 ,5 0 0 feet in the C anadian R ock y M ountain N ational P ark s." Study o f availa b le topographic m aps sh o w s that m uch o f the land lyin g b elo w this elev a tio n is located in the low er B o w V a lle y , and a large part is b elo w B an ff, w ithin the 7 .8 m ile s stated for the con stru ction o f the tw inn ed Trans-C anada. Other relatively large areas with sim ilar e le v a ­

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tions and w ild life habitat are located in the vicin ity o f the North S ask atch ew an C ro ssin g or in the lo w er Red D eer R iver V a lle y . near the eastern park boundary. The last area is not a c c e s sib le to m ost tourists. Furtherm ore, the overall area in the park with elev a tio n s less than 4 5 0 0 to 5 0 0 0 feet is rela tiv ely sm a ll. T h e w ild life , grasslan d . D o u g la s Fir and other flora and fauna associated with su ch lan d scap es arc therefore rela tiv ely rare in the park and are w orthy o f sp ecia l care in m an age­ m ent. In d eed , the relatively lo w lyin g grassland and savannah land­ sca p es that occu r in such areas are not com m on throughout the western parks. M o reover, they tend to be located at the v a lle y en tran ces to the m oun tain s and so are subject to an u nusually high d egree o f h igh w ay, ca m p site and other d ev elo p m en t. A nother g o o d ex a m p le o f su ch an area is the parkland corridor lead in g into W aterton National Park. T h is area has been con sid erab ly altered by roads, ca m p sites, gravel pits and other features. It is clea r, therefore, that the E nvironm ental Impact Study for the 7 .8 m iles b etw een the East G ate and B an ff to w n site offers in su fficien t sc o p e for a ssessin g the sig n ifica n ce o f h igh w ay con stru ction or other land u se ch a n g es in B a n ff National Park as a w h o le, or for ou tlyin g areas w h o se character could be ch an ged by the p rogression o f TransCanada d ev elo p m en ts w h ich ev en tu a lly w ou ld fo llo w tw inn in g o f the first 7 .8 m iles o f the h ig h w ay w ithin the park.

T h e Need A n other fundam ental point that sh ou ld be covered in an environ m en tal a ssessm en t study is the need for the project under con sid eration . W e are not g iv en m uch data on need in the S tatem en t. T he principal com m ent reads as follow s: W ith both com m ercia l and recreation d em and s on the h igh w ay increasing at a rapid rate, it w as not d ifficu lt to predict as early as the b eg in n in g o f the " s ix tie s '' that the traffic v o lu m e s w ou ld soon reach the d esig n ed ca p acity le v e l. In d eed , traffic su rveys c o n ­ ducted in 1967 revealed that v o lu m e s w ere e x c e e d in g m axim um capacity le v e ls on 50% o f the w eek d ays and on 100% o f w eek en d s based on a verage hourly v o lu m e during the dayligh t hours. T h ese c o n d itio n s prevail throughout m ost o f the tourist sea so n . T h is statem ent d o es not provide m uch b asis for thou gh t and ev a lu a tio n . Indeed it is co n fu sin g in that it fails clearly to d elin ea te the study period. Initially it reads a s if the data are for the entire year. But the co n clu d in g sen ten ce su g g e sts that they are for o n ly part o f the

TRANS-CANADA HIGHW AY

18!

tourist se a so n . W hat part? Furtherm ore, how is the m axim um cap acity level m easured in quantitative term s? W hat proportion o f the traffic or ■‘d em a n d " is com m ercia l rather than recreational? H ow m uch o f the traffic is p roceed in g o n ly to B a n ff to w n site and h o w m uch is passing through the park to other d estin ation s? What are these d estin ation s? T h e E nvironm ental Im pact S tatem en t g o e s on to co n clu d e that " M ore recent su rv ey s indicate the con tin u ed grow th in the u se o f the h igh w a y and therefore the need for tw o additional lanes is b ecom in g m ore and m ore im m in en t" .

