Unhappy campers: nine Northern provincial parks to close for camping.

• Author: Cowan, Liz
• Position: NEWS

The recent announcement that nine parks in Northern Ontario will be closed for camping has struck a nerve. Within days of the early October announcement, a groundswell of opposition has been brewing across the Northeast, where eight of the parks are located.

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The nine Northern parks include: Caliper (Nestor Falls), Fushimi Lake (Hearst), Greenwater (Cochrane), Ivanhoe Lake (Foleyet), Mississagi (Elliot Lake), Obatanga (north of Wawa), Rene Brunelle (Kapus-kasing), The Shoals (west of Chapleau) and Tidewater (Moosonee). Springhurst in Midhurst is also closed for camping.

A Facebook page, Friends of Ivanhoe Lake Provincial Park, has been established and a blockade at Rene Brunelle Provincial Park was held. The Federation of Northern Ontario Municipalities (FONOM) has facilitated public meetings in Hearst, Timmins and Cochrane.

"The level of frustration is plausible," said FONOM president Al Spacek. "It's the average, hard-working family person who is very upset. Their lifestyle is being threatened and it has been repeated to me many times that they are fed up and not going to take it anymore. The government has misjudged what they are doing."

Spacek held a meeting with Minister of Natural Resources Michael Gravelle Oct. 18 and submitted a report compiled from the public meetings and former ministry employees.

"We pointed out to the minister that many of these parks can be operated at low cost, and in some cases at break even or a profit," Spacek said. "Not all of them, but some."

Following the meeting, Spacek said he was optimistic and asked for a short turnaround for a response. Gravelle said he would respond in a few weeks.

In announcing the changes at the parks, the ministry stated in a press release that the parks had very low visitation rates. However, other parks not slated for a change in designation had lower July-August occupancy rates, especially in the northwest, than some of those that will be closed for camping.

According to 2011 and 2010 statistics, published by the ministry, three parks closed for camping--Fushimi, Ivanhoe Lake and Rene Brunelle--were at occupancy rates (respectively) in 2011 at 62 per cent, 55 per cent and 45 per cent. These rates had all increased from the previous year.

Some parks in the northwest continuing to offer camping had lower July-August occupancy rates and were showing decreases in 2011. These included Pancake Bay (43 per cent), White Lake (31 per cent), Sioux Narrows (27 per...