The good folks at Flagstaff Waste have asked us to remind residents to please use the community compost and recycling bins as they are intended. As evidenced in these recent photos, a small minority of residents have not been doing so, resulting in entire bins having to be disposed of in the landfill – which defeats the purpose of the composting and recycling programs.
For further information, visit: www.flagwaste.ca, email office@flagwaste.ca or call Flagstaff Waste at 780-384-3950.
If you are hauling more than 10 loads of 11,797 kg or greater in a 24-hour period to or from the same location within Flagstaff County, then you are required to enter into a Multiple Load Road Use Agreement (MLRUA) with Flagstaff County.
This agreement, which must be obtained at least 48 hours in advance, provides notification of the proposed route, allowing Public Works staff to conduct a pre- and post-haul inspection of the roads. An administration inspection fee of $250 will be charged to the agreement holder. The agreement holder also accepts full responsibility for all damages to the roads.
This applies to the following: energy or oil/gas industry, agriculture industry and private trucking companies.
In addition to entering into an MLRUA with the County, a permit is also required through Roadata Services Ltd., at 1-888-730-3745.
For more information on this policy, please call the Flagstaff County office at 780-384-4100.
Congratulations to Flagstaff County Peace Officer Skyler Zelinski on receiving his 12-year Alberta Emergency Services medal.
The medal presentation was made at the 2020 Alberta Association of Community Peace Officers Conference in Lake Louise. The medal was awarded for 12 years of service as a peace officer.
From left to right: Terri Miller, President of the AACPO; Skyler; Tammy Spink, Manager of the Peace Officer program for the Alberta Justice and Solicitor General ministry; Curtis Zablocki, RCMP K Division Commanding Officer; and Mark Sproule, Vice President of the AACPO.
The Alberta RCMP supports community engagement by providing the public with the tools, resources and information they need to uphold public safety – for themselves and for their communities.
About the Map
The new online map enables the Alberta RCMP to share current criminal incidents with members of the communities they serve across Alberta.
Crime Reduction
The RCMP hopes that the map will help encourage citizens to report suspicious activity to the police which will strengthen their intelligence gathering capability and help them make arrests.
To access the map, click on the graphic above or click HERE.
Flagstaff County landowners should be aware of several important factors when it comes to drainage and brush removal.
Did you know that provincial legislation is in place to deal with unauthorized drainage on private property? Did you also know that municipal bylaws and policies exist to address brush removal on right-of-ways?
Please be aware that there is an approval and licensing process prior to commencing these types of activities. Also, please keep in mind that substantial fines may be levied for any contraventions of provincial legislation or municipal bylaws.
The following has been compiled as a helpful guide for landowners.
Unauthorized drainage
All water in Alberta is subject to provincial jurisdiction under the Water Act.
Therefore, all activities impacting a water body – including drainage and infilling – require provincial approval.
This includes ephemeral water bodies (a shallow water body that temporarily contains water after spring snowmelt or a heavy rainfall and typically dries up within a matter of days to weeks).
Under the Water Act, no wetland may be drained or altered without first receiving provincial authorization.
Natural surface water bodies, including their shorelines, riparian areas and upland drainage areas, play an important role in the environment. Unfortunately, this important role is not well recognized by the general public.
These water bodies and their riparian and upland areas provide some of the following functions:
Unauthorized drainage can oftentimes have an adverse effect on wetlands, destroying habitat upon which wildlife and pollinators depend. It can ultimately lead to added expenses for residents in the affected municipality.
Under the province’s Water Act, a licence is required to divert and use surface or ground water in Alberta.
The licence identifies the water source, location of the diversion site, volume, rate and timing of water to be diverted, priority of the “water right” established by the licence, and any conditions the diversion must adhere to.
Licences can be issued for temporary diversions up to a maximum of one year, or for longer time periods, depending on the project type.
Activities in or near a wetland may also be subject to the Alberta Wetland Policy. It is the landowner’s responsibility to ensure all regulatory requirements are met prior to commencing work in or near a wetland. Approval officers will work with landowners to ensure all applicable regulatory requirements are considered.
For an application form, visit the Alberta Environment and Parks (AEP) website and look under Forms/Applications.
After an application has been submitted, a Water Act licence or a preliminary certificate may be issued. The preliminary certificate is a “promised” water allocation. Once its conditions have been fulfilled, this certificate expires and a licence is issued. Note: A preliminary certificate does NOT authorize an activity or a diversion of water.
A licence may be issued where the water source can supply the needs of the applicant and the diversion of water has no adverse effect on the source, surrounding users or the environment.
Anyone who conducts an activity in a water body without provincial approval or who diverts water without a licence may face enforcement action with a maximum fine of $50,000 for an individual and $500,000 for a corporation. If you observe what you believe to be an illegal water-related activity, contact AEP at 1-800-222-6514.
Unauthorized brush removal
Under the Flagstaff County Traffic Bylaw, “No Person shall use or occupy an Undeveloped Road Allowance, except for the sole purpose of access or travel, where such access or travel does not physically alter or interfere with the Undeveloped Road Allowance, unless a licence authorizing the use or occupation has been issued to the Person pursuant to this Bylaw.”
This prohibition applies to removal of vegetation from undeveloped road allowances, placement of structures, equipment or obstructions on undeveloped road allowances and cultivation, and cropping or grazing on undeveloped road allowances. Violators are subject to a fine of up to $10,000.
Unauthorized removal of brush along an undeveloped right-of-way is part of a larger issue known as agricultural encroachment, which is essentially farming upon developed and undeveloped municipal right-of-ways.
The act of farming upon developed and undeveloped municipal right-of-ways is commonplace across the Flagstaff Region.
Unfortunately, this practice produces several challenges for County crews. For the Public Works department, agricultural encroachment can restrict the ability to provide roadway drainage improvements, as well as interfere with the ability to maintain road allowances. For Agricultural Service crews, encroachment on right-of-ways can create difficulties with mowing and weed control.
From observations by staff and concerns brought forth by the public, the following categories of right-of-way encroachment have been identified (in addition to the unauthorized removal of brush along an undeveloped right-of-way):
As recommended by the Agricultural Service Board, County Council adopted the following three standards in 2017:
For more information, call the Flagstaff County Administration Office at 780-384-4100.
Just in time for Christmas, the Battle River Watershed Alliance is launching a new hardcover coffee table book in which the Flagstaff Region is featured prominently.
Titled the Traversing Terrain & Experience Atlas, this publication is composed of a compilation of stories, art, photography, geography, and interesting facts.
Among the subject material related to the Flagstaff Region and surrounding area:
Books sell for $35 each. Order one and you can arrange to pick it up at the Flagstaff County office during regular business hours.
For more information, visit: http://battleriverwatershed.ca/atlas.
Flagstaff County uses two logos: the Flagstaff County Corporate logo and the Flagstaff Region Brand logo.
The Flagstaff County Corporate logo prominently features the two primary industries. A sheaf of wheat represents the long-dependable agricultural base, while a silhouetted pump jack symbolizes the strong oil and gas sector. This logo was established in 1998, a year after the County opted to change its name from County of Flagstaff No. 29 and then subsequently held a contest to create a new County crest. This logo is used to market the image and services of the municipality.
Meanwhile, the Flagstaff Region Brand logo features carefree and simple paint strokes that represent the ‘free’ feeling of wide open prairie skies. The long brush stroke represents vast open space. The large upper stroke represents wide open skies. Combined, the effect is loosely that of a “flag” waving in the breeze. The logo was established in 2015 in consultation with Twist Marketing and the Flagstaff Region communities, businesses and residents. The Flagstaff Region Brand logo differentiates the Flagstaff Region from other municipalities within East Central Alberta for the purpose of marketing and communications related to economic development and tourism both inside and outside of the Flagstaff Region.
