Car found on sand dune prompts warning to Islanders from RCMP, conservation officers

Conservation officers and the RCMP are warning Islanders of the hazards of driving vehicles over sand dunes, after they received reports that a car drove on top of a dune near Greenwich, P.E.I.

Police said they received a call from local residents on Thursday morning about a Honda Civic parked on top of the dune.

Sgt. Chris Gunn of Kings District RCMP said the driver managed to get the car to the top of the dune by driving it up a walking path. 

Owners fled

Gunn said it looked like the driver attempted to drive up and over the sand dune, and got stuck.

"The owners were not present at the scene. They had departed."

He said there were no licence plates on the car at the time, but that police have identified the owner of the car and have confirmed it was not stolen.

"We contacted one of our local tow companies and the RCMP supervised the safe removal of the car and again, checked to ensure no leakage came from the car that could contaminate the local environment," he said. 

'Very sensitive habitat'

Erin Perry, a conservation officer with the Department of Justice and Public Safety said that while the car was removed safely, the tracks left on the dune can still cause damage to the environment. 

"Sand dunes are a very sensitive habitat, even … ​footprints can leave quite an impact … a vehicle could cause quite significant damage. The marram grass is very easily destroyed and if their root system gets destroyed then they can cause a blow out in the dune."  

Perry said driving a vehicle on a sand dune violates the Environmental Protection Act. She said penalties start at $200 and go up from there, depending on how bad the damage is.

'Ongoing problem' 

She said this is an ongoing problem, especially in the summer.

"We do get quite a few calls on vehicles unfortunately on the beach and on the dunes and we're trying to be as proactive as we can to try to nip it in the bud."

Perry is asking drivers to respect the dunes and beaches and only park in designated areas.

Gunn said police have contacted the owner of the car and will be interviewing witnesses to find out more about what happened. 

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