After several years of work, the Kettle River Management Plan is completed and ready for implementation.
The RDKB board endorsed the Kettle River Watershed plan by considering information in the plan in relevant discussion and decision-making by implementing the priority strategies and actions, as appropriate through the local government planning documents.
“What we’re doing is endorsing an idea on how we feel about the Kettle River and what we think needs to happen in the future to what we all need to buy in to have water in the future,” said Grace McGregor, RDKB board chair and Area C (Christina Lake) director. “It’s preservation of agriculture and the fact that when you turn on your sprinkler there is going to be something there.”
Program coordinator Graham Watt said that the watershed plan sets out planning directions and ideas for the RDKB to undertake as well as to promote for other groups.
Watt said, by approving the plan, the RDKB is saying, ‘Yes, we’re going to use this internally in our own planning and we’re also going to promote it to others who are interested in water management and try to get everyone to work together.’
“It really connects things together and sets the stage for requesting similar endorsements from other organizations,” said Watt.
The RDKB also approved of staff drafting and the execution of a contract with Graham Watt for core funding for implementation of the Kettle River Watershed Management plan at an annual cost of $35,280 for three years at a total of $105,840.
“It means I will continue to have a role in the project,” said Watt. “I will be able to keep coordinating meetings and bringing people together and also very important, fundraising, project management and grant management to support various components of the watershed plan.”
Watt said implementing the project is exciting because there are several different opportunities in the plan such as restoration projects and water conservation.