BC Canada Parks and Protected Areas

The Province of British Columbia (BC) is home to more than 1000 national parks, provincial parks, recreation areas, conservancies, ecological reserves, and other protected areas.

BC parks and protected areas facts:

 - British Columbia has one of the largest protected areas systems in North America

 - British Columbia has the highest percentage of its land base dedicated to protected areas of all provincial Canadian jurisdictions.

 - Since 2004, the area of parks, conservancies, ecological reserves, and protected areas has increased by more than 3.3 million hectares.

- British Columbia is home to some of Canada's most popular national parks including Glacier National Park, Gulf Islands National Park Reserve, Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site, Kootenay National Park, Mount Revelstoke National Park, Pacific Rim National Park Reserve, and Yoho National Park

Where is the Salish Sea?

The Salish Sea is an inland sea along the Pacific Coast of North America.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) defines the Salish Sea as:

"5,500 square miles; extends from the mouth of the Strait of Juan de Fuca eastward and northward to include Puget Sound and Georgia Strait, and their associated bays, coves, and inlets."

The Salish Sea is home to several of North America's most famous port cities including Vancouver, Seattle, Tacoma, Bellingham, Port Angeles and Victoria.

The first known use of the term Salish Sea was in 1988, when marine biologist Bert Webber from Bellingham, Washington, created the name for the combined waters in the region. The term was officially recognized by British Columbia in 2010.

sources: U.S. Geological Survey, NOAA Fisheries Alaska Fisheries Science Center, British Columbia Geographical Names Office