alberta’s new land use system moving past the tipping point – alberta’s new land use system...
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Alberta’s New Land Use System
Moving Past the Tipping Point – Alberta’s New Land Use System
ELC WebinarDecember 9, 2009
Cindy ChiassonExecutive Director
Alberta’s New Land Use System
About the ELC
• A registered charitable organization incorporated in 1982
• Our mission: To ensure that laws, policies and legal processes protect the environment.
Alberta’s New Land Use System
About the ELC
• Our ends:
– Enactment and effective enforcement of sound environmental laws and policies.
– Effective and informed public participation in environmental regulatory, law-making and decision-making processes.
Alberta’s New Land Use System
Alberta’s New Land Use System
Roots of the LUF initiative
Approach to land & resource management
• multiple use
• project-by-project approval, incrementalism
• impacts of individual projects mitigated
• cumulative effects difficult to deal with
Alberta’s New Land Use System
Roots of the LUF initiative
Approach to land & resource management
• anti-planning or laissez-faire approach to planning
• patchwork of policy and legal requirements
• “silo” based decision-making
Alberta’s New Land Use System
What Albertans want…
• stronger provincial leadership
• better policy integration & coordination (land, water & air)
• greater clarity re: roles & responsibilities of land use decision-makers
• improved conflict resolution processes
Alberta’s New Land Use System
What Albertans want…
• better land conservation & stewardship
• improved land use information sharing
• increased consultation & opportunities for public, stakeholders & aboriginal peoples to influence land use policies & decisions
Alberta’s New Land Use System
Alberta’s New Land Use System
Structure – regional planning
Regional Plan
Regional Advisory Council
Terms of Reference
Land Use Secretariat
Public
Cabinet Approved Plan
Sub-regional Plan
Cabinet has complete control over theplan, ToR, and amendments.
Alberta’s New Land Use System
Regulatory hierarchy
Alberta Land Stewardship Act
Other Acts
Regional Plan
Other Regulations
“Super Regulation”
If there is a conflict?
Amends 27 other acts
Alberta’s New Land Use System
Enforcement
ALSA amends other acts
Day to day decisions of municipalities and government
Decisions must comply with Regional Plan
Non-compliance
Existing appeal processes Complaint to LUS Commissioner
Alberta’s New Land Use System
Regulations & tools
• Top down completely – discretion lies with Cabinet
– Challenges to court are limited
• Regulation making powers are broad
– Include appeal mechanisms for public lands
Alberta’s New Land Use System
Regulations & tools
• Conservation tools enabled
– Conservation directive
– Conservation easements – expanded to agricultural land
– Conservation offsets
– Tradable Development Credit
Alberta’s New Land Use System
ELC’s assessment of ALSA
• Our vision: dedicated land use planning legislation
– single, binding Act
– administered by Cabinet & a separate administrative secretariat
– all gov’t depts must conform
– set out decision-making process for land use planning
– assign planning responsibilities, create a clear decision-making hierarchy & require local land use decisions to conform to regional plans
Alberta’s New Land Use System
ELC’s assessment of ALSA
Our assessment: ALSA meets the basic elements
• more needed re: decision-making process for land use planning
• much is still to be determined by Cabinet:
– Regional Advisory Councils
– creation of the planning process
– development and amendment of regional plans
– content of regional plans
Alberta’s New Land Use System
Development of regional plans
• Current (done 2010):
– Lower Athabasca– South Saskatchewan
• Stage 2 (done 2011):
– North Saskatchewan– Upper Athabasca
• Stage 3 (done 2012):
– Red Deer– Upper Peace– Lower Peace
Alberta’s New Land Use System
Development of regional plans
SECRETARIAT&
PROJECT TEAM
CABINET
REGIONALADVISORY
COMMITTEE
3 stages of public input
•Initial info sessions
•Draft vision for plan
•Draft plan
Aboriginal consultation separate
Alberta’s New Land Use System
Elements of regional plans
• Regional profile
• Policy context
• Regional vision statement
• Regional outcomes
• Objectives & goals
• Strategies, actions, approaches
• Monitoring & reporting
• 50 year min. planning horizon
• 5-10 year effectiveness
Alberta’s New Land Use System
Lower Athabasca plan scope
• Primary focus: economic development (oil sands; timber)
• Land conservation – boreal forest
• Water & air (NOx & SO2) thresholds
• Aboriginal traditional use
Alberta’s New Land Use System
South Saskatchewan plan scope
• Population growth
• Water supply & demand
• Landscape conservation (Eastern slopes)
• Economic growth (agriculture; energy; forestry; recreation & tourism)
• Thresholds: surface water quantity & quality; air quality
• Aboriginal traditional use
• Major multi-use corridors
Alberta’s New Land Use System
What else to watch for…
• Interim/transitional issues
• Implementation– How will province-wide agencies manage?
Alberta’s New Land Use System
Support the ELC
• Registered charity – donations receive a tax receipt
• 100% of donations fund ELC public programs
https://www.elc.ab.ca/pages/SupportELC/default.aspx
CRA Registration Number - 11890 0679 RR0001
Alberta’s New Land Use System
Questions?
Phone: 780-424-5099 or 1-800-661-4238
E-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]
Web: www.elc.ab.ca
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