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VICTORIA – Residents of Haida
Gwaii will benefit from $200,000 to improve travel and safety on the Moresby
Forest Service Road, Forests and Range Minister Pat Bell and Community
Development Minister Kevin Krueger announced today.
“The islands of Haida Gwaii are a global
treasure,” said Bell. “Upgrading key roads on the Islands, like the Moresby
road, will enhance recreation opportunities for locals and tourists alike.”
The funds will be used to produce quality
gravel for surface improvements on the Moresby Forest Service Road. This
11-kilometre section of road is part of an access network to a multitude of
industrial and recreational activities including Moresby Camp, a high value
recreation site and jumping off point to the Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve
and Haida Heritage Site. This project complements work to upgrade and improve
the Moresby Camp Recreation Site.
“The Moresby Forest Service Road is used as a
critical link between the Island communities and Gwaii Haanas National Park
Reserve,” said Krueger. “Improvements to the
road will
provide safer access for residents and visitors to the
National Park Reserve and many remote recreational sites. We’re pleased that the provincial government is providing the funds needed to ensure
that this road is safe for the people in our rural communities who rely on it.”
British
Columbia’s 55,000-kilometre network of Forest Service roads is bigger than the
provincial highway system. As first announced by Premier Gordon Campbell at the
2008 Union of B.C. Municipalities convention, the Ministry of Forests and Range
is providing $20 million to improve travel conditions on Forest Service roads
that serve as crucial transportation links to rural communities and recreation
sites. The
Province of British Columbia and the Government of Canada committed on April 7,
2009 to a further $20 million in shared funding for additional Forest Service
road upgrades that will be announced in the coming months.
New road maintenance funding is the latest
in a series of initiatives to improve safety on Forest Service roads, which
include the establishment of radio protocols, speed enforcement through
expanded use of radar guns, and the expansion of the Vehicle Identification
Plates Program.
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contact: |
Public Affairs Officer Ministry of Forests and Range 250 387-4592 |
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