What is this "Save Jasper National Park" all about?

[Flabbibulin]

Ive been receiving emails and facebook messages all morning about some petition to stop Harper from "privatizing Jasper National Park" etc etc blah blah blah. Judging by the gullibility of the senders of these emails, I am wondering if this is a bit of a hoax? I cant find any online articles from legitimate news agencies on this. All I could find on google is talks of an American company building a 300m walkway in the park.

Anyone know anything about this??

[Street Pharmacist]

Hmmm. Hoax methinks. Jasper is a National Park

[GoinAllTheWay]

Privatizing Jasper?? AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAahahahahahah.

[burn_this_city]

I got an email about this as well..

Dear friends across Canada,

In days, the Harper Government will privatize a section of Jasper National Park and let an American-owned company blast a 300m metal walkway into our World Heritage mountains -- but Jasper's Superintendent has the power to stop them.

The plan would not only spur development, but would give an American company the right to charge each of us for entry into Jasper park. Greg Fenton, a local Jasperite, has the ability to stop the privatization of the park he grew up in and loves -- but he's bending to brutal pressure from the Harper Government. Let's send him a tidal wave of support and give him the strength he needs to stand up to Harper and save our Rocky Mountain sanctuary.

Private international companies should not be profiteering off our national treasures. Click here to ensure our parks stay in public hands -- sign the petition calling on Fenton to save Jasper National Park before it's too late:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/jasper_development/?vl

The 300m metal walkway over the the world-famous Icefields Parkway will be built by Brewster Canada -- a premium travel company that is an 80% owned subsidiary of the American-based company VIAD. Both are fully profit-driven companies that value their bottom line over the preservation of our natural heritage.

VIAD and Brewster have hired expensive heavyweight lobbyists to win over the Harper Government and Jasper National Park and set an irreversible precedent. But our voice can easily drown out the dangerous message coming from these corporate lobbyists.

Our voice needs to be heard by Greg Fenton, the Park’s Superintendent and the person who has the final say on the approval of the project. With thousands of Canadians pounding on the door of Fenton’s office this is our chance to ensure that Jasper does not set a precedent allowing commercial operators to convert our National Parks into profit-making attractions.

[troutman]

Editorial: Parks Canada looking to be financial trailblazer
Parks Canada is wise to look at ways of boosting revenue

http://www.calgaryherald.com/opinion...402/story.html

[Flabbibulin]

Originally Posted by Street Pharmacist

Hmmm. Hoax methinks. Jasper is a National Park

Ooops, mistake on my part. Fixed

[Bring_Back_Shantz]

Bunch of stupid hippies.

A company opening an attaction and charging admission is not even remotely similar to privatizing Jasper National Park, and "give an American company the right to charge each of us for entry into Jasper park" (something we all do to the GoC anyway).

Private companies already operate within the parks and I don't have a problem with that.
Without services and attractions, the parks would see far fewer visitors than they already do.

Why not build things (within reason) to promote people to come enjoy the parks and experience some of the best Canada has to offer.

[corporatejay]

Nationalize all ski hills!

[MarchHare]

Will Brewster be paying a lease to the owners of the park (i.e. the citizens of Canada) to construct and operate their for-profit walkway on public land? If so, provided the terms of the lease are fair to us taxpayers, I don't have a problem with this -- the money brought in from the lease can be used to improve the national parks system as a whole.

And it's not like they're trying to get logging or mineral rights or do anything else that would destroy the environment and natural beauty of Jasper.

[Bring_Back_Shantz]

Originally Posted by MarchHare

Will Brewster be paying a lease to the owners of the park (i.e. the citizens of Canada) to construct and operate their for-profit walkway on public land? If so, provided the terms of the lease are fair to us taxpayers, I don't have a problem with this -- the money brought in from the lease can be used to improve the national parks system as a whole.

And it's not like they're trying to get logging or mineral rights or do anything else that would destroy the environment and natural beauty of Jasper.

But...but....American....corporation....admission. ...lobbyists.....


BTW, last I checked Brewster already charges everyone admission....for the snow coaches they run up onto the ice fields. My god, it's already too late.

