Editor's note: Since this article was published, the draft of the national parks management has been delayed until mid-November, from Oct. 15. "Preparing the draft plan is taking a bit longer to ensure that public comments received can be incorporated, as best they can, into the park management plan," stated Alice Weber, an outreach education officer for Mount Revelstoke and Glacier National Parks. The open house scheduled for Nov. 3 has been postponed until further notice.

A draft of the new management plan for Glacier National Park and Mount Revelstoke National Park will be ready in mid-November.

Ian Brown, manager of resource conservation for the two parks, told the Revelstoke Economic Development Commission the new plan will be a higher level document than the current one.

“It’s going to be more of an enabling document with policy statements. It’s a strategic document as opposed to a report card,” he said. “Rather than saying, ‘We are going to put new mountain biking trails or horse riding trails here and here,’ what it will say is, ‘We’re going to work within our process for new activities and we’re going to engage the approach the key stakeholders to determine the appropriateness of those activities and where and when.’”

The new management plan is being drafted following four open houses - two each in Revelstoke and Golden. Parks management has also met with stakeholders in both communities. In Revelstoke it met with city council, Revelstoke Community Futures, Friends of Mount Revelstoke and Glacier National Parks, and more.

“We’ve heard a lot from the communities of Revelstoke and Golden,” said Brown. “In our newsletter we’ll have some examples of what people are really concerned with and what they value in the national parks and what our response is.”

One major difference between the new plan and the current one, Brown said, is that the new one will divide the parks into several different management area, such as the backcountry, highway area, and Rogers Pass historical centre.

“We’ve got areas that can be managed differently and more appropriately to what the visitor and the community expectations are,” he said.

He added that the fee structure will be looked at in the new plan.

An open house for the public to view the plan will be announced at a later date.