Read this it's from the cochrane eagle
Waiparous plan a done deal
By Wes Gilbertson
The Eagle
The long-awaited Ghost-Waiparous Access Management Plan (GAMP) has received the final stamp of approval from David Coutts, Alberta’s minister of Sustainable Resource Development.
A formal announcement is expected in the next few weeks, possibly even before the Victoria Day long weekend, when hundreds of campers are expected to converge on the Waiparous area.
“It has gone through all of the final approval processes,” Rick Blackwood, manager of the southern Rockies area for Alberta Sustainable Resource Development, confirmed May 8.
“What we are doing now is just going through all the steps and stages we need to get things in place to support the announcement.”
The province was directed to create an access plan for the Ghost-Waiparous region in 1988 and has been working to develop the document since 2002.
A draft of the plan and proposed trail map was unveiled last May and posted for comment from stakeholder groups.
The finalized GAMP will designate trails for motorized and non-motorized users, and place regulations on random camping, among other things.
That the long drafting process has finally come to fruition is reason for optimism, said Heinz Unger, a member of the Ghost Watershed Alliance.
“It’s long overdue,” Unger said.
News of the plan receiving final approval came as a shock to other stakeholders, who were expecting to be consulted for some “fine-tuning” before the GAMP was unveiled.
“Myself and the other stakeholders that I have communication with are a little pissed, to put it bluntly,” said Cochrane’s Darryl Copithorne, a spokesperson for the Alberta Off-Highway Vehicle Association and one of those who provided input during the drafting process.
According to Copithorne, provincial employees are already marking trails in Waiparous area, the only indication to stakeholders that the plan has been completed.
“At the 11th hour, we still haven’t been notified,” he said. “That’s a real slap in the face for the people working with the government on this.”
Even with provincial officials confident an announcement is imminent, Unger said it may be tough to get organized in time to crack down on long weekend revellers.
“The plan is on paper but it needs the resources and the staff and the funds to make it all happen,” Unger said.
“You need the regulations put in place . . . you can then apply the rules and enforce the penalties.”
For years, according to Unger, those who call the Waiparous area home have dreaded the Victoria Day holiday, an all-weekend party for some users.
Unger admitted it would “take years” to fully eliminate the rowdy behaviour, but added “any improvement will come as a relief, even just some basic ground rules being enforced.”
If Copithorne had his way, the province would have waited for the completion of a province-wide access plan, a document currently being pieced together to govern all outdoor recreation areas.
Even if the GAMP does alleviate some concerns in the Ghost-Waiparous area, it will cause headaches in other regions that are without access rules, Copithorne said.
“You’re just going to be displacing (users),” he said. “Rather than educate the people, we’re just going to push them somewhere else.
“And that’s a recipe for disaster.”
Although heralded by Cochrane RCMP as being less wild than in years past, police and fish and wildlife officers were kept busy last May long weekend, attending to 13 motor vehicle accidents and investigating five alleged assaults, seven impaired driver complaints and numerous reports of property damage, among other things.
To ensure the McLean Creek (west of Bragg Creek) and Waiparous areas are adequately policed on the Victoria Day holiday weekend, extra officers are brought in from neighbouring detachments while the RCMP helicopter also patrols the region.
While the upcoming long weekend is viewed by many as the kick-off to the summer camping season, Unger said the Waiparous area is already seeing plenty of action.
“It’s very busy,” he said. “You can go up any weekend or even during the week and it’s always busy.”
Sgt. Bill Eubank said Cochrane RCMP haven’t noticed a spike in the number of calls to the area yet, but they are making preparations for another busy holiday weekend.
“We’re gearing up for the long weekend and the start of the summer season, but there hasn’t been any noticeable increase so far,” he reported May 8.
“The long weekend is when the floodgates seem to open.”
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