What Lies Ahead

What Lies Ahead

November 11, 2014 Webmaster

The A&E Chair position will be vacant at the next AGM. For the incoming Chair, this position provides an opportunity to give something back to the club and the climbing community as a whole. So how are things shaping up if you choose to take this on?

The North Saskatchewan Regional Plan is in the preliminary stages, and in the next two to three years we can expect additional public consultations. This regional plan encompasses Banff National Park, which is an area of significance for the back-country recreation community. There is sufficient time for the incoming A&E Chair to get up to speed prior to these consultations. I feel that it is important for the ACC Calgary Section to develop a position (preferably in conjunction with ACC National and other affected ACC sections) and state it to the Government of Alberta, similar to what has been done on the South Saskatchewan Regional Plan. I’ve met with the Senior Consultation Manager with the Land Use Secretariat on several occasions, and at the very least, they are now aware of the concerns of a loosely organized and often quiet soft-tread community.

Despite ongoing conversations in the past two years with Friends of Kananaskis (FoK), and Alberta Tourism, Parks & Recreation (ATPR), there have been no organized maintenance days for trail-work, crag area clean-ups, etc. Ideally, the chair or a member of the A&E Committee will have availability on weekdays to do trail walk-throughs with FoK and ATPR.

There have been ongoing discussions between CASA, Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development (ESRD), and TransAlta regarding North Ghost access. Other than that, there are not many identified climbing access trails requiring maintenance. However, I believe it is important that the ACC Calgary Section continue to organize maintenance days in conjunction with FoK, CASA, ESRD and ATPR. This creates a sense of community amongst ACC Calgary Section members, and furthers the relationship with the Government of Alberta, which may pay dividends in the future.

Duties of the A&E Chair are fully listed in: https://www.acccalgary.ca/other/organization-of-the-section.html.