BC INVESTS $14 MILLION TO IMPROVE PARKS

VICTORIA - The B.C. government is investing close to $14 million this year to upgrade BC Parks infrastructure to improve the camping and day-use experience for park visitors, Environment Minister Barry Penner announced today.

"Visitors have high expectations for our parks and these improvements play a vital role in helping BC Parks meet and even exceed their standards," Penner said. "We have one of the best parks systems in the world and our government is making significant capital investments to make it even better."

Key infrastructure upgrades to provincial parks located throughout the province for the 2007-08 fiscal year include:
* $520,000 at Plumper Cove Marine Provincial Park for marine facility reconstruction.
* $350,000 at Brandywine Falls Provincial Park for drinking water upgrades.
* $570,000 at Goldstream Provincial Park for shower building and drinking water upgrades.
* $300,000 at Fintry Provincial Park for campground reconstruction.
* $340,000 at Ten Mile Lake Provincial Park for campground redesign and reconstruction.
* $100,000 at Mount Assiniboine Provincial Park for drinking water upgrades and cooking shelter construction.
* $150,000 at Crooked River Provincial Park for reconstruction of the day-use area.
* $120,000 at Swan Lake Provincial Park for campground upgrades.
* $150,000 at Lac Le Jeune Provincial Park for water system upgrades.
* $270,000 at Naikoon Provincial Park for trail repairs and signage upgrades.

To make the province's world-class parks system better than ever before, the B.C. government has made a capital investment of more than $65 million over the past three years (2004-07) to improve park facilities and acquire new lands.

Since 2001, the provincial government has established 46 new parks, 65 conservancies, one ecological reserve and eight protected areas, and expanded more than 50 parks, three conservancies and six ecological reserves, protecting more than 800,000 hectares. Today, 13.8 per cent (or more than 13 million hectares) of British Columbia land is protected - more than any other province in Canada.

To learn more about BC Parks, please visit www.bcparks.ca