The divisiveness of the creation of a national park for the South Okanagan was clearly evident at a public meeting sponsored by the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society out of Vancouver on Wednesday, Feb. 22 in Osoyoos.
At the end of an emotion-filled 90-minute presentation by Chloe O’Loughlin, director of  terrestrial conservation with the parks and wilderness society,  held in a packed meeting room of 60, it became abundantly clear local citizens and community leaders believe the only way this issue can be decided once and for all is by holding a public referendum.
Terry Lake, B.C.’s Minister of the Environment, announced one month ago the province was withdrawing support for a national park in the South Okanagan. Lake’s announcement came as a surprise to many considering nine years of negotiations had taken place starting with Parks Canada and the federal government announcing a feasibility study on the idea dating back to 2003.
While O’Loughlin made it very clear the parks and wilderness society strongly supports the creation of a national park, several opponents who attended the meeting made it clear this issue continues to divide residents of the area.
One man, who left the meeting early, suggested park proponents have ignored hunters and outdoor enthusiasts from day one.

“What do you know about hunting and recreation?” he said in a loud voice towards O’Loughlin. “Why do we have to have this park right here in the heart of the Okanagan Valley? Put it somewhere else.”
Osoyoos Mayor Stu Wells seemed to capture the spirit of the debate when he insisted a public referendum is the only way to end this debate and show the provincial government exactly what members of the public want.
“Nothing that has happened here today is going to change anyone’s mind,” said Wells, who has supported the creation of a South Okanagan-Similkameen (SOS) national park for several years. “We can have meetings forever and ever and nothing is going to change. All the numbers and figures we’re seeing today are all challengeable. We just keep going on and on with this.
“I think the only solution is let’s put it to a vote and get on with things … let’s hold a referendum and we should all be able to accept the answer no matter what it is. We should be looking to wrap this up.”
Dennis St. John of Willowbrook echoed the same sentiments, adding he believes it’s shameful the province has now released the feasibility study that took five years and $2 million to complete.
“I would like to see this put to the community,” said St. John. “This feasibility study should be published because a lot of people would change their mind. We need full transparency and an opportunity to look at all the facts and we can’t do that because right now we have a secret document that took almost eight years to produce and no one is being allowed to look at it.
“That seems a bit ridiculous.”
Aubrey White of Osoyoos, a member of the B.C. Wildlife Federation, said his association’s 100,000-plus members have been asking tough questions about the proposed park for years, yet Parks Canada staff have refused to meet with them or provide the answers they were seeking.
“We’ve had virtually no response,” he said. “The devil is in the details and we haven’t been given any details. We’d love to be involved, but we haven’t been asked. That’s the problem.”
O’Loughlin’s presentation was overwhelmingly in favour of the creation of a national park, saying the park would not only protect dozens of endangered species, but would create jobs and significant positive economic spinoff and boost tourism across the region.
While the province has withdrawn support, the “federal government is absolutely committed to this park” and is willing to resume negotiations in a heartbeat, as is Parks Canada management, she said.
In her opinion, the biggest reason the province has withdrawn support is the lack of vocal support from community leaders and people in a position of influence throughout the South Okanagan and Similkameen areas.
“In my opinion, they have not heard enough local support at this time to move forward,” said O’Loughlin.
Public opinion polls and surveys clearly show the majority of the public supports a national park, but those people with influence such as municipal politicians and business leaders have not been vocal enough in supporting the park, she said.
To appease those opposed, Parks Canada has reduced the size of the park from 650 square kilometers to less than 280 and completely eliminated the Snowy Protected Area, which hunters and outdoor enthusiasts wanted to remain as is, said O’Loughlin.
The business case for the park is strong as B.C.’s other seven national parks generate tens of millions of dollars in direct and indirect spending, she said.
“And all costs for the national park would be paid for by the federal government … it wouldn’t cost anyone around here a penny,” she said.
Parks Canada has an outstanding record of providing exceptional forest fire protection services and water and drought management, which were concerns of many opponents to the park, she said.
Three public opinion polls conducted since 2008 indicate more than two-thirds of the public support a national park and the science used to conduct these polls is solid, she said.
Suggestions ranchers in the area are against the park are not true, she said.
There are 12 ranchers in the affected area and they have been guaranteed they can keep their land for as long as they wish and pass it on from generation to generation, but can sell at fair market value should they decide to do so, she said.
“From my perspective, until we have buy in from the First Nations and ranchers, we can’t proceed,” she said.
The four First Nations organizations in the South Okanagan are formulating a detailed plan to be released this fall in relation to the national park, but have made it very clear they’re disappointed with Lake and the province’s decision to withdraw support, she said.
At the end of the day, the Canadian Parks and Wildlife Service remains committed to sharing information about the true value of the park and its job is not to sway opinion, but present facts and allow people to make up their own mind, she said.