OIB Chief Clarence Louie, MLA Linda Larson and former B.C. Environment Minister Mary Polak announced in January 2017 that talks with the feds on a national park reserve were resuming. More than a year and two governments later, there have been very few intergovernmental meetings on the issue. (Richard McGuire file photo)

Two different B.C. provincial governments last year announced with fanfare the resumption of talks with the federal government to establish a national park reserve in the South Okanagan, but those talks have been few and far between.

There have only been two formal intergovernmental meetings on the proposal since the January 27, 2017 announcement by the former B.C. Liberal government that they were resuming talks with Parks Canada.

That announcement was made by former B.C. Environment Minister Mary Polak at the Nk’Mip Desert Cultural Centre, along with MLA Linda Larson and Osoyoos Indian Band Chief Clarence Louie.

The Canada-B.C. Steering Committee met once on Feb. 15, 2017, but discussions ended as the B.C. government headed into an election. A follow-up meeting scheduled for June 2017 was cancelled as the B.C. Liberal government was facing defeat in the legislature.

Only in March this year did the two governments, along with First Nations representatives, resume meetings. This was the first such meeting for the NDP government.

This information came to light after the Osoyoos Times filed an Access to Information request with Parks Canada for agendas and minutes of meetings about the national park reserve between August 2017 and the middle of February 2018. The request came up empty.

A spokesperson for Parks Canada acknowledged that the Canada-B.C. Steering Committee hasn’t met since February 2017. That committee involving key officials in both governments often met monthly before the B.C. Liberals broke off talks in 2011.

There was a joint announcement on Oct. 27, 2017 between federal and provincial governments and the Okanagan Nation Alliance that the governments were reengaging, but there were no formal meetings prior to that announcement, said the Parks Canada spokesperson.

“Following the [October 2017] announcement, initial discussions have taken place to organize how the work on the establishment of the national park reserve will proceed,” she said. “These discussions have also occurred mainly through teleconferences.”

She said there have been no decisions made with respect to the national park reserve since the October 2017 announcement.

“It is important to note that the process to move forward on creating a national park reserve in the South Okanagan was put on hold for approximately seven years,” she said in an emailed response to the Osoyoos Times. “There has therefore been a need to review where the work ended in 2011 and begin to plan future work accordingly.”

No details were provided on what was discussed at the first trilateral meeting in March, but the spokesperson said Parks Canada looks forward to continuing this work and another meeting is scheduled shortly.

“Among the work that needs to be addressed in the forthcoming meetings is a consultation approach and a timeline,” she said.

Parks Canada will continue to respond to questions from interested parties, organizations and members of the public as the process advances, she added.

RICHARD McGUIRE

Osoyoos Times