When was the last time you had the opportunity to explore Canada’s wilderness? Was it with someone you loved, on a road trip through the mountains? Or perhaps it was sitting around a campfire surrounded by magnificent trees?

If you’re like us, chances are it was in one of our spectacular national parks. With more than 300,000 kilometers of Canada’s land protected by Parks Canada, there is more to see than ever. But what actually protects these beautiful places? And what does “protection” even mean?

Read on to learn more about some of your favourite places in Canada’s backyard.

Canadian Parks: A Backgrounder

“There are 37 national parks and 10 national park reserves in Canada that represent 31 of Canada's 39 terrestrial natural regions and protect approximately 336,343 square kilometers of Canada's lands.”^[1] 

This is the Parks Canada introduction to national parks (NP) in Canada. The Parks Canada mandate is to “protect and present nationally significant examples of Canada’s natural and cultural heritage, and foster public understanding, appreciation and enjoyment in ways that ensure the ecological and commemorative integrity of these places for present and future generations,” on behalf of the people of Canada.^[2] They are a federal body whose first priority is to preserve and protect, and whose second is to present that which they protect to the public.

^[3] Map of Canada’s National Parks

Parks Canada is governed by the Canada National Parks Act (S.C. 2000, c. 32).^[4] Individual parks and park reserves are created by the authority of specific regulations that are made under this Act. The specific protection of land given by the Act comes in s. 13, providing that a) no public lands or right or interest in public lands in a park may be disposed of, and b) no person shall use or occupy public lands in a park. Land protected by the Act is by default public land that belongs to the Crown—this means that privately owned land cannot generally be protected by the Act.

To acquire land for a park or reserve (whether new or in expansion of an existing one), the federal government must adhere to ss. 4 and 6 of the National Parks Act, and the Expropriation Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. E-21).^[5] These sections outline that land to be incorporated into a protected area must be given or sold to the Crown, or expropriated in adherence to the Expropriation Act.

Here's some more information on Canada’s National Parks System Plan, if you want to read more about existing parks and how they are managed.

Canada’s Big Goals for Parks:

In June of 2021, Canada was among the G7 nations who agreed to a Nature Compact—committing to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030. The goal includes protecting at least 30% of land and ocean in Canada by 2030.^[6] 

Canada has some work to do to achieve this 30 by 30 target. At the time of signing onto the Nature Compact, our country had only protected 13.5% of its land and 13.9% of its waters. In response to this, The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (a non-profit organization that was created in 1969 to watchdog Parks Canada and the protection of public lands) published Roadmap to 2030: Delivering on Canada’s Land and Ocean Protection Targets. Roadmap provides the following recommendations to the federal and provincial governments to actually make 30 by 30 happen:^[7] 

1. Everyone involved needs to work together  
2. Provinces and territories need to set ambitious targets for themselves
3. Indigenous-led conservation needs to take priority
4. Existing conservation projects need to get completed, and fast
5. Long-term funding is going to need to be increased, and
6. We need to identify additional areas for protection

Let’s talk about that last one.

We Need More Parks: Where Should They Go?

With the ambitious federal target of protecting 16.5% of our country’s land in the next 8 years, it’s time to get creative. Every single province and territory needs to pull its weight. In Saskatchewan, there are currently just over 6 million hectares of protected land—or 9.76% of the province.^[8] This is far under the national average, and even farther from the federal goals for 2030. Of course, choosing new areas to protect can be a very difficult conversation. Much of the Southern half of the province is in use as agricultural land, much of the North spoken for by mining and forestry industries. No one wants to diminish Saskatchewan’s future economic success (especially in the financial climate that we currently face) by locking off valuable resources under the auspices of “protection.” So it’s time to get creative.

