Kennisis Watershed & Lakes Management Plan September 2007 Prepared by: The Kennisis Lake Planning Steering Committee in conjunction with French Planning Services Inc. Sponsored by: The Kennisis Lake Cottage Owners’ Association Contact: [email protected] Kennisis Watershed & Lakes Management Plan About This Version This is the approved version of the Kennisis Watershed & Lakes Management Plan. It replaces the May and August 2007 draft versions that were distributed in conjunction with an extensive consultation process. Supplementary maps and reports relating to the Plan will be released on an occasional basis. Please see www.kennisis.ca for details. Comments on this document may be sent to [email protected] © Kennisis Lake Cottage Owners Association Front Cover: The photograph on the front cover was taken by Lake Steward, Cam Douglas in the fall of 2006. It is a view of the Kennisis Watershed looking almost due north from the southernmost point of the watershed with Lipsy Lake in the immediate foreground. The image is intended to reflect that the document is about the entire Kennisis Watershed, although the focus is on the Kennisis Lakes. This document has been produced in both print and web formats. Printing by Parker Pad and Printing Limited, Markham, Ontario Web version available in PDF format at www.kennisis.ca September 2007 Page i Kennisis Watershed & Lakes Management Plan TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF MAPS .....................................................................................................3 LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................3 ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS ....................................................................... 4 1 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................... 5 1.1 THE PURPOSE OF A WATERSHED & LAKE MANAGEMENT PLAN ..................................... 5 1.2 THE KENNISIS WATERSHED & LAKES ...................................................................... 5 1.3 THE KENNISIS WATERSHED & LAKES MANAGEMENT PLAN .......................................... 5 1.4 WHAT THE KENNISIS WATERSHED & LAKES PLAN IS NOT ........................................... 6 1.5 HOW THE KENNISIS WATERSHED & LAKES PLAN WAS DEVELOPED ............................... 6 1.6 SPONSORS AND SUPPORTERS OF THE PLANNING PROCESS .......................................... 7 1.7 SOURCES OF PUBLISHED INFORMATION ................................................................... 7 1.8 THE LAKE PLAN IS JUST THE BEGINNING .................................................................. 7 1.9 DISCLAIMER ........................................................................................................ 8 2 VALUES, VISION & PRINCIPLES ................................................................... 9 2.1 COMMUNITY VALUES ............................................................................................. 9 2.2 VISION FOR THE FUTURE ..................................................................................... 10 2.3 GUIDING PRINCIPLES ........................................................................................... 11 2.4 PERSONAL AND COLLECTIVE ACCOUNTABILITIES ...................................................... 12 3 LAKE DESCRIPTION ................................................................................... 13 3.1 GENERAL LOCATION ............................................................................................ 13 3.2 KENNISIS LAKES CHARACTERISTICS ....................................................................... 14 3.3 KENNISIS WATERSHED ........................................................................................ 15 3.4 OWNERSHIP OVERVIEW ....................................................................................... 16 3.5 ACCESS ............................................................................................................ 17 3.6 WATER LEVELS .................................................................................................. 19 4 NATURAL HERITAGE FEATURES ............................................................... 27 4.1 WATER QUALITY ................................................................................................. 27 4.2 VEGETATION ...................................................................................................... 37 4.3 WETLANDS ........................................................................................................ 42 4.4 STREAMS .......................................................................................................... 45 4.5 FISH COMMUNITY ............................................................................................... 46 4.6 WILD LIFE AND WILDLIFE HABITAT ........................................................................ 51 4.7 INVASIVE SPECIES .............................................................................................. 58 4.8 RARE SPECIES AND SPECIES AT RISK ..................................................................... 60 4.9 CLIMATE CHANGE ............................................................................................... 62 September 2007 Page 1 Kennisis Watershed & Lakes Management Plan 4.10 NATURAL ENVIRONMENT ISSUES AND OPTIONS ........................................................ 63 5 PHYSICAL ELEMENTS ................................................................................ 66 5.1 PHYSIOGRAPHY AND SOILS ................................................................................... 66 5.2 CLIMATE ........................................................................................................... 67 5.3 FLOODPLAINS .................................................................................................... 68 5.4 MINERALS AND AGGREGATES ............................................................................... 68 5.5 NARROW WATER-BODIES ..................................................................................... 69 5.6 STEEP SLOPES AND CLIFFS .................................................................................. 70 5.7 FORESTRY ......................................................................................................... 70 5.8 PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT ISSUES AND OPTIONS ....................................................... 71 6 SOCIAL ELEMENTS .................................................................................... 72 6.1 RECREATIONAL BOATING ..................................................................................... 72 6.2 LANDSCAPE AND AESTHETICS ............................................................................... 76 6.3 TRANQUILITY AND NIGHT-SKIES ............................................................................ 77 6.4 SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT ISSUES AND OPTIONS .......................................................... 79 7 LAND USE .................................................................................................. 81 7.1 SUMMARY OF LAND USE ...................................................................................... 81 7.2 DESIGNATED PUBLIC-USE LANDS ......................................................................... 84 7.3 WASTE DISPOSAL ............................................................................................... 90 7.4 DEVELOPMENT PLANNING .................................................................................. 101 7.5 LAND USE ISSUES & RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................................ 103 7.6 EXTRACTS FROM THE MUNICIPALITY OF DYSART ET AL. ZONING BYLAW ..................... 108 8 RECOMMENDATIONS & ACTION PLAN ..................................................... 113 8.1 A COMMUNITY APPROACH .................................................................................. 113 8.2 PRIORITY ISSUES .............................................................................................. 113 8.3 RECOMMENDATIONS ......................................................................................... 115 8.4 ACTION PLAN (NEXT STEPS) ............................................................................... 123 GLOSSARY ...................................................................................................... 124 REFERENCES/BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................................................ 128 9 APPENDICES ............................................................................................ 133 9.1 SUMMER 2005 RESIDENT’S SURVEY ................................................................... 133 9.2 SUMMARY OF COMMERCIAL STAKEHOLDERS’ SURVEY & WORKSHOP ........................ 135 9.3 SUMMARY OF RESIDENTS’ WORKSHOP - JULY 16, 2005 ......................................... 138 9.4 SUMMARY OF LANDS MANAGEMENT WORKSHOP .................................................... 140 9.5 SUMMARY OF MUNICIPAL SERVICES WORKSHOP .................................................... 142 9.6 SUMMARY OF SEWAGE DISPOSAL WORKSHOP ....................................................... 144 9.7 SUMMARY OF MUNICIPAL PLANNING WORKSHOP .................................................... 145 September 2007 Page 2 Kennisis Watershed & Lakes Management Plan 9.8 SUMMARY OF NATURAL ENVIRONMENT WORKSHOP ................................................ 147 9.9 SUMMARY OF EDUCATION & PERSONAL WATER CRAFT WORKSHOP