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VICTORIA — B.C.’s overbooked provincial campgrounds will be getting more campsites, providing potential relief to frustrated campers but not coming close, say critics, to meeting the actual demand.

Premier Christy Clark announced $23 million to create 1,900 new campsites over the next five years — 800 in provincial parks and 1,100 in more rugged Crown land locations.

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“Last year we had a terrible issue with people not being able to make reservations at their own campsites in their own province,” said Clark, referencing public anger over campsite shortages and problems securing sites through the online reservation system.

“We want to try and address that by adding more campsites. We want to start with the high-demand areas. That’s where we’ll begin.”

The additions will boost the number of B.C.’s provincial park campsites by around eight per cent over five years.

The government was unable to provide an exact breakdown of which parks and campgrounds would be expanded, other than to say the Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island, the Okanagan and Kootenays will be the first priority locations.