Dear Editor,
After the Renfrew County Official Plan number 25 was partially approved on March 22, 2019 the Muskrat Lake Association (MLA) was concerned about the wording in Section 16.2.6 which states: “Shoreline frontage which is at least 20 metres (66 feet) in depth from the normal high or controlled high water mark should be retained or restored as a natural vegetative buffer,….” and ”These policies also apply to the tributaries flowing to the Muskrat Lake, Snake River and Muskrat River located within the Township of Whitewater Region.”
In other words it’s the sole responsibility of Whitewater Region to rectify the nutrient problem in Muskrat Lake. This was a ridiculous, non-realistic requirement.
On October 31, 2019 the MLA sent a letter to the Warden of Renfrew County asking for the official plan to be revised such that other townships that contribute nutrients into Muskrat Lake must be included in the above requirement.
In December and on several other occasions we called and sent data to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (MMAH) that outlined the real source of most of the nutrients getting into the lake. A letter dated December 13, 2019 from Warden Debbie Robinson stated:” Once the update now underway to the Provincial Policy Statement is completed, County Council would have to determine next steps with respect to any revisions to the Official Plan.”
In several discussions we had with Damien Schaeffer of MMAH he basically told us the same thing although he did get more facts from the Ministry of Environment Conservation and Parks (MECP). The results of our efforts have in fact made a positive change to the Official Plan as shown in the following decision, that cannot be appealed, and that we received on April 8 from MMAH.
“Protection of the Natural Shoreline Buffer in the Muskrat, Indian, Westmeath Watershed. Considering the current state of impairment to the water quality of the Muskrat Lake watershed and the extent of impacts from anthropogenic and agricultural activities; the following protective policies will apply to all surface water features including permanently flowing municipal drains of the Muskrat Lake Watershed outside the municipality of Whitewater Region…. and work to complement those similar policies in section 16 of this plan. (1) Shoreline frontage which is at least 20 meters (66 feet) in depth from the normal high or controlled high water mark should be retained or restored as a natural vegetative buffer, in order to…..”
And it names several reasons why. Other townships need to do their part.
If you look at the 1998 and 2019 data from W. Robertson and others, properly functioning septic systems are a very small contributor of total phosphorus anthropogenic load to waterways not a major concern as previously indicated by the MECP. It’s interesting to note the above requirement was one of the recommendations in the two 1981 Environmental Appraisals done for Bromley Township by Michael Michalski and others, but was never acted upon by Bromley Township.
The big question now is will the politicians and government agencies follow the official plan and do the right thing? Time will tell.
Donald W. Deer P. Eng. from the Muskrat Lake Association, Whitewater Region
