Crown land and water use

Last updated on January 31, 2024

Land, or land covered by water like rivers or lakes that's owned by the provincial government is called Crown land. This type of land is available to the public for many different purposes – from industry to recreation and research.

On this page


Crown land uses

Find out more about different Crown land uses and related application processes.

Additional information for applications

All applications to use the natural resources found on Crown land are submitted through FrontCounter BC, the province’s window into natural resource permitting, licensing and tenures.

Note: The Internet Explorer 11 (IE 11) browser has a known ‘refresh’ issue. If you use IE 11, press CTRL + F5 (or Apple Cmd + R) to ensure you download the most recent versions of any documents.

Government Access Tool for Online Retrieval (GATOR)

The Government Access Tool for Online Retrieval is a database that can be used to search the Crown land registry.

Off-road vehicles on Crown land

The B.C. Government has established a cross-government framework to respond to huge growth in off-road vehicle use across the province. The framework includes new legislation, increased enforcement and new registration requirements, all to help protect people and the environment.

Contact information

Toll Free
1-877-855-3222
Outside North America Phone
1-778-372-0729