T h e A lternatives T h is co n clu sio n raises another fundam ental point pertaining to e n ­ vironm ental im pact a ssessm en t stu d ies, i.e . they sh ou ld co n sid er alter­ n atives. Here the in crease in traffic is seen as lead in g d irectly to the need for tw o additional lan es for the T rans-C anada. But in w hat other w ays cou ld the traffic be handled? C ou ld so m e type o f sc h e d u lin g be used? For ex a m p le, what proportion o f truck or com m ercial traffic runs at night w hen tourist traffic is lo w ? H ow m uch m ore cou ld be run at that tim e, e sp e c ia lly in the high tourist season o f July and A ugust? A s another approach, m uch o f the traffic co n g estio n on the T rans-C anada b etw een the East G ate and B a n ff tow n site is cau sed by the con striction at the East Gate itself. T h e T rans-C anada narrow s from four lanes ou tsid e the park to tw o w ithin and the traffic a lso has to pass through the G ates w here any m otorists w h o h ave not paid an entrance fee earlier have to stop and obtain a stick er, slo w in g and b lock in g the overall traffic H ow . S u rely a better arrangem ent c o u ld be d ev ise d for handling these p aym ents and the traffic at this entrance. O ther altern atives a lso cou ld be con sid ered , esp e cia lly if the Trans-C anada is to be tw inn ed b eyond B an ff to w n site in the near future. For e x a m p le, a new h igh w ay c o n c e iv a b ly co u ld be constructed through o n e o f the m ountain p asses south o f B a n ff Park. T h e fea sib ility o f such a venture dep en d s on what traffic v o lu m e s are lik ely to be a lon g the T rans-C anada in say fifteen or tw en ty years. W hether estim a tes o f this traffic h ave b een calcu lated is not k n ow n . O ne w ou ld e x p e c t, h o w ev er, that an y availab le estim ates w ou ld be very large. If such traffic is to be diverted through the Bow V a lley and the present T rans-C anada to the w est then con stru ction c o s ts and probable im pact cou ld be great indeed. Should the present TransCanada b e d ev elo p ed in crem en tally to h andle such traffic and im pact or sh ou ld a larger v ie w be taken and alternative routes con sid ered , inclu d ­ ing the p o ssib le d ev elo p m en t o f a T rans-C anada route alon g present H igh w a y 3 through the C row s N est P a ss, m ore than on e hundred m iles

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to the so u th , near the U .S . border? In thinking about this last p o ssib il­ ity , o n e sh ou ld k eep in m ind that the con tem p lated ch a n g es in the T rans-C anada in v o lv e tens o f m illio n s o f d ollars and s o con stitute a m ajor force for e c o n o m ic d ev elo p m en t and ch a n g e w herever located . Other altern atives und oub ted ly ex ist w h ich cou ld be considered by a group c o m m issio n ed to think alon g broader lon g term lines. Furtherm ore, w e should a lso recogn ize that any p rojected large in­ crea ses in auto traffic a lon g the T rans-C anada m ay not. in fact, occur. E nergy sh ortages, particularly o il and g a s. cou ld ca u se substantial rises in travel c o sts and drastically reduce the apparent need to undertake c o stly en largem en ts o f the T rans-C anada. T h e p o ssib ility o f such price in creases se em s strongest in the U nited S tates w h ich is a m ajor source o f tourists for W estern C anada. H o w ev er, the con su ltan ts w ere not ask ed to take the broad v ie w , w hich se em in g ly sh ou ld be part o f the first phase o f any en viron m en tal im pact a ssessm en t. Rather they agreed to con d u ct an en viron m en tal im pact study for the first part o f the program ( 7 .8 m iles) and " in c o r p o ­ rate the results into the final en g in eerin g , locational and d esign co n sid ­ erations. . . . It w as hoped that the study w ou ld in addition to sa tisfy in g the environ m en tal co n cern s, p rovid e valu ab le inform ation for the in progress planning stu d y o f traffic w ithin the park and facilities m eetin g the sch ed u le for b eg in n in g the tw inn in g p rogram ." T h is statem ent stron gly su g g ests that the D epartm ent o f Public W orks is co m m itted to tw inning the T rans-C anada and the en viron m en ­ tal im pact study is intended o n ly to assist in se lectin g the route.

