Rocky View County’s staff now has another guidance and planning tool, as County councillors directed administration to consider the draft form of the Jumpingpound Creek Integrated Watershed Management Plan when making decisions.
The plan, first presented to the public on June 16, is the result of four years of work and stakeholder consultation by the Jumpingpound Creek Watershed Partnership (JCWP).
The document, which is consistent with the Bow River Basin Water Management Plan, contains information to support the watershed’s long-term health.
“The watershed is really important and whenever things are done you have to think about the impacts (to it),” said Reeve Rolly Ashdown. “They are critical to the ecology of the area, and if we didn’t pay attention to the watersheds, the quality of water flowing (through Rocky View) would deteriorate. We are stewards of the land and water and we take that very seriously.”
The JCWP was formed in 2007 to develop a plan to protect Jumpingpound Creek, a tributary of the Bow River that mingles with the larger body near the Town of Cochrane and drains about 604 square kilometres in Rocky View County, the Municipal District of Bighorn, Kananaskis and the Stoney Nation.
The group has a diverse membership with representation from all levels of government, including Rocky View County and the Town of Cochrane, industry, local farmers, landowners and residents.
Since its inception, the non-profit stewardship group has hosted several public open houses, completed a water balance study, a State of the Watershed Report and drafted the management plan. The document provides a number of specific targets and thresholds, including those for water quality, temperature, riparian setbacks and flow rates. Through its ongoing monitoring, the JCWP has discovered the state of the watershed is relatively healthy and stakeholders hope to keep it that way, according to Sandi Riemersma, an environmental biologist.
“We’re not trying to fix something that has really gone wrong,” she said. “We are trying to preserve something for the future.”
Next steps for the JCWP include formally presenting the draft form of the Watershed Management Plan to the municipal councils of Cochrane and Bighorn. It will then be sent to Alberta Environment for final approval.
