2026 Provincial Election

The BC Greens strongly support protecting public access to British Columbia’s lands and waters for responsible hunting, fishing, camping and outdoor recreation. Our platform and economic strategy recognize the important role our natural environment plays in supporting the provincial economy and communities across BC. But beyond its economic value, we believe that being able to enjoy and connect with the outdoors is an important part of life for British Columbians, and something worth protecting for future generations.

We have a long history of advocating for stronger public access protections, including introducing Right to Roam legislation to address barriers that prevent people from accessing public lands, rivers and lakes. Our 2026 platform builds on this commitment with significant new investments in parks, trails, campsites and outdoor recreation infrastructure, including a 50% increase in funding for BC Parks and Recreation Sites and Trails BC and a new $30 million annual Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Fund.

We support enshrining public access to Crown lands and waters in legislation, including for sustainable hunting, fishing and outdoor recreation. This legislation must be developed in partnership with First Nations, fully respect Indigenous rights and title, and ensure that public access is managed in ways that protect wildlife, sensitive ecosystems and public safety.

British Columbia is defined by its land and water – and by the passion British Columbians have for enjoying our truly great outdoors, whether that is hiking, skiing, hunting, fi shing, camping or simply connecting with nature. And unlike many places in Canada, these landscapes are overwhelmingly public, with nearly 94% of B.C. made up of Crown, or public, land. Industries such as tourism, mining, energy, forestry and agriculture also use public land to sustain jobs and communities, driving economic development in every corner of the province. The BC NDP recognizes the interconnectedness of these industries in rural and remote communities.

We all want to enjoy the beautiful places that make BC so special. Ensuring public access is a key priority for local communities and for the BC NDP. It’s by working together that we preserve these natural spaces for recreation, hunting, fishing and other activities.

Hunting is at the heart of many communities, and a critical source of food. We’re determined to support sustainable hunting now and for the long term. When we can, we open new sustainable hunting opportunities. One recent example included creating a new general open-season hunt for antlerless white-tailed deer in the Cariboo. We are determined to continue working with the BC Wildlife Federation, to support good hunting opportunities for people and communities.

Thoughtful planning for how we manage this resource is thus critical. We need land-use decisions grounded in transparency, science, partnership with Indigenous people and meaningful public engagement. The BC NDP will work with hunters, fishermen, campers and outdoor recreation groups including the BC Wildlife Federation to advance shared priorities. Public land belongs to all of us, and that is why it must be protected.

We’ve expanded recreation and conservation to nearly 1,050 provincial parks, recreation areas, conservancies, ecological reserves and protected areas covering more than 14 million hectares, helping protect the land and water we rely on and providing recreation opportunities for people throughout the province.

Since 2017, we have invested more than $225 million in campground expansions, accessibility improvements and upgrades to trails, parking lots and park facilities, increasing access to outdoor recreation for British Columbians. With these investments, more people are visiting BC Parks than ever – increasing 30% over the past six years – as we have expanded park access and added over 2,000 new campsites since 2017.

To further protect this province we all love, David Eby and the BCDNP are advancing “30 by 30” nature protection: partnering with Prime Minister Carney to protect 30% of B.C.’s land by 2030 to conserve the environment, protect wildlife habitat, and preserve public access.

Once we lose natural spaces, we may never get them back. That’s exactly the risk we face with the Conservatives, including their candidates who oppose the “30 by 30” nature protection plan, deny the science of climate change, and would roll back habitat protections.

We want robust backcountry access, while enhancing and preserving our relationship with First Nations, wherever possible through treaties. By 2028, we will create a $15 million a year trails fund to build and maintain trails, shared with local governments, First Nations and trail groups. We will also build 1,000 new provincial campsites by 2030. Our platform does not include legislation guaranteeing access to Crown land, and we would welcome the chance to discuss your proposal in a meeting.

Yes. Our Conservative platform commits to protecting public access in law. 

