Big Island, Aspen Beach provincial parks among first recipients of 2023 budget money for outdoor recreation

The Alberta government has revealed plans for some of the $211 million it will spend over the next three years expanding and improving parks, campgrounds and recreation trails.

Already, several projects have been approved for the 2023-24 capital budget:

• $7.6 million to establish Big Island Provincial Park in southwest Edmonton, a project the government has undertaken with Enoch Cree Nation. The park will also get $2 million in each of the following two years;
• Repairing and upgrading sanitary stations and wastewater systems at seven provincial parks north of Edmonton at a cost of $6.2 million;
• The modernization of Aspen Beach Provincial Park, at a cost of $3.9 million. The work will include a new shower building and refurbished sites and grounds;
• $1.7 million for campground refurbishment and road resurfacing in the Spray Valley Provincial Park; and
• Trail upgrades in the Dinosaur, Castle, and Cypress Hills provincial parks, at a cost of $1.6 million.

And alongside Travel Alberta, the parks ministry has named the Blue Rapids Provincial Recreation Area, Castle Provincial Park and Lesser Slave Lake Provincial Park as immediately needing expansion.

Todd Loewen, Alberta's parks minister, said at a Thursday news conference his ministry is in the process of identifying what other sites need funding.

Over the next decade, the Alberta government wants to increase its number of campsites by 900.

Loewen believes a recent "huge increase" in interest in outdoor recreation, attributed to the pandemic, has not dropped much.

"There's been a fair amount of retention to that because I think that people have realized what they could do in the outdoors right here in our great province," Loewen said, speaking at an Edmonton Cabela's.

"There may have been a slight drop, but I think overall, I think Albertans are taking this opportunity to continue their enjoyment of the great outdoors."

The general manager of outdoor equipment store Breathe Outdoors, echoed this, adding that camping might remain a popular vacation option for Albertans given inflation.

"Overall, camping is still a really affordable activity when you’re comparing it against all the other ways you can spend your recreational time," Doug Dea told CTV News Edmonton.

"There’s a big desire for people to look after their wellness, both their physical as well as their mental health, and the outdoors are a great place to do that. It’s proven that being in nature has a calming effect on people and we know it’s great for their fitness, so there’s so many benefits to being outside."

Dea said he's happy to see the government investing more funds into outdoor recreation.

"I think it’s a really good move. A lot of the campgrounds are heavily booked. RV sites in particular can be really hard to get. Trail infrastructure and trail repair is badly needed also."

The money allocated in Budget 2023, released at the end of February, consists in total of $22.5 million for new campsites and campgrounds and $26 million for new and improved Crown land trails, plus more than $200 million for infrastructure upgrades at parks across the province.