Mooring in Alberta: Defining the Policy Issues and Solutions. October 17, 2014 Annual General Meeting Association of Summer Villages of Alberta

Transcription

1 Mooring in Alberta: Defining the Policy Issues and Solutions October 17, 2014 Annual General Meeting Association of Summer Villages of Alberta

2 The Policy Development Process 1. Preliminary Issue Identification 2. Research and Analysis 3. Confirmation of issues with stakeholders 4. Options consultation 5. Decision Making the policy 6. Implementation - communications

3 Docks & Buoys: Considerations for Moving Forward 1. What did we learn from other jurisdictions? Essentially complete! Jurisdictions commonly regulate users, dock use area, # of docks, slips, dimensions, setbacks. 2. What is practical and considers Alberta lakes? 3. What minimizes regulatory administration for all parties? Regulate only were needed (multiple moorings, mooring fields, commercial, marinas) 4. Riparian owners are the only landowners with right of access for moorage purposes. This could be the basis for a systematic approach for who is allowed to place a personal dock on a lake bed for personal use. 5. What minimum standard would work as a Disturbance Standard for seasonal personal use docks?

4 Issue 1. Who is able to place a dock on a lake bed? Rd Allowance? X 3 Scenarios: 1. Confirm right to egress and ingress to Riparian land owner = Common Law (CL) right Individual lots that share a boundary with lake Municipal Reserves = are riparian landowners, same CL rights 2. Access, but no rights? Backlot owners? no CL rights, even if access to lake through ER 3. No Access, no rights? Non-resident users? no CL rights Q. How large? How far into lake? How many slips? What associated structures? What is personal use? Commercial use? Shared use?

5 Issue 2. Who is able to place a buoy on a lake bed? 1. Take same approach as docks. 2. Could be treated as incidental to right to place a dock. 3. Q. How many for personal use? How far into lake? Where in the lake? 4. Q. Where multi-slip dock available (commercial or non-commercial), is there additional need for buoys? 5. Q. When do multiple moorings become a mooring facility (marina, mooring field)?

6 Issue 3. Where can a dock or buoy be placed on the bed of a lake? Lot Lot? X Lot 1. Define a dock use area in relation to projected lot lines Multiple approaches Non-exclusive right! 2. Establish a setback from each of projected lot lines allows separation for egress/ingress from adjacent lot, minimize disputes Q. What is appropriate setback? 3. Dock is placed within dock use area. 4. Setback does not apply if dock is shared between adjacent properties 5. Q. How far out? - Extend dock to no greater distance than to a navigable depth. 6. Q. How far out for a buoy? 7. No moorage fronting a boat launch area.

7 Issue 4. How many docks for a riparian property? 1. General Rule = One dock for personal (family) use per riparian lake lot. 2. Options? Q. What would need be for additional dock? Q. If so, any need to factor in size of lot frontage? 60 ft = 1 dock/ 1 slip /1 buoy? 60 ft- 100 ft = 1 dock/ 2 slips/ 1 buoy? 100 ft =? Q. How many boat slips per dock? What is reasonable? common need? Q. How to deal with smaller PWC? How many per dock? Q. What is total sum of permissible watercraft slips & buoys?

8 Issue 5. Municipal Regulation If riparian property is municipal (i.e., ER), allow municipality to regulate placement of docks and number of slips (incl. buoys) within their dock use area. Best understands needs local management Provides mechanism to address backlot owner needs bordering the reserve. Provides mechanism to address subdivision property owners not bordering the reserve, but that could access lake through reserve. Provides mechanism to address users outside of subdivision. Q. Should muni be required to establish rules for fair & equitable access to dock usage? Q. Should muni be allowed to charge for use? If so, under what circumstances? When would it be commercial use and trigger disposition need?

9 Issue 6. Mooring Facilities Multiple docks/slips 1. Q. What about strata-like developments? E.g. hotel/ condo frontage, trailer park, campground, or seasonal resort area use. Q. When commercial? 2. How to treat non-commercial multiple mooring developments (sailing clubs)? Allow for creation of managed mooring fields (buoys) to regulate high moorage need (noncommercial and commercial). 3. Q. When is mooring facility a marina? Multiple docks and slips for commercial use = marina

10 Issue 7. Limit width of docks & configuration? X 1. Max 1.5 m (5ft) width. 2. Multiple configurations allowed, provided does not enclose water. 3. Q. Any limits to size of terminal platform? 4. Q. Max surface area, incl. terminal platforms for personal dock? E.g., 20 m 2 (215 ft 2 ) 5. Q. Other dimensional considerations? 6. Muni determines max where they are riparian. 7. Disposition required for multiple slips where non-personal or commercial. 8. Q. What is minimum separation distance between docks?

11 Issue 8. Ancillary Structures? 1. Boat lifts - One boat / personal use dock? - # of PWCs? 2. Swimming platforms 3. Others? Q. What is reasonable? Q. What should be allowed to be covered, not covered?

12 Issue 9. Restrictions? Other issues? Q. Should there be any use restrictions addressed in policy approach? 1. Boat houses? 2. Houseboats, partyboats? May rest with muni and zoning! 3. Buoyed swimming areas? 4.? Q. What elements have not been addressed? Other issues?

13 Contact Gerry Haekel, P. Biol. Shoreland Management Program Land and Forest Policy Division Environment and Sustainable Resource Division (w)