T h e Route Let us n ow turn to a con sid eration o f the stu d ies carried out b etw een the East Gate and the B a n ff turnoff and the recom m en d ation s m ade for a route through this area. T hree p o ssib le routes w ere con sid ered (Figure 12). T h e first. Corridor A , p arallels the e x istin g T rans-C anada up to the Carrot C reek, w h ere it sw in g s north and takes a cou rse a lo n g the top o f the upper terrace or b ench. T h e se co n d altern ative, Corridor B . p arallels the C .P .R . railw ay right o f w a y throughout the 7 .8 m ile study area. T his alternative in v o lv e s the relocation o f ap p roxim ately three m ile s o f railw ay line. T h e third altern ative. Corridor B -I. in v o lv es b u ildin g the n ew lanes im m ed ia tely adjacent to the ex istin g h ig h w a y . S o m e railw ay relocation w ou ld be in v o lv ed in this alternative. In attem pting to se lect am ongst three altern atives, su rficial g e o l­ o g y and lan d form s. drainage (su rface and ground w ater), v egetation , s o ils , fish and w ild life habitat, visual resou rces and arch aeological sites

Figure 12: “Corridor Alternatives'

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w ere m apped. T h ese c o m b in ed m aps and related theoretical con sid era­ tions and field data on erosion and other p r o c e sse s, w ere a n alyzed in term s o f anticipated E nvironm ental Im pact, E ngineering C on sid era­ tions (in clu d in g co sts) and P lan n in g and V isual Im p lication s. A d e­ tailed d iscu ssio n o f these m atters is set out in the E nvironm ental Impact S tatem en t and cannot be presented here. It w as co n clu d ed , h o w ev er, that Corridor B w as the best alterna­ tiv e. Corridor B -l w as thought least d esirable for tw o b a sic reasons. First, it traverses ‘ 'certain e c o lo g ic a l u nits” and “ ca u ses d am age to o th e r s.” It is d ifficu lt to d eterm in e the relative sig n ific a n c e o f this ob jection as it a ctu a lly cou ld be applied to all three potential corridors. S eco n d , and m ore im portant. Corridor B -l “ raises a major b iological ob jection on the b a sis o f sid e by sid e tw in n in g . S cien tific ev id en ce rev ea ls that the num ber o f h ig h w a y anim al k ills m ore than d ou b le as a result o f this type o f four lane d e sig n ." Corridor A is rated a b o v e B -I, apparently largely b ecau se it w ould result in con stru ction through “ a relatively undisturbed area” and seco n d b eca u se it " is d ifficu lt to predict the total im pact in term s o f n o ise p o llu tio n ." H o w ev er, uncertainty about n oise p ollu tion also appears to hold for the other tw o alternatives as w ell. T h e p o sitiv e points cited in favour o f B . the preferred alternative, are that it “ p arallels an ex istin g corrid or." the railw ay, and “ skirts areas o f sig n ifica n t e c o lo g ic a l im p o rta n ce.” Corridor B a lso is co n sid ­ ered to o ffer " th e superior a lign m en t with resp ect to visu al ex p erien ce from the ro a d .” H o w ev er the cla ssific a tio n and evalu ation o f scen ery u sed in the report is rather su p erficial and arbitrary. M any p eop le w ould probably prefer Corridor A . w hich sits atop the terrace and o ffer s many attractive v ie w s and ex p erien ces. Corridor A is a lso ranked low er than the others b eca u se it is c lo s e to the p ow er transm ission lin e. It is d ifficu lt to attach m uch n egative w eigh t to this factor h o w ev er, as it is to any detailed con sid eration o f the scen ery b ecau se the proposed h ig h w a y is to be a lim ited a c c e ss route d esign ed to sp eed the traveller to h is destination as q u ick ly as p o ssib le. T h is type o f h igh w ay is an om a­ lou s and in co m p a tib le with a national park, w here the em p h a sis is on scen ery and the a esth etic and in tellectual en joym en t o f the landscape. T he requirem ents o f truckers and com m ercial users sh ou ld take second p la ce. T h e tourists require a slo w e r p ace and the opportunity for turnoffs and p a u ses not o ffered by a lim ited a c c e ss route. If the h igh w ay is built, the sp ec ifica tio n s sh ou ld be rev iew e d and the en gin eers and planners ch a llen g ed to bring forth a d esig n com p atib le with the superb en viron m en t, its en joym en t and use. It is a lso p oin ted out in the Statem ent that the burrow pits required for Corridor B co u ld have a n eg a tiv e im pact, u n less properly located and treated. T h e present T rans-C anada route is already m arked by

