B.C. Parks campsite reservations up 16 per cent

Reservations for campsites in B.C.'s provincial parks were up 16 per cent this year, the Environment Ministry has confirmed.

In total, more than 182,000 reservations were made, according to preliminary numbers.

It is at least the third year in a row bookings on the online reservation system have continued to rise. In 2015 they rose by 19 per cent, and 2014 they rose by nine percent.

The surge in bookings has raised concerns B.C. residents are being shut out of provincial campsites by foreigners and commercial operators scooping up spaces using the online reservation system.

But the ministry has denied those claims, saying B.C. residents still book 75 per cent of campsites each year. Alberta residents are a distant second, taking about 15 per cent of bookings, and foreigners book only one per cent of the sites.

Nevertheless the ministry is planning a review of the numbers and the reservations system, with possible changes coming this fall.