[Flabbibulin]

Originally Posted by Bring_Back_Shantz

Bunch of stupid hippies.

A company opening an attaction and charging admission is not even remotely similar to privatizing Jasper National Park, and "give an American company the right to charge each of us for entry into Jasper park".

Private companies already operate within the parks and I don't have a problem with that.
Without services and attractions, the parks would see far fewer visitors than they already do.

Why not build things (within reason) to promote people to come enjoy the parks and experience some of the best Canada has to offer.

Yuh, it seems that some very minor elements of the story are "accurate"- Parks canada looking at ways to increase revenue etc... So, someone creates a campaign called "Save Jasper National Park from privatization" and people run with it based only on the headline...

Still, Im watching a pretty interesting argument on facebook between this tree hugger i know and a couple other people- just for context, the tree hugger emailed everyone a couple months ago about the 'ol baking soda cures cancer shtick.

[burn_this_city]

Originally Posted by Bring_Back_Shantz

But...but....American....corporation....admission. ...lobbyists.....


BTW, last I checked Brewster already charges everyone admission....for the snow coaches they run up onto the ice fields. My god, it's already too late.

You forgot Harper that will get a lot of these people whipped into a frenzy.

Not sure how I ended up on their mailing list, but I haven't asked for removal because I find their emails amusing.

[Bobblehead]

Originally Posted by burn_this_city

You forgot Harper that will get a lot of these people whipped into a frenzy.

Not sure how I ended up on their mailing list, but I haven't asked for removal because I find their emails amusing.

It is already working.

A friend of mine who teaches in China posted a link about this on his facebook and it generated a few irate "Stupid Harper" comments.

While I'm not sure I'm in favour of what is being proposed (it looks like an eye sore to me) the hyperbole in the article makes it so that I will not support the article even though I am somewhat sympathetic to it.

And yeah, there are already lots of "for profit" things in the parks - it is a stupid article.

[getbak]

Since Brewster already operates a hotel by the Icefields and runs the Icefields tours, they already are profiting from our National Parks (plus, they run the Banff Gondola and Banff Lake Tours).

Are there any renderings of what exactly is being discussed here, anyway?

Even if the scare tactics of the petition, it doesn't really sound like it's anything more than what is already all over the National Parks now, hiking trails and railings and probably some steps and stuff so that it's easier to walk around the glacier area, and to ensure people don't kill themselves by falling into crevices.

If it's a walkway elevated above the glacier, isn't that better than what we have now where people can walk all over the glacier to their hearts' content? If you're limiting the amount of direct contact that people can have with the glacier, isn't that better than having people walking all over the glacier's surface?

[MarchHare]

If it's a walkway elevated above the glacier, isn't that better than what we have now where people can walk all over the glacier to their hearts' content? If you're limiting the amount of direct contact that people can have with the glacier, isn't that better than having people walking all over the glacier's surface?

BUT..BUT...PROFIT...AND AMERICANS...AND HARPER!!!!11one

[Cowboy89]

All this 'activism' from avaaz.ca is so over the top that my first instinct whenever I see that they are involved with something is to be vehemently against whatever position they advocate.

Only on avaaz.ca can a 300m bridge to be used as a park attraction that charges seperate admission and actually subsidizes other park user fees get spun into 'Jasper National Park is being privitized and sold to capitalist fat-cat Americans by an evil Stephen Harper as he munches on the rinds of babies'

[Northendzone]

personally, i'll wait for a group of celebrities to band together to tell me what i should think about this issue. until then, i remain on the fence as i like national parks, and i like walkways - to me combining them together would bring the best of two worlds together. but what do i know.....

[Wormius]

I thought I had heard about something similar proposal for Mt. Rundle in Banff. Some easy means for people to climb up it.

[GreatWhiteEbola]

Those who are against this proposition are discriminating against the disabled!!!! Can I not enjoy the beauty of the National Parks from my wheelchair?!!!11eleventy-one!

Oh I love being a person with rational thoughts.

[topfiverecords]

http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/desi...ts-at-waf/1831