The Cadre, ict. J4, ]975. Dace 4

I Parklntrunce" Fee an a'Fuct

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When Jack MacAndrew br— oke the story on the Nati— onal Park entrance fee last spring, the general public immediately opposed the id- ea as an infringement on their basic rights to use the beaches. It seems that over the years Islanders had grown used to the idea of ready access to the No— rth Shore dunes. The move by Ottawa appeared to be one more attempt to restr- ict the public's enjoyment of any type of luxury.

The Guardian-Patriot got together a petition against the proposed fee that res— ulted in a total of 5000 names and a Telex nearly one hundred yards long that filled the C.N. Communica- tions office. Two copies of the petition were sent off to Judd Buchanan, Minister responsible for parks and Prime Minister Pierre Tru- deau~at the beginning of the summer. Ottawa received the telex but.gave no stated re- ply or reaction. Inthe opin— ion of the Guardian—Patriot news staff, the telex prob— ably ended up in someone's wastebasket. So it goes.

Camper's City on Univer— sity Avenue put a similar petition on the door of their store and gathered ov— er tWo hundred names on the petition. However, up to this point, Camper's City has taken no action in send- ing it on to Ottawa.

That has been the general story on public action. Pa- rks delayed implementing the fee on the Island for a year to let the issue cool - and generally it has. A lot of people last spring, most no— teably Gilbert Clements, Min— ister of Tourism, said that something must be done. Now it is fall; summer and the tourists have come and gone, and the provincial govern— ment, which has promised much, has taken no effective action, letting the issue die just as the federal gov- erment wished. The Parks De— aprtment has already built the toll booths in its fen— ced compound at Dalvay. They have five large booths, 15x8,

‘and four small ones, 8x4, for fee collection. Tenders have already been called for road widening and other nec— essary park 'improvements' related to fee collection. The entrance fee is a reali— ty. ‘

Incidental facts concern— ing the entrance fee are va— ried and relatively unknown, even by the Parks Department. There will be a reduction of Park access roads from nine to five, one for each sec- tion of the Park. One large

booth and two small ones will 'service' the Cavendish entrance, one large booth at the Rustico access, one lar- ge and one small at each of Stanhope and Bracquyand one large booth at Dalvay. There (is, of course,the expensive two dollar entrance fee and

the much more reasonable an—

nual fee of ten dollars that allows:entrance and ex— it from any part of the Park or from any Park in Canada for that matter. Bicycle ri— ders and pedestriAns are al— lowed free access. Contrary to previous government rep— orts, there will be no park— ing lots at the entrance points for those who wish to leave their cars behind and walk. Buses and other com- mereial vehicle will pay more but motorcycles will be charged the standard rate. The fee is on the ve— hicle only, the number of passengers is of no conse— quence. .

0n the light of these developments, the resurgen— ce of the establishment me— dia's attacks on the 'pro- posed'entrance fee seem fu— tile. It must be remembered that all of Canada pays the fee. P.E.I. was given one year of grace only. Before the idea of a fee, mainten-

ance costs were paid by tax ‘

dollars collected from ev— eryone, including those who did not use the Park. With the entrance fee most of the cost is borne by those who actually use them. For example, it is thought that the capital casts of build- ing the booths will be re— turned in two years time by the monies collected. The fee does seem to be a fair— er way of gathering the mo— ney.

The toll booths will be installed before winter

sets in. In six months time they will be in use. Hence

if resistance to the fee is to be continued then it must be fast, concentrated, and intelligent. No one I know really argues with the idea of paying a fee for all the Pmnks in Canada, because they offer varied wildlife, a natural habitat of many types, and impres— sive scenery worth preser- ving. But in P.E.I. we have. a scant seven square miles that offers only one thing- sand-duned beaches. Our park was created for two purposes - to protect the dunes from ero sion and ex- ploitation and to provide‘ equal access for every one. By putting a price on the park you are resticting its use to those of financial means. Also the park does not offer enough to warrant

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paying money. The Parks De— partment's move means that Islanders will be forced to rediscover provincial or pr ivate beaches that offer the same as the National one. It is reasonable to pay two dollars to enter Fundy National Park because it offers so much morerfor— ests, mountains, wildlife — and beaches. But the P.E.I. park does not have this var— iety. Further, it does not have the maintence costs of parks thousands of times its size.

If you wish to protest the fee, the best way is to flood the mails with lett—r

ers immediately. Write the Superintendant of Parks on P.E.I., Don Harris, at Box 487, Charlottetown or Judd Buchanan, Minister of Ind— ian and Northern affairs, House of Commons, Ottawa. Letters to a federal minis— ter do not require postage. Even better phone Gilberts. Clements~this week at-4— A 45§7 and ask him what hefs doing about the issue, what provincial policy is and. anything else that comes [into your mind. Tell him to get off his ego trip and for once do somethhﬂr

Kenny Higgins

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