Juan de Fuca Marine Trail users, First Nation benefit from land purchases
Provincial land purchases on southern Vancouver Island will protect the Juan de Fuca Marine Trail while advancing reconciliation with Pacheedaht First Nation.
On a willing-buyer, willing-seller basis, the Province is in the process of purchasing 83 hectares of private property from Marine Trail Holdings, which adds to the purchase of 99 hectares from the company in December 2015. The properties are located 75 kilometres west of Victoria, near Juan de Fuca Provincial Park.
Before the purchase in 2015, the Juan de Fuca Marine Trail and its service access roads crossed private property at four locations. The Province is continuing the process of adding the trail corridor and access roads to Juan de Fuca Provincial Park, which will preserve the integrity of the 47-kilometre wilderness trail and ensure long-term access for the public.
“Pacheedaht First Nation is pleased that the Province has purchased these lands and is committed to making meaningful progress at the treaty table,” said Chief Jeff Jones, from the Pacheedaht First Nation. “These lands will play an important role in creating a sustainable economy for our people as we work towards a final treaty with British Columbia and Canada.”
The parcels outside the trail corridor will be offered to Pacheedaht First Nation as potential treaty land. Through treaty negotiations with B.C. and Canada, Pacheedaht has indicated the lands align with its economic development and treaty goals.
Advancing treaty negotiations and securing the continuity of a public hiking trail benefits all British Columbians, and reflects the strong relationship between the Province and the Pacheedaht.
Quick Facts:
- Pacheedaht First Nation is based near Port Renfrew, and has about 280 members and four reserves.
- Pacheedaht First Nation and Ditidaht First Nation are negotiating treaties with B.C. and Canada at a common table, and are in Agreement-in-Principal negotiations.
- Pacheedaht signed an incremental treaty agreement with the Province in March 2013 for 596 hectares in three parcels, southeast of Port Renfrew.
- The Juan de Fuca Marine Trail was created through the Commonwealth Nature Legacy as legacy of the 1994 Victoria Commonwealth Games.
Resources
- Provincial agreements with Pacheedaht First Nation
- Pacheedaht First Nation
- Juan de Fuca Provincial Park
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How much are we paying to buy the land we gave away a few years ago?
Quick questions. Is my understanding that the Province now owns all of the land between highway 14 and the trail with the exception of one parcel near Port Renfrew one owned by a logging company and the 3 parcels bought by Pacheedaht Enterprises Ltd from Marine Trail Holdings in Jan 2016, correct. Four parcels of land between the highway and the trail were identified for treaty negotiations in 2013, long before the Pacheedaht purchase. . In Dec 2015 the province bought parcels bought 3 parcels of land from Marine Trail Holdings and in May 2016 the province announced that the land that the trail intruded on would be added to the park and then those parcels would become part of the treaty process. Now the last Marine Trail Holdings property is being for treaty.
What is the status of the remaining provincial land between the park and the highway? It should become part of the park. With 37% of the Rural Resource Lands OCP area belonging to the people of BC as crown land there should be a lot of flexibility in treaty negotiations so that there can be a full discussion of what the land between the highway and the trail means to all of us locally, nationally and internationally so that economics does not force development that will impact the wild feel of the trail. West of Sooke between all levels of government we have less then 3% park and the rest open by courtesy of the logging companies
Forest company sells to Marine Trail….they get turned down re development which would have provided work and homes. Marine Trail was dedicating swath of land along Jdf Trail as part of development proposal….now CRD is paying for it! Another 2/5ths of the property apparently going to First Nations…who’s paying? What will Marine Trail and maybe First Nations be doing with these remaining pieces? Almost as much money from tax payers going to this misadventure as we see getting pissed away in Jordan River with the property shell game Western to CRD to BCHydro to First Nations etc etc.. Gotta love it!