| | In the coming months, the Alberta Government will be looking for your input in developing a provincial land use framework. This framework is intended to create a new approach to land management in Alberta. It will guide decision makers at all levels as they face tough choices related to the ever-increasing pressures on land use arising from our rapidly growing economy and population. It will also foster a greater awareness and understanding by Albertans as stewards of our valuable land base.
“The demands on Alberta’s land base are increasing. We are moving towards a situation where increasingly difficult trade-off decisions will have to be made,” says Morris Seiferling, Alberta’s Assistant Deputy Minister of Sustainable Resource and Environmental Management. “A thriving economy requires a system in which the competition for finite resources is decided in favour of Albertans as a whole. The challenge is achieving balance among economic, environmental and social priorities.”
Seiferling’s office has been tasked with leading a Government-wide effort to improve integration and information sharing on sustainable resource and environmental management in Alberta. This initiative came out of a 1999 policy document that reconfirmed the Alberta Government’s commitment to sustainable development that protects the environment while encouraging economic growth.
To move forward on that commitment, the Government is emphasizing: clear provincial direction on resource and environmental management, effective decision-making, and an up-to-date legislative/regulatory regime. One of the major roles of Seiferling’s office is to work on development of a provincial land use framework. This framework will apply to all private and public lands in Alberta (except federal lands, like the national parks). It is expected to be initiated in the near future and completed in two or three years.
The framework will provide high-level guidance to help private and public sector agencies make balanced, informed and timely decisions on land use in their own jurisdictions. Seiferling says, “We want an integrated decision-making system that will deliver a better service to clients and that will have the confidence of Albertans.” Beyond those general aims, the framework’s details will be established through public consultations.
“Our intent is that Albertans will build this framework and support it in the long term,” explains Seiferling. “The development of the framework will build on the successful consultation process used to develop the Water for Life strategy.” He adds, “We could also say ‘Land for Life’. Land creates wealth and jobs, it’s where we live, it’s where we go for recreation and enjoyment, it supports plant and animal life. We have to wisely manage it so our children and grandchildren have the same opportunities.“
The Government will be seeking public input on many topics, such as what principles should guide future decisions, and how to link regional and local planning efforts with an overall provincial strategy.
Seiferling adds, “The provincial framework will set the goal posts under which local land use decisions can be made in a provincial context. There’s no intent to take over local decision-making authority. The intent is to help those people who make decisions every day. A lot of them are concerned about how their decisions affect the broader provincial picture and what are the provincial principles they need to look at in making local decisions.”
Information on how you can provide input to creating a provincial land use framework will be coming in the near future. |
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