On Friday Dr. James Lunney, Member of Parliament for Nanaimo-Alberni announced that the Government of Canada will invest $3.8 million in National Parks and Historic Sites on Vancouver Island. The invested funds would go towards boosting the tourism infrastructure at Pacific Rim National Park and the Fort Rodd Hill and Fisgard Lighthouse National Historic Sites.

Hoping to encourage tourism in Vancouver and Victoria Islands, the funding would help the parks to continue to provide high-quality experiences for visitors. A few of the planned improvements are for existing visitor centers in need of repairs or upgrades.

The $3.8 million that will go towards these British Columbia parks is just part of a larger Economic Action Plan that the Canadian government has developed. The overall plan includes $374 million set aside for improvements to the existing parks and sites facilities as well as providing protection from future development.

Overall, these improvements seem like smart choices by the Canadian government–tourism is a huge revenue market for the country. In 2007 alone, over $28 billion was spent by tourists, which helped to employ over 650,000 Canadians. This year’s Vancouver Olympics put Canada (and specifically British Columbia) in the spotlight and it seems as though the government is hoping to keep the steady stream of visitors.

Read more about the Economic Action Plan and the investment in Canadian National Parks.