Protecting 30% of BC by 2030
Natural ecosystems and protected areas are at the core of our identity, culture and form the backbone of a sustainable economy. In 2022, BC committed to protect 30% of lands and waters by 2030, in partnership with First Nations. Protecting natural ecosystems is a proven way to address rapid loss of wildlife and the worsening impacts of climate change. To achieve this goal, the province must launch transparent, well-funded processes that will result in new protected areas. BC must ensure that new protected areas safeguard Indigenous-led conservation areas, preserve intact watersheds that are largely undisturbed by industrial activity, safeguard natural habitats for wildlife connectivity, and increase ecosystem representation.
From the disappearance of caribou herds in the Kootenays to the almost-vanished grizzly bears of southwest BC, the province is in a nature emergency. Expanding BC’s protected areas system is critical to help halt the rapid and widespread loss of wildlife and ecosystems we are seeing from the South Okanagan grasslands to the Northern Rockies and from the Continental Divide to the Pacific Ocean.
Protecting species at risk: Protected areas are widely considered by international experts to be an essential part of addressing the rapid loss of wildlife and biodiversity. Securing larger, connected and intact ecosystems plays a critical role in supporting healthy and abundant species in the face of climate change and extreme weather events.
Climate change adaptation: Protected areas that extend from valley bottom to height of land help maintain ecosystem balance and increase resilience in the face of extreme climate events like climate and human-driven forest fires and flooding, and play a critical role to allow species, ecosystems and communities to adapt to and mitigate local impacts in the face of climate change.
Supporting Indigenous stewardship: Indigenous stewardship is critical not only for maintaining ecological integrity, but for upholding Indigenous jurisdiction. This includes pathways for recognizing Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas (IPCAs) that are co-managed and co-governed by Indigenous Peoples.
Increasing well-being for people: Spending time in nature has been proven to positively impact mental and physical health. Parks and protected areas deliver human health benefits by providing access to nature and sustainable recreation opportunities, making them even more important to our province and the people who live here. A strong conservation and tourism economy supports rural livelihoods, and updated land-use plans provide predictability on the land base and reduce conflict with communities.
BC’s 2022 commitment to protect 30% of lands and waters by 2030 was a major moment for conservation in the province, signaling intent from the province to respond to the crises facing our ecosystems at scale. The nearly $1 billion coordinated through the 2023 Tripartite Nature Agreement (signed by the Province, the federal government, and the First Nations Leadership Council), and a $300 million conservation fund, further signalled this intent to protect nature, and provided an array of resources to help make it happen.
It is important that BC has maintained the policy commitment to 30x30, but action is needed now to execute this commitment, advancing and scaling up the planning processes that will lead to new protected area designations. The 30x30 goal is attainable, but continued dedicated action is needed to make it happen. BC has currently protected 15.9% of our lands and waters. We have a long way to go to reach 30x30 but we can work together to achieve what is the scientific consensus for a minimum threshold needed to address the climate and biodiversity crises.