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Spring 2019 |
Newsletter Archive |
Mount Norquay Gondola Wildlife Assessment | ![]() |
![]() Mount Norquay Ski Hill is proposing to install a gondola from the Banff townsite to the ski hill base, reduce use on access road, reduce the lease site at low elevation, and increase the lease site at a higher elevation. Miistakis working with Dr. Adam T. Ford and Dr. Tony Clevenger were contracted to better understand if the proposed gondola development could create an environmental gain for wildlife. Traditionally, recreation and tourism development in the Bow Valley corridor has resulted in a negative impact on wildlife habitat and movement. It is conceivable that a reorientation of development along these lines (reducing traffic in lower-elevation vital habitat, and increasing traffic at higher-elevation, lower-value habitat) could result in a net positive effect on wildlife. The opportunity to create a positive impact on wildlife in Banff by redesigning infrastructure is rare and requires careful study to ensure both negative and positive impacts are understood and monitored. We undertook three key steps to help identify pathways towards this opportunity:
The specific mitigation measures needed to create a positive impact on biodiversity are not well known by science. We recommend the need to establish a new rigorously-designed biodiversity monitoring program at Mount Norquay to enable adaptive management by Mount Norquay and to create a new vision for positive environmental changes in the Bow Valley. Read the full report here. | |