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HomeMy WebLinkAboutBirch Grove and Area Source Water Protection Planning Committee Minutes - June 23, 2009 Fifth Meeting Birch Grove and Area Source Water Protection Planning (SWPP) Committee APPROVED MINUTES Tuesday, June 23, 2009, 7 to 9 pm Birch Grove Volunteer Fire Hall 1420 Birch Grove Road, Birch Grove ----------------------------- 1.Tea\Coffee th 2.Review and Approval of Minutes from April 7 3.Review of the watershed boundary, Britt and David 4.Birch Grove park plans, Alan Kehoe 5.Field trip to dam and Glace Bay water treatment plant 6.Selection of date and time for next meeting 7.Adjournment Committee Members in attendance Doug Lawrence, Landowner (Sand Lake) - vice chair David Turnbull, Landowner (MacAskill Brook Dam Reservoir) and Birch Grove Rural Development Association Audrey Turnbull, Landowner (John Allen Lake) Britt Roscoe, CBRM Watershed Protection Brendan MacKenzie, DNR Regional Geologist Alan Kehoe, Cape Breton Development Corporation (DEVCO) Ed Barrington, Landowner (west end MacAskill Brook watershed) Cheryl Benjamin, NSEL Watershed Planner Regrets Kevin Saccary, CBRM Councillor - chair Ross MacDonald, Landowner (Sand Lake) Brian MacSween, DNR Forester Kevin Elworthy, Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation (ECBC) DARR Charlie Morrison , NSEL Inspector Specialist Ron Peach, Port Morien Development Association and Citizens Against Strip Mining (CASM) Allister MacLean, Marconi Trail Blazers ATV Club Kirk MacNeil, Port Morien Wildlife Association 1.Tea\Coffee Doug Lawrence passed along apologies from Kevin Saccary, who could not attend. Doug opened and chaired the meeting. th 2.Review and Approval of Minutes from April 7 Members discussed the land uses presented by David Turnbull at the last meeting. There were questions about the salvage yard. Britt replied that the Land Use By- law restrictions only applied if the operator applies for a Development Permit and there is no application pending. Britt will check with NS Environment to find out what conditions applied to a Salvage Yard Approval. Alan noted that the CBDC remediation project was not included within the watershed. David replied that the area was not in the current watershed delineation, but was in the new boundary based on LIDAR. Again, we are short a quorum of eight voting members and the minutes could not be approved. 3.Review of the watershed boundary David Turnbull has been concerned about the variety of watershed boundaries that have been put forward by CBRM. An old version of the natural watershed created in the 1980s from 1:50,000 mapping is now used for the zoning boundary of the Public Water Supply (PWS) Watershed Zone. Later versions of watershed boundaries for MacAskill Brook Dam reservoir and John Allen Lake were prepared by ADI Limited based on 1:10,000 mapping and this differs from the zoning boundary. LIDAR mapping done in October 2008 allows the creation of 1 metre contours for determination of more accurate watershed boundaries. Britt and David displayed maps showing revised natural watershed boundaries based on these contours. An important change noted by David was that John Alan Lake does not flow into the MacAskill Brook Dam reservoir. This led to a discussion on the fact that while this improved information is a benefit, it results in a situation where the boundaries used for municipal zoning differ from the natural watershed. Any changes to the boundaries of a municipal zone require public consultation and will be led by the Planning Department of CBRM - it won't simply be a matter of the SWPC sending the updating information to planning staff. Britt described CBRM’s new electronic permitting system. As new development permits are applied for, the appropriate staff will automatically receive an email. In the case of a development proposed within any of the water supply zones, Britt could receive notification. There was some discussion of whether there might be a tiered approach to watershed protection, with areas distant from water bodies and streams being less strictly protected that those beside water bodies. Ed Barrington, for example, is developing a blueberry operation west of Cusack Lake at the extreme western tip of the MacAskill Brook watershed. Ed noted that there is a Blueberry Grower’s Code of Practice for Pest Management. http://nsac.ca/wildblue/facts/code.asp#prot Britt noted there were Best Management Practices for forestry, agriculture, and mineral exploration available from NS Environment and NS Natural Resources. There has also been a Development Standard developed for the Bras d-Or Lakes watershed that might be of interest. Britt said he would email these to the committee members. Cheryl added that NS Environment regulates salvage yards, as well as pits and quarries. There was discussion of options for managing the watersheds. Cheryl and Britt agreed to research these options for presentation at the September meeting. Britt will prepare maps of each watershed showing the land uses to help weigh the risks and explore options. There was concern that even if CBRM owned land in the watershed, enforcement was needed to ensure people behaved appropriately while in the watershed. 4.Plans for a Birch Grove Park Community members were pleased to hear CBDC were putting recreational infrastructure in Birch Grove. As CBRM will become responsible for the park area there was some concern about the municipality’s lack of interest in outdoor recreational facilities. Audrey felt the committee might want to fund a student to help with watershed education and outdoor recreation in the watersheds. 5.Tour of Glace Bay Water Treatment Plant There will be a tour of the Glace Bay Water Treatment Plant in Tower Road, th Wednesday, July 8 at 1 pm. 6.Selection of Date and Time for Next Meeting The next meeting will be at the Birch Grove Fire Hall on Tuesday evening, th September 15 from 7 to 9 pm. 7.Adjournment The meeting adjourned before 9 pm.