Directors at the Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) have some qualms about a pair of applications for recreational land use tenures.
Those applications are managed by the Ministry of Forests Lands and Natural Resource Operations (FLNRO), but local governments have the right to offer input and make recommendations.
Squamish-based Sea to Sky Air Ltd. has applied to the province for commercial recreation use in the Phantom Lake area.
The company wants to fly people in by float plane for excursions that would include activities such as guided hikes, canoeing and paddleboarding, and camping. It plans to use a small plane carrying two passengers and a guide/pilot.
As part of the permit Sea to Sky Air also wants permission for a building it can use to store gear, first aid supplies and a survival kit.
Roberts Creek director Mark Lebbell said he’s worried too much float plane traffic on the remote lake would disrupt the wildlife and disturb other back country users. “I think down the road there may be further discussions around how appropriate that way of accessing the back country is, in terms of impact on other recreational users and impact on ecologically sensitive areas,” he said. “I think there’s a place for float plane-based tourism in getting people to places where they otherwise might not be able to go, but I think it involves a bigger discussion.”
In their report to the Sept. 8 planning and community development meeting, SCRD staff noted that the land around Phantom Lake is zoned RU2 (Rural Use 2), which allows for a campground and a storage shed.
But, the potential for a building was a major sticking point for directors.
Gibsons’ Jeremy Valeriote has been on trips to the area, and he said any structure would need to be very robust to survive the winter snow loads and there doesn’t seem to be anything in the application about a bond or other guarantee the building would be removed once the company stops using it.
SCRD chair Garry Nohr has also been to the area. He told the committee he travelled in by float plane, noting that other companies already offer charters and tours to the lake. He too expressed worry about allowing a building, but also about the potential for creating “privileged” access for one company. “Why should one group set it up so they get ‘super-use’ out of it?” Nohr asked.
Both Lebbell and Area F director Ian Winn opposed supporting the application, even with an amendment saying the SCRD does not support a building on site added to the list of proposed conditions.
Concerns about setting a possible precedent around exclusive use were also raised during debate on an application from another group – the Sea to Sky Adventure Company Inc., which is affiliated with McDonald Development, owners of the Britannia Beach Townsite.
Sea to Sky Adventure is asking the province for a commercial recreation use tenure that would cover much of the Howe Sound area between Gambier Island and Squamish. They want to run kayak and paddleboard tours, some of which would include overnight stays at recreation areas in the Sound.
Several directors said they were worried about the tour groups taking up all the sites at the small campgrounds, and the possibility that other guides and outfitters would be forced to operate at a disadvantage.
“If this is the first tenure here, that puts this company at an advantage to be able to basically dictate what agreements they would have with any other company that may come in,” said Area A director Frank Mauro. He argued for the inclusion of a condition that the lease would be “an absolutely non-exclusive” tenure.
In the end the committee voted to support the application with the non-exclusivity clause and limiting the proposed tenure to five years (instead of the 30 the company has applied for). Other recommended conditions include protecting eelgrass beds, minimizing impact on properties near the Ramillies Channel Recreation Site on Gambier Island and following “leave-no-trace” principles for back country use.
Area E director Lorne Lewis was, however, opposed. “I cannot support this [application] at all. I don’t think it’s in the spirit of public use of public property.”
