The SLWSS stands for, and practices, environmental stewardship to protect and conserve the Sylvan Lake watershed and its lake. We know stewardship. We analyzed the text of the Sylvan Lake Intermunicipal Development Plan (IDP 2020) to search for evidence of the application of the principles and practice of stewardship in the three watersheds included in …
Responsible Care of Watersheds
Dr. Judy Stewart, an expert on municipal law and the environment has recently published a paper that addresses her title question "Do recent amendments to Alberta's Municipal Government Act enable management of surface water resources and air quality?" The SLWSS has demonstrated how watershed management could be improved by adoption of the principles of the …
Blayne West Leaves Lacombe County for Australia
Blayne West, environmental coordinator for Lacombe County and member of the board of directors of the Sylvan Lake Watershed Stewardship Society, will depart from Canada with her family and return to Australia where summer never ends. Blayne helped to develop and manage Lacombe County's environmental policy and practices and contributed to the Cumulative Effects Management System (CEMS) …
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Learn to How to Respect Our Lake(s)
The SLWSS invites you to protect Sylvan Lake as a watershed steward. However Environment and Sustainable Resource Development (ESRD) is more ambitious and invites you to respect all Alberta lakes at the Respect Our Lakes web page. Know the laws of Canada and Alberta that support lake management goals. And click on the many links …
Ecosystem Valuation
Decision-making about ways and means to protect and preserve the Sylvan Lake watershed is limited by the lack of information on its value. The methods used by environmental economists who study ecosystems are explained on a website maintained by the US Department of Agriculture. The following paragraph is an excerpt that introduces a few methods …
Empowering Municipalities for Environmental Management
This text is extracted from the Environmental Law Centre's website; 6/16/2014 It is the ELC’s view that municipalities have the potential to play a pivotal role in environmental management and protection in Alberta. Municipalities have the authority to control and regulate many private land uses. As well, municipalities have the responsibility for engaging in local land …
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The Central Alberta Recreational Lakes Initiative
Representatives of the Central Alberta Recreational Lakes (CARL) and many supporting organizations have an exclusive club that meets annually to discuss the status of local environments and to learn about issues that affect lake and watershed health. For an introduction to CARL, see this website that is maintained by Alberta's Environment and Sustainable Resources Development department staff. …
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Proposed Environmental Goals for the Red Deer River Watershed
The Sylvan Lake watershed occupies 10.6 thousand hectares of the 4.965 million hectares in the Red Deer River watershed that extends across Central Alberta. See all the maps prepared for the Red Deer River Watershed Alliance (RDRWA) posted here. The Integrated Watershed Management Plan for the Red Deer River watershed will apply to Sylvan Lake that is a part of the …
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The Sylvan Lake Watershed Rule Book
Know the rules of the game. Respect the watershed, the residents and its guests. Contraventions and fines from several relevant federal government Acts are posted here. Excerpts are included from these Acts: Shipping Act Pleasure Craft Regulations Wildlife Act Protection of Endangered Species Migratory Birds Wild Animal and Plant Protection Navigable Waters Only those infractions that are …
Getting Our Acts Together
Here are a few links to federal and provincial laws, regulations and guidelines that are important for protection of watersheds: Alberta: Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act 2009 Water Act 2009 Municipal Affairs Act Water Legislation, Regulations & Guidelines Wetland Restoration/Compensation Guide 2007 Groundwater Evaluation Guideline 2003 Also see this ESRD web page on the impact of land use …
