Premier Brad Wall is facing calls to give Saskatchewan residents first crack at provincial park campsites this summer.
According to the opposition NDP, Wall said last September that the government would consider giving Saskatchewan people a head start when it comes to booking provincial campsites.
But on Tuesday, the government announced it wouldn’t follow through on that.
“The parks belong to Saskatchewan people,” said Cathy Sproule, parks critic for the NDP.
“We love showing off Saskatchewan’s beautiful parks and lakes to the world, and we welcome tourism. But giving Saskatchewan families a short head start on accessing some favourite campsites is common sense.”
Sproule said giving Saskatchewan campers a small window to reserve their favourite site before the system is opened to campers from outside the province is a small way to ensure there are affordable recreation and vacation opportunities for Saskatchewan families, whose tax dollars help support the parks on top of camping fees.
Wall floated the idea of a “Saskatchewan-first” system after the province’s online booking website was inundated with traffic last year, according to CBC.
The province said it asked subscribers to a Parks newsletter for their thoughts on the matter, with 48 per cent of respondents against a Sask-first option and 45 per cent in favour, CBC reports.
Saskatchewan has 35 provincial parks in all. Each one is grouped into one of four categories: wilderness, recreational, natural environment and historic parks.
