Providing for Reserve Lands

Municipal Reserves and School Reserves

The Municipal Government Act allows the County to secure Municipal Reserve Lands at the time of subdivision for parks, buffers and school reserves. Many of these lands are available as public park space and are operated and maintained by local community associations

Environmental Reserves

Two of the key objectives stated in MDP2010 are to:

  1. Endeavour to preserve the integrity of Environmentally Significant Areas and,
  2. Promote public awareness regarding the impact of development on the environment.

According to section 664 of the Municipal Government Act a subdivision authority may require the owner of a parcel of land that is the subject of a proposed subdivision to provide part of that parcel of land as environmental reserve if it consists of:

  1. a swamp, gully, ravine, coulee or natural drainage course,
  2. land that is subject to flooding or is, in the opinion of the subdivision authority, unstable, or
  3. a strip of land, not less than 6 metres in width, abutting the bed and shore of any lake, river, stream or other body of water for the purpose of
    1. preventing pollution, or
    2. providing public access to and beside the bed and shore.

If the owner of a parcel of land that is the subject of a proposed subdivision and the municipality agree that any or all of the land that is to be taken as environmental reserve is instead to be the subject of an environmental reserve easement for the protection and enhancement of the environment, an easement may be registered against the land in favour of the municipality at a land titles office.

Environmental Reserve Easements

An environmental reserve easement is an easement that is registered on the title of a parcel of land in favour of the municipality for the purpose of the protection and enhancement of the environment.

Environmental Protection District

Environmental Protection District (EP) is a land use district in the County of Foothill's Land Use Bylaw the purpose of which is:

"To provide for the preservation and protection of land which is determined to be Environmentally Significant or land dedicated as Environmental Reserve. These lands may be owned or managed by the Municipality, an individual landowner or public land trust."