Sub-regional Planning Profile of the Sub-region

The Bistcho Lake Sub-region is located in the CURRENT CONDITION northwest portion of the Lower Peace Regional Planning area. It covers 20,093 km2 and consists Communities of public lands that are managed for energy and The Bistcho Lake sub-region is located in Mackenzie timber production, watershed health, fish and wildlife County, and includes the communities of , habitat, recreation, and other uses. Meander River, Steen River, and . The sub-region is entirely within boundaries and overlaps the following Dene Tha’ First Nation reserve lands of Jackfish Point 214, Bistcho Lake 213, 212, Amber River 211, 210, and Hay Lake 2. The sub-region may also be part of what other First Nations and Indigenous communities consider as their traditional territories.

While located outside of the sub-region, the towns of , Rainbow Lake and Manning, Northern Lights County and all rely on its resources to support local communities, businesses and economies. The 2016 population of these areas is estimated to be 22,736, with nearly a quarter (23 per cent located in the towns of High Level (3,159), Manning (1,183), and Rainbow Lake (795). The remainder of the study area population is distributed throughout (11,171), Northern Lights County (4,200), and Clear Hills County (3,159).

NATURAL RESOURCES Roughly half of all the goods and services produced in the sub-region are connected to the oil and gas extraction sector, with a further 5 per cent attributed to the forestry and logging sector. The oil and gas extraction sector supports about 7 per cent of the Figure 1 – Map of Bistcho Lake Sub-region local labour force, while agriculture and forestry make up approximately 17 per cent of the local labour force. The GDP of the goods and services connected to this sub-region in 2019 was $3 billion, representing roughly 0.9 per cent of all economic activity in the province.

For more information: .ca | [email protected] ©2021 Government of Alberta | Published March 2021 Classification: Public PROPOSED FUTURE STATE The proposed outcomes of the Bistcho Lake sub- regional plan are:

• Support economic opportunities that provide benefits to local municipalities, Indigenous Peoples, and the rest of Alberta, • Consolidate the footprint of economic development over time to support landscape intactness and naturally self-sustaining plant and wildlife populations, with a focus on species at Figure 2 – Effective footprint within caribou range risk, and boundaries, where “Other” represents all other • Support recreational, cultural and traditional footprint categories including recreation and land-uses in the sub-region for the benefit of local agriculture. peoples and all Albertans. The sub-region’s landscape is dominated by In addition to these outcomes, the sub-regional plan boreal forest that is dotted by lakes and wetlands, is intended to meet the objectives of the federal and crisscrossed by several rivers. The lakes and Recovery Strategy for the Woodland Caribou, forested areas support Indigenous land use, are Boreal Population. Management actions identified popular for recreation, and home to many different in the sub-regional plan will demonstrate how species including woodland caribou. Over the years, Alberta will achieve these objectives over the next caribou have declined in the sub-region. 50 to 100 years. An Integrated Land Management approach, including the implementation of an LAND USE IN THE SUB-REGION access management plan and reclaiming of old and The Bistcho Lake sub-region has supported local unused linear footprint on the landscape, will help and provincial economies by providing opportunities restore necessary habitats that support caribou. The for forestry, oil and gas, tourism and recreation, resulting landscape will also support Indigenous traditional-use and recreation and tourism hunting, fishing, trapping, and other activities. In the opportunities. Bistcho Lake sub-region, changes associated with different land uses have led to unintended impacts When implemented, the sub-regional plan will to habitats and species, including caribou. help to restore certainty for investors and industry operating within the sub-region. The plan provides Albertans have identified that the sub-region is additional clarity for operators within caribou ranges important to the Provincial economy and will remain and will reduce the uncertainty and red tape some so into the future. Strong environmental stewardship industries have been facing in previous years. is needed to maintain access to global markets, and failure to address caribou recovery increases the intervention by working together with a diversity risk of federal intervention that could have serious of stakeholders from the sub-region to create impacts on Alberta’s reputation and impact current and implement a plan capable of restoring intact and future resource development opportunities. landscapes that support caribou recovery, while enabling economic activities through working Alberta’s government is reducing the risk of federal landscapes. intervention by working together with a diversity of stakeholders from the sub-region to create and implement a plan capable of restoring intact landscapes that support caribou recovery, while enabling economic activities through working landscapes.

For more information: alberta.ca | [email protected] ©2021 Government of Alberta | Published March 2021 Classification: Public