Approximately 3,600 letters were delivered to Premier Greg Selinger’s office on Tuesday, asking that his government outlaw mining in provincial parks.

The letters, dropped off by officials from the Wilderness Committee, come while public consultation is underway for the draft management plan for Nopiming Provincial Park. Eighty-one per cent of the park — located in eastern Manitoba, near the Ontario boundary — is currently open for mining, said Eric Reder, the lobby group’s campaign director.

“Nopiming Park is supposed to protect nature and wildlife like moose and woodland caribou, but mining activity is still permitted and is one of the biggest threats to this area,” he said, in a press release.

Reder said the province has indicated plans to protect some of the park from industrial activity, but fails to mention limiting the impact of mineral exploration. 

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