We will restore equal access to Crown land and provincial parks and guarantee public access to Crown land, beaches and the backcountry in law, subject to legitimate conservation and safety requirements. 

Hunting, fishing, camping and outdoor recreation are part of our way of life in British Columbia. They support conservation, rural economies and communities across our province. 

We believe public lands should remain accessible to British Columbians, with decisions guided by science, conservation and public safety. 

We will work with hunters, anglers, recreation groups, First Nations and local communities to protect responsible access for future generations. 

To the extent possible, beyond established rights and necessary conservation restrictions, we support protecting public access to Crown land for sustainable hunting, fishing, camping, and outdoor recreation. Decisions should be guided by science and responsible resource management.

The BC Greens agree that British Columbia needs to invest much more in restoring healthy fish and wildlife populations and the habitats they depend on. For too long, habitat protection and restoration have been underfunded, while industrial pressures on our forests and watersheds have continued to grow.

Our party has previously committed to legislated fish and wildlife population objectives, increased conservation funding, and independent, publicly available wildlife science. We continue to support these priorities, including dedicated, predictable funding and stronger accountability for conservation outcomes. We are also supportive of establishing an independent fish and wildlife management commission, developed in partnership with First Nations, to strengthen science-based decision-making.

Our 2026 platform commits to providing $75 million annually for watershed security, which we see as an important starting point toward establishing the proposed $1 billion Watershed Security Fund. We also support the BC Wildlife Federation’s target of 50,000 hectares of prescribed burning annually, working with First Nations to expand cultural burning and invest in the crews, training and planning needed to safely achieve this goal.

We support substantially increasing dedicated fish, wildlife and habitat management funding, and welcome further discussion with the BC Wildlife Federation on the proposed $200 million annual commitment.

David Eby and the BC NDP are advancing “30 by 30” nature protection: partnering with Prime Minister Carney to protect 30% of B.C.’s land by 2030 to conserve the environment, protect wildlife habitat, and preserve public access.

We are also taking action to improve habitat, reduce risks and support local communities through a $1 million investment in the Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation to support a provincewide assessment of water infrastructure located in areas that support fish, wildlife and ecosystems.

Through the BC Fisheries Fund – a joint Canada-British Columbia investment of $106.5 million over fi ve years – we are investing in projects that support sustainable fisheries and strengthen the health of our watersheds and oceans. The BC Fisheries Fund builds on the success of the British Columbia Salmon Restoration and Innovation Fund (BCSRIF), and will continue to support the conservation and recovery of wild Pacific salmon. Wild Pacific salmon are woven into the economy and the culture of coastal communities throughout British Columbia and protecting the habitat they depend on is central to the work the BC Fisheries Fund will support.

And David Eby and the BCNDP are strengthening watershed protection with a $30 million per year BC Watershed Security Fund that will provide sustainable, long-term funding and secure healthy watersheds and thriving communities for generations.

In terms of controlled burns, we’ve made the BC Wildfire Service a year-round operation and we’re putting more resources than ever before into protecting communities from climate-fueled wildfires. Planned burns when timed well can be one of the most ecologically appropriate and relatively efficient ways to improve habitat, eradicate disease and help prevent the kind of large, intense wildfires that are resulting from our changing climate and that have affected so many British Columbians in the past two decades. Wildfire prevention decisions must be made on the basis of science and be free from politics.

We agree that healthy habitat protects people as well as wildlife. We will double the Watershed Security Fund to $200 million, supporting local projects for drinking water, salmon and flood protection. Forests Against Fire will reach $25 million a year for thinning, fuel reduction, prescribed fire and replanting, with a set share for First Nations crews and cultural burning. About 300 seasonal wildfire crew members will stay on through the winter to do prevention work.

Our platform does not yet include dedicated wildlife funding in law, an independent management commission, or a controlled-burn target in hectares. We would be glad to work with BCWF on these ideas in a meeting.

