Lacombe County has endorsed the Sylvan Lake Management Committee’s efforts to establish a program that would guide development to preserve water quality in the lake.
On Thursday, representatives from the committee, including Beverley Anderson, deputy mayor of the Summer Village of Norglenwold and David Helmer, regional approvals manager for Alberta Environment, presented plans to Lacombe County Council, including terms of reference that had been updated from a previous draft.
The committee, which includes Alberta Environment, all five summer villages, the Town of Sylvan Lake and Lacombe County is creating a cumulative effects management system which will help the eight communities around the lake co-ordinate future development in ways that preserve the quality of the lake and its watershed, said Terry Hager, Chief Administrative Officer for Lacombe County.
Anderson said the committee is developing its plan over two phases, with the first phase to set up and refine the process while the seconde phase will implement it.
In working through the first phase, the committee will look at water quality issues and the cumulative effect of various factors that have an impact on that quality, including residential development and agricultural practices.
The resulting plan will be a management tool that the municipalities can use in creating their development plans, such as the Area Structure Plan created by Lacombe County to manage development around the north sides of the lake, which are in high demand, said Hager.
Red Deer County opted out of the committee earlier this year. The only area in the watershed that falls under Red Deer County’s jurisdiction is being considered for annexation by both the Town of Sylvan Lake and the Summer Village of Norglenwold, said Hager.