Our inventory scan turned up 38 inventories which either wholly or partially address inventory information. It is anticipated that numerous other locally generated inventories exist. Counting local and regional agencies, there are probably "hundreds" of Culture, Recreation and Tourism inventories in existence.
The majority of existing inventories have been created by various government ministries and departments as management tool for helping them meet their mandate or objectives. The sophistication of these inventory systems and the quality of the information they contain, varies significantly. While much of this information is available to the public, most non-government, (and even some government agencies), are unaware that the information exists. In addition to government generated inventories, a number of private associations, universities, industry operators, native bands, and a crown corporation also manage inventories. Generally, these inventories are in a less sophisticated format than those produced by government. These inventories are also more likely to be more "product specific" For example, B.C. Hydro's inventory deals with recreation sites in reservoir areas only while inventories produced by local tourism associations focus on tourism resources within a specific geographic area. This general lack of awareness regarding the type of inventory information which already exists, combined with agency concerns regarding inventory ownership and development, has lead to some duplication and overlap. As a result, tourism operators, for example, may be aware of one inventory sponsored by a certain agency, but not of another which records the same or complementary information. One of the most significant features of existing inventories is that they have been initiated for a range of different reasons. As a result, there is a lack of consistency in the type of information compiled, the geographic focus, the level of quality etc.
The inventories reviewed in this report cover a wide variety of topics within the spectrum of culture, recreation and tourism as a whole, as well as within each one of these inventory components. For example, the Forest Recreation Inventory addresses all recreation resources in B.C. forests but gives limited attention to tourism facilities or cultural resources. The Association of Mountain Clubs has a recreation inventory that only includes hiking trails in the Lower Mainland area. Although a few of the inventories reviewed cover all three of these resource categories for a specific area there is no one inventory which records culture, recreation and tourism information for the province.
In addition to covering a range of topics within culture, recreation and tourism generally, the type of information topics covered between, for example, two tourism inventories, varies. noticeably. While some inventories focus on recording resource location information, others focus on the quality of these resources or use levels etc. The ability of an inventory system to incorporate information ranging from the location of land/resource features to the suitability, capability, use and quality of these features, will be important if the inventory is going to meet the needs of the range of users.
A significant feature of existing inventories is the almost complete lack of any common or consistent standards regarding the type of information collected or the format used for recording the information. It appears that agencies managing the inventories have collected and recorded the information in whatever manner met their needs. Only the Ministries of Environment, Lands and Parks; Tourism; and Forests have collected information in a manner suitable for inclusion in a GIS system. It is anticipated that much of the information recorded in the other inventories would have to be re-inventoried to ensure consistent and accurate coverage.
Resource-based inventories have been prepared and used as a planning tool for many years. The Canada Land Inventory (CLI), for example, was a detailed and extensive inventory exercise which involved categorizing much of the province (and the remainder of Canada) according to its land-use capability. In addition, numerous surveys of various aspects of B.C.'s resources have been undertaken by specialists such as geologists, biologists, etc.
Most inventories provide lists and possibly descriptions of existing tourism, recreation and/or culture resources. However, few provide up-to-date information regarding proposed resource management activities. This limits the ability of agencies to use the information for planning purposes. For example, if an outdoor adventure operator is trying to identify areas to offer wilderness tours, it would be useful to know where proposed resource extraction activities will be occurring so that area could be avoided.
The level of coverage of culture, recreation and tourism inventory information varies drastically both between regions of the province and among the various components which comprise each of these three areas. More densely populated areas appear to have more detailed inventory information available while much more limited inventory information is available for more remote and less populated areas - despite the fact the "resources" in these areas may be more significant. The level of information available for components of each of these sectors also varies.
A number of the inventories currently in use, or being developed, serve as the standard, (or claim to be establishing the standard), for the compilation of tourism, recreation or culture inventory data. Because there is a lack of consistency among these inventory systems it is important that they be reviewed in the context of this project.
The systems which are being used, or established, as an inventory standard include: