Category: Quarterly Newsletter

Development – Gone but not forgotten!

Thank you letters have been sent to various individuals and groups to thank them for their support in fighting the proposed development. Thanks to members who have written letters, voiced their opinion, attended meetings and provided suggestions and other support to the cause. Special thanks the Executive, past and present, who have put so many of their personal hours into the opposition work.

Since we are not about to forget about the potential development, here are our next steps.

1. A letter to the new Manager at Integrated Land Management Bureau explaining our proposal of an educational reserve on the southeast shores of LdR, the details which are on our website.
2. Revise our mission statement to be more focused on stewardship and community. The purpose of this organization is to work for the future well being of Lac des Roches and Birch Lake through environmental stewardship activities and community projects.
3. Significant revisions to our website to reflect the changes in our focus and the development status.

Administration

Membership – Our count is still 195 members strong.

Finances – We have approximately $1,000 in the bank. Expenses are minimal, for items such as website maintenance and BC Lake Stewardship membership. The upcoming community newsletter will be approximately $250 for printing.

Around the Lakes …

Wildlife – Wildlife sightings during the first quarter of 2008 are significantly fewer than for this period last year. Some locals speculate that our late snowfall allowed the four-legged creatures to stay in the surrounding hills. The usual spring birds are back at our feeders and the northbound flocks of geese have just begun passing overhead.

Ice Off – The snow on the lake froze solid this year with the cold weather this spring. Locals say the ice should be off the big lake the May long weekend.

BC Breeding Bird Atlas – Wendy Marshall has volunteered for this exciting new 5-year provincial-wide study beginning with the June 2008 breeding season. More information will be in our upcoming Community Newsletter.

Highway 24 Paving – There is a chance we will see new pavement on the extremely bumpy 9 km section of the highway between Bridge Lake and the east CRD/TNRD Regional Boundary. Cross your fingers!

Other Meeting Items

Old Signage – We have removed our “Help Save This Lake” sign at the rest stop.

New Signage – The new lake sign for the rest stop is still being sourced out. The CRD has promised to sponsor it.

Missing Sign Found – The area map sign that was removed from the rest stop has been found and reinstalled until the new sign is constructed.

Road Speed – The Highways department committed to pedestrian signs at each end of Gerald Crescent.

Eagle Island Tree Removal – We received a response to our letter to the Ministry of Environment about lakeshore development complaints. Citizens are asked to contact the Conservation Hotline with any concerns. The Ministry will be involved with a new lakeshore monitoring program and will contact us in their information gathering process.

Little Lac des Roches Speed Limit – A letter has been sent to Maureen Pinkney of the CRD, requesting the 20 km/hr restriction be further reduced to 10 km/hr.

Map-based Land Use Presentation – The local executives are working on the land use presentation for Regional Districts. Here is the current list of overlays:

1. Geology
2. Watershed
3. Current land use
4. Topography
5. Recreational use
6. Wildlife areas and bird nesting areas
7. Forestry designation
8. Meteorological (weather)
9. Historical use
10. Lake utilization

Friends of Bridge Lake – Residents of Bridge Lake have formed a “Friends” group initially to oppose a development proposal of a privately owned island on Bridge Lake. Although the development is disturbing, many of the expected concerns around environmental, wildlife, aesthetics and congestion issues appear to be adequately addressed by the developer. We are willing to support the group to the extent that we feel they need to become environmental stewards of Bridge Lake, but the executive cannot fully support the opposition to the project. We will be joining with community groups from Green Lake, Deka Lake and this new Bridge Lake group to establish communications with Regional and Provincial Government representatives.

Community Newsletter – Our 2008 newsletter will be published and distributed prior to the May long weekend. This will be the last year that we hand deliver the paper to residences. Alternative delivery arrangements will be required if residents wish to receive a copy beginning in 2009.

“The Development is Dead”

These were the words Charlie Wyse, MLA for the South Cariboo used on November 28 when he called our society. He had just received a letter from Marie Sturman, Manager, Crown Land Opportunities Branch indicating that the Government’s plan for residential and resort development at the east end of Lac des Roches was “set aside” as “it does not fit in with the Province’s goals and objectives”. Charlie’s office provided us with a copy of the letter that morning.

The following week, we received the same letter directly from Ms. Sturman, a copy from Bob Findlay of the TNRD Planning Department and an email from Maureen Pinkney, Area Director of the CRD. It was reassuring to have all these people contact us with the good news.

Although we are very excited about the Government’s decision, we will continue to proceed with developing our land-use proposal as they may have longer term ideas for this land, such as logging, inclusion in an aboriginal land treaty or simply save it for future development.

Joan Silver, staff reporter with the 100 Mile Free Press contacted Minister Pat Bell and quoted him in her article in the Cariboo Connector on December 7. Bell said about the development, “At this point it’s on hold and we have no plans to bring it back”. “We had enough input from residents and First Nations and we appreciate everyone’s time and effort”.

Although we are all celebrating this good news, we remain cautiously optimistic on the future of this land.

Administration

Meeting formats – We have changed the format of our meetings to begin with an informal social segment for discussing activities not directly related to business.

Membership – Our count is still 195 members strong.

Finances – We have approximately $1,000 in the bank and incurring costs for maintaining our website only.

Press coverage – The community column in the 100 Mile Free Press is a source for information on activities at LdR and is currently published monthly.

Around the Lakes …

Wildlife – The 10th annual Bridge Lake Christmas Bird count will be held Dec 29th – phone Wendy for details (593-2327) the night before if you will be coming.

Monitoring – On November 6, Gordon Marshall took Marg Sidney of the Ministry of Environment out on LdR to conduct the bi-annual water testing. She is “happy with the health of the lake”.

Ice On Little Lac des Roches – November 20.

Ice On Lac des Roches – December 8.

Other Meeting Items

Old Signage – Our “Help Save This Lake” sign at the rest stop has been lowered so that it cannot be seen from the road in response to concerns raised by the Ministry of Highways. It will be removed shortly.

New Signage – The new area information sign for the rest stop will be designed similar to the Interlakes Community Hall sign. If approved, the sign and its installation will be funded by the CRD.

Creel Reports – Residents who completed these catch reports during the year are asked to return them to Gordon Marshall if they have not already done so.

Road Speed – We were advised that the legal speed on all secondary roads is 80 km/hr, however the Ministry of Highways has agreed to install Pedestrian Slow signs at both ends of Gerald Crescent.

Welcome Packages – We will expand the contents of our Welcome Package to include more community information. We will also produce a one-page introduction sheet that can be left in a discrete location at vacant residences.

Rural Crime Watch – Due to an increase in break & entries in the Interlakes area, a number of residents are joining the RCW program. Posted signs and watchful neighbours are a known deterrent to criminal activity and residents are encouraged to keep an eye out for suspicious activity.

The executive members have established an informal telephone “tree” for advising each other of activity in the area that seems out of the ordinary.

Dumping – There has been more illegal dumping of wood waste on the Wavey Lake Forestry Road. The Ministry of Forests has attempted to burn it three times. They are asking us to report any suspicious activity that may assist them in finding the offenders.

Eagle Island Trees – A resident of Eagle Island Road is concerned that the Ministry of Environment did not react to her concerns about removal of trees from the riparian zone. We have decided to send a letter to the Ministry indicating our concern that they may not take an active interest in a reported issue.

Fire Coverage – Although the east fire truck that services Lac des Roches still needs a permanent home, Leroy and Kerry Wright, new owners of the Bridge Lake Store, are providing temporary parking so that Kilometer-based insurance policies for fire protection will not be affected by the loss of the fire hall.

Speed Limit – We are initiating the process to have the boating speed restriction on Little Lac des Roches changed from 20 km/hr to 10 km/hr.

Map-based Land Use Presentation – No status change. This will be the focus of the executive’s work in the coming winter months.

Limited Attendance by Members

Since June, we held a general meeting in July and our Annual General Meeting (AGM) in August. Other than executive, 2 members and Mr. & Mrs. Charlie Wyse (South Cariboo MLA), attended the AGM.

Project Updates

Residential & Resort Development at the east end of Lac des Roches – no status change. The project is officially “under review” and definitely “on the books”.

Regional Boundary Change – no status change. There is no plan to alter the boundary that splits Lac des Roches between the Cariboo (CRD) and Thompson-Nicola (TNRD) regions.

Water Storage Dam in Lemieux Creek Watershed – no status change. The focus is on upgrading the existing weir at Taweel Lake, north of Little Fort.

Hudson’s Bay Fur Brigade Trail Identification and Preservation – no status change. No further effort may have to be put into this initiative

Map-based Land Use Presentation – no status change. This will be the focus of the executive in the coming winter months.

Other Items Discussed

Signage – We have support from Maureen Pinkney (CRD Director) to apply for a grant for a lake-specific information sign to be located at the LdR rest stop. Our existing signage near the rest stop may have to be moved or removed, but we are awaiting clarification.

Landmarks – In case of emergency, particularly a forest fire, it is recommended to provide a geographical reference. Eagle Island is at 51° 28′ N, 120° 34′ W. We are still working on our initiative of naming the bays and shoals in LdR for safety and monitoring purposes.

TAC support – We are sending a letter to the Tourism Advisory Committee in support of their proposed moratorium on privatization of commercially zoned resorts in the Cariboo Region.

Creel reports – Reports have come in from residents on the lake reporting fishing success this summer with an abundance of large fish caught.

Annual newsletter – In response to trespassing concerns, we will look at alternative methods of delivering our annual newsletter to properties around the lakes.

Press coverage – Recent press coverage of our activities has been limited although some of the material submitted by Bill Jollymore appeared in the August 29 edition of the 100 Mile Free Press. Activities will be covered in the local community column.

Birch Lake road graded – Not regularly maintained, the access road was graded this fall and makes Birch Lake accessible to all types of vehicles.

Other AGM Highlights

Financial status – our expenses exceeded our revenues by approximately $165 this year. We have approximately $1,200 in our bank account.

Executive – Bryson Kerr has left the executive. Positions and terms are staggered. Here are the executive positions for the coming year.

Chairman, Barry Reid – 2008
Vice-Chairman, Marie Wallewein – 2009
Media Relations Director, Bill Jollymore – 2008
Media Relations Co-Director, Lori Jollymore – 2009
Membership Director, Gordon Marshall – 2008
Secretary, Sharron Woloshyn – 2008
Treasurer, David Woods – 2008
Publicity Director, Sharron Woloshyn – 2008
Website Director, Al Wallewein – 2009
Wildlife & Stewardship Director, Wendy Marshall – 2008
Director at Large (no portfolio):
Madeline Kerr – 2008
Ralph Watson – 2009
Heidi Ruegg – 2009
Bev Sinclair – 2008
Lois Motz – 2009

Meetings – We are reducing the number of scheduled meetings to the Annual GM in August and 5 executive meetings throughout the year. Additional meeting will be called as required. Members are welcome at all meetings.

Membership – Our membership is made up of 82 families or 195 individuals. Effective September 1, 2008, we will convert to an annual family membership fee of $10.

Speed Limit – We are initiating the process with Transport Canada to have the boating speed restriction on Little Lac des Roches reduced from 20 km/hr to 10 km/hr.

Around the Lakes …

Regular monitoring has been performed on Lac des Roches and Little Lac des Roches this summer, including partaking in “the Great Secchi Dip In” for the BC Lake Stewardship Society.

Loon reproduction is steady. Between LdR and Little LdR, a total of 3 loon chicks survived the summer. No chicks were reported on Birch Lake.

Little LdR pH readings spiked again in late summer, similar to the readings for 2006, and are not creating any concern as this appears to be normal for the lake now that we have monitoring history.

Monitoring results from May has the Ministry of Environment’s agent describing LdR as “in good shape”!

Development – still on hold

Although we have been advised that “the project is still under review”, we continue to look at information that supports our concerns for the development proposal we saw in 2005. Most of our research is intended for presentation at a future rezoning meeting, but some will be used in the development of a land management (or unofficial community plan) map-based presentation we intend to make to both the Cariboo Regional District (CRD) and the Thompson-Nicola Regional District (TNRD). Drafts of this work should be available for members to review at the August 29th AGM.

Recycling

We have arranged for a community recycle bin, located at the Bridge Lake Store. This blue bin is for any liquid or beverage container that can be recycled and have a return deposit. Metal, glass, tetra packs and plastic are all acceptable. The Knights of Columbus pick-up, sort and return these items for funding community needs in the entire 100 Mile House area.

Lake Monitoring

The official ice-off dates were,

Little Lac des Roches	May 4
Birch Lake	May 5
Lac des Roches	May 6

On May 13, Marg Sidney of the Ministry of Environment did extensive water testing on Lac des Roches and the results are very positive. To quote Marg, “Lac des Roches is slightly alkaline which is a good thing for life and productivity”. Overall Lac des Roches looks to be in good shape so with a bit of education … and some work we hope to keep it that way”.

We are looking at devices and methods of provided lake water levels on Birch and Phinetta lakes as we currently have devices on LdR and Little LdR.

Good News

Our community newsletter was delivered to all properties near Lac des Roches, Birch and Phinetta lakes. Recognizing that some of our members do not use properties near these lakes, they were mailed a copy as well. The cost of producing the newsletter was just under $200, and we have increased our membership revenue by almost that, as a direct result of the newsletter, so it seems to be money well spent. In addition to some positive feedback on the content of the newsletter, our distribution method is under question and we have discussed discontinuing the door-to-door delivery, both for safety and security reasons. In our next issue, we will be inviting property users to provide us with mailing addresses for future editions.

No Dam – yet

We have received unofficial word that there are no plans to dam lakes or creeks in our watershed at this time. The likely target for an upgrade is Taweel Lake, as there is an existing weir at the outlet, but should changes be made to the existing structure, it would not change lake water levels. This is good news and we hope it is more long-term.

Fur Brigade Trail

A year ago, we reported that this designated trail, between Little Fort and Lac des Roches, would be celebrated in B.C.’s 150th birthday celebration however we have been informed that this is no longer the case. The identification of this trail, along the north side of Lac des Roches, is still one of our many research projects in preparation for a future rezoning meeting of the development area.

Around the Lakes …

The map that was stolen from the Lac des Roches rest stop this winter will not be replaced by the CRD but the Tourism Association has one on order. The CRD has invited us to apply for a lake-specific sign that would be funded by the CRD and installed at the rest stop. This is under consideration by the executive.

For convenience and safety reasons, we are expanding on an existing map, which would see names applied to the bays and feeder streams of our lakes. Drafts of this map will be presented at the August 29 AGM.

We will be posting official Forestry Protection Act signs on some lake “picnic sites” along with providing buckets for campfire dousing – in order to protect these areas from human-caused forest fires.

Gordon Marshall is overseeing the collection of trout catch information this fishing season for the Ministry of Environment. Many thanks to the fishers that are completing these creel reports this summer.

Wendy Marshall reports that the numbers are down for the official Spring bird count but although these results are disturbing, they are not an isolated problem to our area.

General Items

Our membership totals 193. We are looking at a new, longer-term membership strategy for sustaining funding for our society. We welcome your input.

Development unchanged

There is very little to report in the way of a status change on the massive development proposal at the east end of Lac des Roches (LdR). In November we advised Pat Bell, Minister of Agriculture and Lands, that we were prepared to send a delegation to Victoria to discuss our concerns. His reply late in December indicated that “the project is still under review” and we need to continue to deal with Robin Levesque, Manager, Crown Land Opportunities Branch in Kamloops. In early April, we received an email from Robin saying that he is moving to a different ministry, and our new contact is Marie Sturman. Our only action plan at this time is to introduce our group to the new project manager and continue to monitor land applications.

Recycling

Recycling is not one of our group’s objectives, but it is a hot topic and we have discussed it at a couple of our meetings this year. There is definitely interest among our members to heighten the awareness of recycling opportunities for our lake residents. Members will see more information about recycling in our upcoming community newsletter and are invited to provide input through the executive, as it is these folks who will be leading the initiative in the community.

Lake Monitoring

Lake monitoring does not occur during ‘ice on’, but we are watching the ice conditions carefully as the Ministry of Environment will conduct a level 2 survey of LdR as soon as the ice is gone. To improve data collection, we invested in 4 underwater thermometers so that the data from 4 testing sites; LdR, Little LdR, Phinetta and Birch are consistent. We plan to get a complete summer-full of temperature, turbidity and pH readings from Birch and Phinetta Lakes this year.

Boundary Unchanged & Land Use

No change is in store for the regional boundary line that dissects LdR between the Cariboo (CRD) and Thompson-Nicola (TNRD). It is this division that leads to conflicting classifications of LdR as “sensitive” by the CRD and “development” by the TNRD. As a partial solution, Maureen Pinkney of the CRD suggested that a joint Official Community Plan (OCP) could be done for the entire lake and we have jumped at the chance to provide input into this process. The executive is currently researching and developing a map-based land use plan of our watershed area for presentation to the CRD and/or the TNRD for inclusion into their OCP. We will present the draft to our members at the August 29th meeting (our AGM). Members are invited to contact any executive member with land use ideas.

Dam Diverted … for now

We heard rumors to the contrary, but an April email from Graham Strachan, Ministry of Agriculture and Lands, confirmed that rather than damming Phinetta Lake for water storage to meet summer irrigation needs in Little Fort, the group has focused their efforts to have the structure on Taweel Lake replaced. We will continue to monitor this project – but the Lac des Roches watershed is excluded at this time.

Around the Lakes …

We saw plenty of snow and thick lake ice this year in the area although the ice will likely be off the lakes by the end of April or very early in May.

There seemed to be an increase in snowmobile traffic on the area trails, many of which are coming from 100 Mile House and beyond. The ambulance responded twice during one winter weekend to sledding-related accidents and we know that a number of local sleds were dragged out of the bush on tow sleds – a typical winter in the Cariboo.

Cellular towers are on the radar screen for Highway 24. Two land applications for towers can be viewed at www.lwbc.ca for a tower at Janice Lake and another above Lac des Roches. While we may be able to anticipate cell coverage at our homes, these will not be used for providing wireless high-speed internet service (unless through the cellular network). Satellite high speed internet is currently our only option to dial up over the phone lines.

All but one of the Cottage Country lots above LdR has sold since initial development of the 27 lots. Development is proceeding on a number of properties now that power has been installed.

General Items

Watch for our annual community newsletter in May. For the enjoyment and information of all lake users, we put together a summary of our activities and a variety of community topics in a newsletter, which is delivered to all lake properties at LdR and Birch Lake. If you would like us to include something specific in this year’s newsletter, we can accept submissions through our website until May 4.

Our membership totals 186.

Please pencil the following meeting dates into your 2007 calendars. We need your input. All meetings are held at 7:00 pm at the Bridge Lake Community School.