That’s where the idea of National Urban Parks (NUP) come in. Parks Canada has proposed these as partnership-driven projects that would create protected spaces in the center of large cities.^[9] In August of 2021, the Government of Canada invested $130 million in the NUP network, and the time has come to begin putting that money to good use.^[10]  Rouge National Urban Park in Toronto was the first NUP to be officially created, and its ongoing success currently acts as a model for other Canadian cities who want to do the same.^[11] The currently proposed homes for new NUPs include Edmonton AB, Halifax NS, Victoria BC, Windsor ON, Winnipeg MB, and Saskatoon SK.^[12] 

^[13]

Governance models for NUPs are constructed on a park-by-park basis. The possible models include:

• Federal administration by Parks Canada (like Rouge National Urban Park)  
• Administration in partnership between Parks Canada and local partners
• Third party administration, where local governments, Indigenous groups, or other organizations take charge of daily operations of the NUP.

The federal government is committed to creating 6 new NUPs by 2026.^[14] 

A National Urban Park in Saskatoon?

Jonathan Wilkinson, former federal Minister of Environment and Climate Change, was a driving force in suggesting Saskatoon as a candidate for NUP. It’s no coincidence—he grew up here, getting his first degree from the University of Saskatchewan in 1988. Between his history in Saskatoon and the Meewasin Valley Authority’s powerful advocacy for our unique ecosystem, Parks Canada is well aware of the potential that Saskatoon has for a new NUP.^[15] 

Because there is so very little precedent for NUPs both in Canada and globally, actually implementing a new NUP is no small task. All that can be said for sure is that consultation with local communities must take priority. This includes local governments and Indigenous groups, but it also includes businesses, organizations, and citizens whose city will play host to the NUP. That’s a lot of consultation to undertake.

Public consultation for the proposed Saskatoon NUP is expected to begin in the coming months. In the meanwhile, representatives at the table who are helping put together the specifics of where the NUP would go and how it would be managed include Meewasin, Parks Canada, The Government of Saskatchewan, Corman Park, the Saskatoon Tribal Council, the Métis Nation, the University of Saskatchewan, Wanuskewin, and a handful of other organizations who can meaningfully contribute.^[16]

A good way to stay informed as Saskatoon’s very own NUP is under consideration (and to contribute your own thoughts and wishes) is to follow Wild About Saskatoon as they monitor the NUP’s creation. Hosts of the annual Nature City Festival in Saskatoon, and when the public consultation window opens later in 2023, they will be the first to let you know about it

The Next Steps for Saskatoon’s NUP

Saskatoon has been identified as a good ecologically representative area: in a region with about 5% of its natural ecosystem left intact, the Meewasin Valley holds a world of opportunity to create a microcosm of biodiversity that supports healthy fragments of prairie, riparian woodlands, and wetlands.^[17]

The proposal stage has been successful, and the hard part has to begin. Now the actual logistics of selecting an area with real boundaries has to happen, along with an assessment of the feasibility of the park itself. This includes the consultation period, where commentary will be solicited from all levels of government and the residents of the city. Special attention will be paid to the voices of local indigenous groups.

Should the consultation period be successful, Parks Canada will proceed to negotiate agreements with local landholders under the authority of the Canada National Parks Act, creating a new regulatory framework for how the NUP will operate on a daily basis, and what specific protections will be afforded to the Meewasin Valley. The Rouge National Urban Park is protected by the Rouge National Urban Park Act (S.C. 2015, c. 10), and while something similar to this would theoretically be put into effect for the Saskatoon NUP, it will not be identical.

The whole appeal of national urban parks as an effective conservation measure is that they are adaptable. The Rouge National Urban Park Act provides for agricultural activities that are permissible, and for activities that will improve the park lands. While something like this will likely be in the theoretical provisions for a Saskatoon NUP, it is certain that it will not look identical.

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If Canada is ever going to succeed at meeting its targets of protecting 30% of its land and waters by 2030, every single region is going to need to chip in, and we’re all going to need to get creative. National urban parks are just that—a creative, adaptable way to give protection to the vulnerable ecosystems that need it the most, while providing urban populations with spaces where they can learn about all of the wonders that our planet has to offer.

Be sure to do your part! Watch closely in the coming months, and speak up when Parks Canada asks if you want an urban park in your city—because they will, and your voice is the one that they are going to listen to.