Canada

Canada has pledged an extra $59.9 million towards a 142-item action plan to help save Wood Buffalo National Park from external threats like nearby hydropower dams, oil sands activity and climate change. But a State of Conservation report was filed late to UNESCO in December and environmental and Indigenous groups are still waiting to hear exactly how the money will be allocated in a bid to keep the park off a list of global World Heritage Sites in danger.

A new immersive experience in the blast furnace building at the Forges du Saint-Maurice National Historic Site in Quebec will teach visitors about the little-known profession of casting iron at the birthplace of Canada’s iron industry.

The half-moon hairstreak may officially be listed as “a small, drab butterfly,” but it’s also endangered and can only be found in eight spots in British Columbia and just one location in Alberta. At Waterton Lakes National Park, the isolated population numbers in the hundreds. Parks Canada has just announced funding for a three-year plan that will see Waterton Lakes and the Calgary Zoo team up to study the secretive life history of the rare butterfly, understand its genetics, restore its habitat and nurture its survival.

With so many Canadians being asked to stay home and avoid non-essential travel because of the Covid-19 pandemic and uncertainty about how this year will play out, Parks Canada has moved the start of this summer’s reservations for campsites and experiences from January to April.