• Wed., May 30, 2007 (next General Meeting)
• Wed., July 25, 2007
• Wed., August 29, 2007 (Annual Gen. Meeting)

Dam Diverted … for now

We provided a list of concerns related to construction of a dam on Phinetta Lake. At the follow-up meeting in Little Fort on October 24, it became apparent that the Lemieux Creek Watershed Roundtable members are mostly concerned about the damming practices on Taweel Lake, which affects stream flow, and subsequent irrigation practices sourced at Lemieux Creek. The focus of the Little Fort group will be to initiate a meeting with the Ministry of Environment, Fisheries, First Nations, Parks, & DFO to discuss issues around the Taweel Lake Dam Structure. For the immediate future, damming Phinetta Lake seems to be off the table, however as stewards of this lake and its surrounding watershed, we will monitor status.

Development not changed

Despite the interest shown in our list of concerns presented to Land and Water BC (ILMB) in April, we are advised, “… the plans for development have not changed …”. We sent a letter in November, voicing our disappointment to Minister Pat Bell, Agriculture and Lands, offering to send a contingent to meet with the Ministry. We’ll keep you posted.

In the Zones

Executive members attended a public meeting in Clearwater to hear about the new zones for the TNRD, one of which is required to rezone the proposed development site to a resort. On behalf of our membership, we have provided written feedback to the proposed zone. We found the bylaws somewhat generalized and not providing for the safeguards we would expect to protect the watershed and sensitive ecosystem. There are a number of other “mechanisms” available such as development permits and restrictive covenants – if the land is included in an OCP (Official Community Plan) – which unfortunately, this land is not. We have expressed our intent to pursue these mechanisms as if the land was in an OCP and are proceeding with preliminary land use planning of our lakes in expectation of seeing Lac des Roches, Birch and Phinetta lakes included in an OCP in the near future.

Lake Stewardship

While we suspend lake monitoring during ice-on, we are continually active with our stewardship role of the lakes and lakeshores. Ice on and off status at all three lakes is a key piece of information submitted to BCLSS, and our two uninhabited lakes (during the winter) must be visited regularly in the fall and spring.

Boundary Unchanged

In spite of positive support from various levels of government, it seems the Manager of the TNRD has quashed discussions on changing the Regional District Boundary line, which splits Lac des Roches between the TNRD (Thompson-Nicola) and CRD (Cariboo). According to Maureen Pinkney, it was not specifically a Lac des Roches issue as the TNRD was looking at all lakes in the TNRD that have a split boundary. We have not given up on the boundary change but will table our arguments until we have the opportunity to meet face to face with the TNRD directors.

Land Use Planning

An Official Community Plan or Official Lake Management Plan will be our focus in 2007. There has been an indication from Maureen Pinkney, (Area L CRD Director) that there may be interest from the TNRD to prepare a joint TNRD/CRD OCP to include all of Lac des Roches, Birch and Phinetta lakes. A key part of this exercise would be mapping out the geography of the lake, including existing land reserves and developed areas, adding the potential Heritage Trail designation and desired green space, ecological and wildlife preserves. Some of this work, especially the mapping work, may be eligible for funding from the CRD and we are in discussions with Ms Pinkney over this option.

Around the Lakes …

This winter, we have seen an increase of wolves on our lakes and in our area. A pack of 5 wolves routinely hunt the south shore of the big lake.

Snow and ice conditions are excellent for winter fun however the many underwater springs decrease ice depth in certain spots on the lakes. Be careful!

General Items

Al Wallewein noticed inconsistencies in screen functionality and has overseen a number of improvements to the website. We encourage members to check our website often for “NEW” updates.

Watch for our annual community newsletter this spring. Editor, Marie Wallewein will accept submissions through our website email address.

Gordon Marshall reported at the October General Meeting, our membership now totals 172.

Please pencil the following meeting dates into your 2007 calendars. We need your input into planning.

