The Whitehorse Cross Country Ski Club's (WCCSC) proposed project to widen 9.4 kilometres of trail has been recommended.

The Whitehorse Designated Office of the Yukon Environmental and Socio-economic Assessment Board recommends to the decision body for the project that the venture be allowed to proceed. It has been determined it would not have significant adverse environmental nor socio-economic effects in or outside the Yukon.

The WCCSC is looking to widen the trail to the standards of the International Ski Federation (FIS) to host major FIS-sanctioned events. The club hopes to host the national cross country ski championships two years from now.

The club has last hosted a major event in 2016 - the Haywood Nationals. Since then, the FIS has changed the standards.

The project is located in the City of Whitehorse, on land used by the WCCSC, in the traditional territories of Kwanlin Dün First Nation and Ta'an Kwäch'än Council.

Alain Masson, the sport co-ordinator and head coach of Cross Country Yukon, spoke to the Star earlier in the year about upgrading the trails.

"The trails we used for nationals have a standard. We have been working to upgrade our trails to the FIS standard to reach the highest level in the next few years," said Masson.

Hosting national championships exposes everyone in the skiing community, he added, from the athletes, coaches, fans, and volunteers, to the highest levels of skiing.

The proposal calls for widening 9.4 kilometres of trails from the current five-metre average. The first 6.35 kilometres would be widened to six metres. The next 1.6 kilometres would be widened to 7.5 metres and 1.45 kilometres widened to nine metres.

The proposal also calls for 81 metres of new trail. Fifty-six metres would be nine metres wide and 25 metres would be six metres wide.

Club manager Corinna Warren told the Star that the estimated cost of the project is $200,000.