To ensure consistency in promoting these images, permission is required to utilize either logo for any use outside of this organization.
Flagstaff County and the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) are proud to announce a partnership dedicated towards conserving the Meyers property, an ecologically significant piece of land along the Battle River.
This project is of particular importance as it represents the first time NCC and Flagstaff County have partnered to conserve a property owned by the municipality.
“The Meyers property is a unique natural landscape that we felt should be protected from development,” says Flagstaff County’s Reeve Gerald Kuefler. “Council sought alternatives for how we could protect it. Through our research, we determined that that Nature Conservancy of Canada would be the best option.”
The Meyers property is 169 acres (68 hectares) located on the banks of the Battle River, which is a tributary of the North Saskatchewan River that runs through central Alberta and western Saskatchewan. The lands surrounding the river make up the Battle River watershed.
The Battle River is a prairie-fed river instead of a glacier-fed river; it depends on local rainfall for its water supply, making the lands that surround it critical to its survival. The watershed—or basin—is an important geographical feature, as snow and rain that falls on the surrounding lands all drain into the river.
The preservation of vegetation in riverside areas, called riparian zones, is important because it stabilizes the riverbanks and prevents erosion, decreases the impact of flooding, and filters out sediments and pollutants. It also provides habitat for native fish, birds, mammals, and insects. A few significant fish species found in the Battle River include northern pike, walleye, mooneye, and goldeye.
Water from the Battle River is used by downstream communities every day for domestic, industrial, and agricultural purposes.
The Meyers property was purchased by Flagstaff County in April 2012. Due to its location alongside the river and the lack of human impact on the land, the county recognized the need for conservation of the property and approached NCC, Canada’s leading land trust organization, about placing a conservation easement on it.
A conservation easement is a solution for landowners who still want to retain ownership of their property, but are invested in long-term conservation. An easement is the legal transfer of select development rights to a land trust organization. It is a legally binding contract recognized by both provincial and federal law, and the easement remains in place even if ownership of the land changes in the future.
Bob Demulder, NCC’s regional vice president, said “the Meyers property is excellent natural habitat containing a mosaic of grasslands, badlands, and woodlands. Partnering with Flagstaff County is a unique opportunity, and the Nature Conservancy of Canada is pleased to be a part of this exciting conservation project.
Heading forward, Flagstaff County will continue to manage the land. Reeve Kuefler says the plan is to maintain the property’s uniqueness by keeping it in its natural state. NCC will visit the property annually to ensure the terms of the easement are being upheld, and together, NCC and Flagstaff County will work together for the long-term conservation of the Meyers property.
Photos of the property available here (photo credit to NCC).
Facts
-The Meyers property, combined with an adjacent 1,200-acre (486-hectare) easement also held by NCC, creates several miles of conserved riparian lands along the river valley of the Battle River.
-This conservation project was made possible with the support of Flagstaff County towards both the securement of the easement and the stewardship of the property.
-Further support for this project came from North American Wetlands Conservation Act, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Repsol Canada.
About the Nature Conservancy of Canada
The Nature Conservancy of Canada is the nation’s leading private, not-for-profit land conservation organization, protecting vital natural areas and the species they sustain. Since 1962, NCC and its partners have helped protect more than 2.8 million acres (1.1 million hectares), coast to coast. In Alberta, we have conserved over 234,000 acres (94,700 hectares) of this province’s most ecologically significant land and water.
To learn more:
Visit: www.natureconservancy.ca
Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/NCC_CNC
Become a fan on Facebook
About Flagstaff County
Flagstaff County is known as the “Community of Communities.” Ten communities located within create a region that boasts an affordable cost of living, numerous recreational opportunities, friendly people and a quiet rural lifestyle.
To learn more:
Visit: www.flagstaff.ab.ca
Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/FlagstaffCounty
Become a fan on Facebook
For more information contact
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Carys Richards |
Cary Castagna Communication Coordinator Flagstaff County Tel. 780 384-4134 ccastagna@flagstaff.ab.ca |