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burrow pits and debris m oun d s, e sp e c ia lly b etw een B an ff tow n site and Lake L o u ise. A n y route w hich in v o lv ed con sid erab le fillin g , as B apparently d o e s, w ill in v o lv e m uch b u rrow in g, an activity that lea v es m ajor scars on the landscape. T h is a ctivity sh ou ld be lim ited in the park and a s m uch fill as p o ssib le obtained ou tsid e its b ou n daries, even though this w ou ld be relatively ex p en siv e . T h e preferred corridor. B , se e m s to h ave m ajor potential n egative en viron m en tal im pacts w h ich are not su ffic ien tly recogn ized in the stu d y . It traverses lon g stretch es o f floodp lain and low terrace. A s the report in d ica tes, these areas o ffer sh elter and habitat for elk and other an im als in w inter. M oreover, this habitat is located at rela tiv ely low elev a tio n s and is not co m m o n in the park. C orridor B could a lso have major d isad van tages from the h yd rologic and so ils stan d p oints. It w ou ld interfere w ith drainage and cou ld cau se su b sid en ce o f underly­ ing organ ic m aterials. The B o w R iver a lso has a lon g Hood h istory. M ajor inundations occurred in the I 8 8 0 's , 1 8 9 0 ’s , early 1 9 0 0 's. 1 9 2 0 'sa n d 19 3 0 ’s . T h ese w ere clim a tic flo o d s induced largely by a com b ination o f h eavy rains, high tem peratures and m uch sn o w m elt in sp rin g. M ore lo ca lized ice jam H oods also have occurred frequently a lo n g the B o w , although the d etails o f their history are not w ell know n for the area under study. F lo o d in g , erosion and a sso ciated problem s are not con sid ered ade­ quately in this E nvironm ental Im pact S tatem en t. Y et they bear stron gly on the ad v isa b ility o f se le c tin g alternative B. In our v ie w , the e c o lo g ic a l im pacts o f Corridor A do not loom as large as those for B . The area that w ou ld be disturbed is largely cloth ed in ap p roxim ately n in ety year old lo d g ep o le p in e forests w h ich g rew up after fires and other d isturbances fo llo w in g upon railroad construction and op eration , lum bering and other p ion eerin g a ctivities o f the late nineteenth and early tw entieth cen tu ries. S uch lo d g ep o le pine stands are rela tiv ely co m m o n in the park and do not com p are aesth etically and e c o lo g ic a lly with the flo o d p la in vegetation and w ild life habitat alon g Corridor B. T he Environm ental Im pact Statem ent an ticip ates problem s with certain sp aw n in g stream s and other se n sitiv e areas located at a few sites alon g Corridor A . H o w ev er, ad verse e ffe c ts probably cou ld be m in im ized or a v o id ed by careful planning and by so m e in vestm en t in environ m en tal sa feg u a rd s. N ol m uch attention is d evoted to this p o ssi­ b ility in the E nvironm ental Im pact Statem ent. T he major e c o lo g ic a l ob jection to Corridor B -I— the p o ssib ility o f a large num ber o f anim al injuries and d eaths— is an im portant o n e. But a substantial increase in su ch a ccid en ts cou ld w ell occu r with a n y o f the proposed altern atives. M o reo ver, it m ay w ell be that such accid en ts w ou ld be high a lo n g preferred route B; e sp e c ia lly in w inter, w h en ice

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co n d itio n s and e lk , deer and other an im als can be found relatively frequently in the H oodplain area that this route traverses.

S um m ary In su m , there are major reason s for h avin g reservations about this E nvironm ental Im pact Statem ent and the se lectio n o f Corridor B. i) the Statem ent is lim ited in sc o p e and d o es not ad eq u ately deal w ith the im pact o f the 7 .8 m ile addition or o f future ex p ected ad d ition s in B a n ff Park and other areas a lo n g the route to V an­ co u v er. ii) the need for the addition is not dem onstrated , nor are alterna­ tiv es to any ex istin g traffic problem s serio u sly con sid ered , the lo n g term im p lication s o f con tin u in g to d ev elo p the Trans-C anada as the so le m ajor ea st-w est route in C anada have not been e x ­ am ined nor related to other altern atives, such as H igh w ay 3 to the south. iii) the an a ly sis o f the three alternative corridors b etw een the East G ate and the B a n ff traffic cir c le , and the selection o f Corridor B , is not c o n v in c in g , e sp e c ia lly on eco lo g ica l grounds. If an un d erlyin g reason for p roceed in g with this project is the stim ulation o f em p lo y m en t and the ec o n o m y , h ig h w a y s can be co n sid ­ ered else w h e r e , or other projects can be undertaken. T he thrust o f this rev iew and critique is that on the b asis o f the inform ation provided in the Environm ental Im pact Statem ent it w ou ld be u n w ise to proceed w ith the tw inning o f the Trans-C anada in the m anner su g g ested at this tim e.

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