The Department of Agriculture and Forestry has updated the PEI Public Land Atlas to reflect changes in provincial land information and forest cover, says Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, George Webster.
“This atlas identifies all publically owned land in our province and has helped thousands of Islanders and visitors alike to identify and use these lands,” said Minister Webster. “Prince Edward Island has some beautiful and well-managed public lands. We want more people to discover them and learn more about them.”
Created in 2006, the original Public Land Atlas was developed to meet one of the commitments of the Island’s Forest Policy. Unlike most Canadian provinces where government is the largest land owner, most of PEI’s land is privately owned. Public lands are usually individual properties or small groups of properties scattered across the landscape so they can be hard to differentiate from the private lands that surround them. The Atlas enabled people to easily identify these properties and over the years it has encouraged more people to get out and explore the lands that are owned and managed on their behalf.
The atlas identifies various categories of public land such as Provincial Forests, Wildlife Management Areas, Provincial and National Parks, Natural Areas and Demonstration Woodlots. Some public lands are managed cooperatively with groups such as the Environmental Coalition of PEI and the Abeqweit First Nation.
“Our publically owned land is an important resource on Prince Edward Island,” said Minister Webster. “These lands are used for timber production, outdoor education, long-term research and habitat conservation, but they are also used for recreational purposes such as hiking, biking, bird watching, hunting and fishing. This is land owned by Islanders and we want them to be able to enjoy it.”
The updated atlas is available free of charge through the web site www.gov.pe.ca/gis . It can also be purchased at the J. Frank Gaudet Tree Nursery Complex in Charlottetown (includes GST).