Our Conservative platform makes clear commitments to stronger, science-based wildlife management and dedicated conservation funding. 

We will: 

• Establish an independent Fish and Wildlife Commission. 
• Set sustainable, science-based fish and wildlife population objectives. 
• Dedicate hunting licence and tag revenues to fish and wildlife management. 
• Put more conservation officers in the field. 
• Work with hunters, anglers, First Nations and conservation organizations to improve wildlife management.

Hunters and anglers deserve confidence that the revenue they contribute goes back into the resource. 

We believe healthy wildlife populations and habitat require long-term investment, clear management objectives and accountability for results. 

Our goal is to rebuild healthy fish and wildlife populations, protect habitat and ensure these resources are managed sustainably for future generations.

We believe British Columbia needs to focus on prevention rather than continually paying for disasters. 

Our Conservative platform commits to prescribed and cultural burning, active forest management, community fuel breaks and prevention-focused wildfire spending. 

We will report annually on hectares treated to ensure progress is measurable and accountable. 

Our plan also commits $400 million for wildfire aircraft and a $100-million Wildfire Innovation Fund. 

We recognize the important role prescribed burning plays in restoring ecosystems, improving wildlife habitat and protecting communities. We support reducing unnecessary regulatory barriers so qualified organizations, First Nations and communities can get this important work done. 

On watershed security, our platform supports improved water storage, drought preparedness, groundwater licensing and watershed management, with local communities and agricultural producers involved in decisions. 

Healthy forests, healthy watersheds and healthy wildlife populations are connected. Our approach to managing them must reflect that. 

We support science-based fish and wildlife management rather than ideologically driven policies. Effective management must protect fish and wildlife populations, support habitat conservation, and recognize the importance of both subsistence and recreational hunting. Funding decisions should reflect these priorities.

British Columbia already regulates prescribed burns under the Wildfire Act and Wildfire Regulation. The priority should be enforcing existing laws against arson and implementing a science-based approach to prescribed burning. A fixed annual burn target is not necessarily appropriate; decisions should be guided by sound science and practical wildfire management, not political pressure or ideologically driven environmental activism.

The BC Greens recognize that responsible hunting and firearms ownership are important to many British Columbians, particularly those who rely on hunting for food. We believe firearms policy must be evidence-based, protect public safety and recognize the legitimate needs of hunters and rural communities.

The federal firearms compensation program is a federal responsibility, and we are not committing to opposing it or preventing the enforcement of federal law. We do believe that federal initiatives must be implemented fairly, with adequate funding and without compromising the resources police need to respond to serious crime and keep communities safe. We support an approach to firearms policy that focuses on preventing violence, addressing illegal firearms trafficking and organized crime, and ensuring that public safety decisions are supported by evidence.

While a federal and not a provincial program, David Eby and the BC NDP encourage police in British Columbia to participate, especially given the impact the public has seen of semi-automatic rifles being used to commit violent crimes in communities across our province.

Our public safety plan puts police resources where they matter most. We will double BC’s targeted enforcement programs for repeat and violent offenders. We will make the extortion task force permanent, and set up a 40-officer port enforcement team by 2028. Our platform does not take a position on the federal buyback.

Our Conservative platform is clear: target illegal guns, not lawful hunters, farmers and firearms owners. 

We believe policing resources should focus on illegal firearms, organized crime, trafficking and repeat violent offenders. 

Law-abiding firearms owners deserve to be treated fairly, and valuable police resources should be focused on keeping British Columbians safe. 

Our public safety plan commits to strengthening frontline policing and enforcement, with resources directed toward those who pose a genuine threat to public safety. 

We will review the implications of the federal firearms buyback program for British Columbia and work with law enforcement to ensure provincial policing resources remain focused on public safety priorities.

We oppose diverting provincial resources from public safety to administer the federal firearms buyback program. The province cannot override federal law or direct RCMP operations, but we can decline provincial administrative participation and restrict certain uses of provincially controlled resources.