Riverlot 56 steward Georges Binette was relieved to hear the natural area will not be delisted from the provincial parks system.
“We’ve been working hard trying to convince the government to reverse the delisting and other people have been doing the same thing. So, we were quite relieved when they lifted it,” said Binette.
On Dec. 22, in a press release, the provincial government announced that none of the parks and recreation sites that were slated to be removed or delisted under the Budget 2020 optimization plan would be delisted, including Riverlot 56.
“Many Albertans, including myself, love and value our parks and wild spaces. With more Albertans than ever staying in the province, now is the ideal time to ensure we all have access to these spaces and that they remain protected," Environment and Parks Minister Jason Nixon said in a media statement.
The government was able to maintain or find partnerships for 170 of the parks and all parks in the system are able to keep their current designations and protections, including sites that have not yet been able to confirm partnerships.
Though Morinville-St. Albert UCP MLA Dale Nally was not available for an interview, he posted a Facebook video shortly after the announcement was made.
“We have just announced that the Riverlot 56 Natural Area Society will be the stewards and we've just signed a 10-year lease for them to continue to manage this area,” he said.
The lease with the stewardship society begins June 28, 2021, and will be honoured until 2031. Binette said the lease is similar to past leases and is very specific about what the society can and cannot do.
“We can’t cut down trees, we can’t make new trails,” said Binette.
If they do have concerns or issues that need to be addressed, they have to go through the parks department.
“We're stewards of the land, so we basically take care of it ... We just manage it for the government, so we're doing it for free,” said Binette.
Riverlot 56 has been managed by the Riverlot 56 Natural Area Society since their first lease in 1984 and Binette has been a part of the society since the beginning.
He was surprised when he first learned the lot was on the list to be removed from the parks system – it is a very popular area and costs the government nothing to run.
Back in February 2020, the Gazette reported the government had announced they would be closing 20 parks and removing another 164 parks – that were said to be small and under-utilized – from the park system. The move was made to save the province $5 million.
The announcement received major pushback from environmental groups and citizens alike who had concerns that removing Alberta park status from parks could remove environmental protections.
The government has asserted, throughout the year, that these concerns have been unfounded and the intention as part of Budget 2020 was to work with Albertans and move parks, identified by Environment and Parks operations staff as suitable for partnerships, into precisely that.
Marie Renaud, MLA for St. Albert, said it was one of the top four issues she had heard about from constituents in 2020.
“I think that Albertans from all over, as well as organized groups, were very loud and very, very assertive in their demand that the UCP listen to them,” said Renaud.
Renaud said it was gratifying to see the government acknowledge Albertans were not happy with the parks plan.
“I'm relieved to see that they've stopped and backtrack. But I'm very cautiously optimistic. And I will pay a lot of attention to see what they do, after they consult, to see what the consultation looks like, number one, but also to see what happens after this,” said Renaud.
In a press release, the government said it will continue to work with organizations through long-standing operational partnership systems and more partnerships are expected to be rolled out in the coming months.
