I’m not sure what stinks worse: the foul odours wafting from Canmore’s wastewater treatment plant or Parks Canada’s Banff National Park field unit’s response to their superintendent’s recent off-leash dog misconduct.
Banff National Park’s superintendent, Salman Rasheed, has recently been photographed with his dog off-leash on Tunnel Mountain. According to sources, he has done this in and around the Banff townsite on multiple occasions.
At a time when clear, transparent messaging, being receptive, and quite frankly, a public apology were necessary, the Banff field unit gave an ambiguous response on the matter, intentionally leaving details out and delaying answers to follow-up questions. Their original statement might as well had an audio attachment of the losing horn on The Price Is Right. As of the print deadline on Wednesday (Oct. 7), a response to follow-up questions went unanswered.
The tight-lipped, sweep-it-under-the-rug approach should make the public’s skin crawl and question what accountability and genuine trust can be expected moving forward when decisions from the office are made about the park’s wildlife and ecosystem.
Parks Canada regulations require dogs to be on a leash when in a national park as they could harm or stress protected wildlife as well as diminish the experience of residents and visitors. While not a criminal offence, “it is the law” for dogs to be on leash, says the federal agency.
Entire campaigns by Parks Canada, online messaging, verbiage and direct in-person dialogue have been dedicated to this concept for many years. During the time when the superintendent had his off-leash dog, Parks Canada and wildlife groups were sending out messaging about the elk rut, otherwise known as mating season, which is currently underway.
Part of Parks Canada’s Banff field unit’s response to the Outlook was that an investigation into the matter happened and has since been concluded – in less than two business days. What has failed to be mentioned is who led the investigation and what the conclusions are. If the same standard is being held for everyone, real proof of accountability must be upheld for those in positions of power.
This happened following a high-profile court case this past summer that saw a tourist fined $1,500 for failing to have their dog on leash during a grizzly bear encounter in Banff National Park.
Some might argue that it happened just once or it was a slip of the mind. We all make mistakes. However, there is a significant difference in responsibility between a tourist and a federal employee being paid to uphold ecological integrity. One is well-informed and should have situational awareness.
If there is one person who should eat, sleep and breathe the off-leash dog rule, it’s the head of Banff National Park. It was part of the Outlook’s decision-making to run this story, as authority figures need to be held accountable for their actions just like the rest of us.
Unfortunately, it is usually wildlife and/or dogs that ultimately end up paying the price in these situations.
Moving forward, I would challenge and highly encourage the hushed, or perhaps muzzled, Banff field unit to re-evaluate their transparency method. Start by giving straight answers and serve what’s best in the public interest and without hidden motives.