Green Map work under way
Maria Canton
Northern News Services
Yellowknife (Jan 31/01) - Quick, name your favourite spot in Yellowknife.
If you said Tin Can Hill, Willow Flats, Joliffe Island, the Ski Club, or Rat Lake, your most treasured locale has already been recorded on Yellowknife's Green Map that will identify the city's prominent cultural, historical and environmental sites. It's expected to be finished by this summer.
But don't be discouraged, because if you value and appreciate the fish plant, the Snowking's castle, Rat Lake or the float base, those are also on the map.
After an informal public meeting Sunday at the Northern Frontier Visitor's Centre, more than 80 places that Yellowknifers hold near and dear to their hearts have been added to the mapping project list. And the best part is, no discrimination exists between what each person considers special, every location flagged will be recorded when the map is published and distributed.
"Each person's choice is automatically turned into a site, because everything is valuable," said Shelly Johnson, map co-ordinator and protected areas project assistant with the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS).
In order to have your favourite place immortalized on the map that will join the ranks of some 130 other Green Maps worldwide, you need to attend a mapping session, mark your spot and write down why you enjoy it.
Last Sunday, 10 people recorded their favourite winter places, creating a "white" map for Yellowknife.
"The good thing about a Green Map is that you can chart where people go to enjoy themselves and perhaps stop development in that area," said Johnson.
Beyond that, the project will do more than simply result in a resource for tourists -- Johnson says it is actually more for the people who live in the city -- it will measure Yellowknife's sustainability, assess its social, cultural and environmental status and evaluate the quality of life. An $18,000 budget and a joint-effort between CPAWS, the City, Ecology North and the Northern Frontier Visitors Association will see the map through all stages except publishing - they're still looking for money for that.
