An examination of the zoning policy and practices of the Parks Canada Agency

This project examines the current zoning system used by Parks Canada by investigating its application on the strategic policy level and the park planning level. The analysis is based on interviews with thirteen employees from the Parks Canada as key informants. In summary, most informants felt that zoning generally achieves its goals, but also suggested a number of improvements for updating zoning to reflect and advance the overall mandate and policy direction of the Parks Canada. At the park level, zoning should include specific targets towards a desired future state or vision of each area being zoned. A quantitative decision tool for site-level evaluation of zoning would be helpful in assessing existing zoning during management plan reviews. This research provides an external perspective on the role of zoning in Canada’s national parks and how zoning could be enhanced to more directly address the mandate of the Parks Canada.