• May 30, 2007
• July 25, 2007
• August 22, 2007 (Annual General Meeting)

Dam … no dam

The good news is, Birch Lake and Lac des Roches will not be dammed due to their low flush rate. The bad news is, Phinetta Lake is a possibility. This is particularly disturbing as there is minimal elevation change between Phinetta Lake and Birch Lake, which is just upstream. We will be meeting again with a task team in early September to express our objections to a dam on Phinetta Lake.

Development Update

We are disappointed that there has been no progress from our meeting in April with Land and Water BC, where the development project was to have been reviewed by a new Assistant Deputy Minister in June. Marc Woons, Constituency Assistant to MLA Charlie Wyse, attended our AGM and will do his best to get an update on the status of the development proposal. On a similar development issue, Marc suggests that members, who may be opposed to the BC Government’s proposal to build lodges in BC’s parks, write to Charlie Wyse (see our Help Us website page for contact information).

Publicity

We received lots of positive feedback to our public newsletter, distributed in May, however we have decided to restrict this initiative to once a year, a spring edition. Any lake users wanting more up to date information on our society are encouraged to become members and receive our quarterly updates or visit our website regularly. Welcome packages continue to be distributed to new property owners in the area.

Lake Monitoring

We are now monitoring 4 lakes; Lac des Roches, Little Lac des Roches, Birch Lake and Phinetta Lake for clarity, pH, temperature and lake level. Many thanks to Bryson and Madeline Kerr who are making the weekly trip to monitor Phinetta Lake. The report on Lac des Roches, produced by the BC Lake Stewardship Society is now available on the BCLSS website, linked through our website.

Hudson’s Bay Fur Brigade Trail

We have discovered that there is a designated heritage trail between Little Fort and Lac des Roches, but not along the entire distance. We plan to work with the Ministry of Tourism in the upcoming year to maintain the existing trail, expand its identification to Lac des Roches and actively participate in its celebration as part of BC’s Heritage in 2008.

Regional Boundary Change

There has been no real change in the status of the initiative to move the regional district boundary east, so that all of Lac des Roches, Birch and Phinetta Lakes are included in the Cariboo Regional District (CRD). The first meeting between the CRD and the Thompson-Nicola Regional District is scheduled for September.

Membership

Gordon Marshall reported at the August General Meeting, our membership totals 166.

New Executive Portfolios

Welcome to 2 new executive members, and thanks to our re-elected executive members who have accepted newly restructured portfolios. Your 2006 executive is;

Chairman	Barry Reid
Vice-Chairman	Bryson Kerr
Media Relations Director	Bill Jollymore
Media Relations Co-Director	Lorraine Jollymore
Membership Director	Gordon Marshall
Secretary	Sharron Woloshyn
Treasurer	David Woods
Publicity Director	Marie Wallewein
Website Director	Al Wallewein
Wildlife & Stewardship Dir.	Wendy Marshall
Dir. at Large (no portfolio)	Madeline Kerr
	Ralph Watson
	Heidi Ruegg
	Bev Sinclair

You can contact the executives through our website email address or mailing address.

Un-OCP

We have received support from Maureen Pinkney of the CRD to proceed with development of an Un-Official Community Plan for our area. We invite members to provide input into land use preferences.

Around the Lake

Wendy Marshall has surveyed the birds around our lake and counted 18 migratory songbirds which nest at the east end of Lac des Roches. Their nests are protected from disturbance by both Provincial and Federal law.

We are very encouraged by boater speed reduction we have witnessed through the channel between big and little Lac des Roches and attribute this to the new signage and the newsletter information.

Water Retention Dam

We are still waiting for an update on the idea of a dam on our lakes. Should our wet spring weather continue into the summer, water availability will likely not be a factor, however availability of government funding may become an issue for the Lemieux Creek Watershed Roundtable group.

LWBC Meeting

In April, several Executive members traveled to Kamloops to meet with Robin Levesque and Peter Walters of Land and Water BC (aka Integrated Land Management Bureau) in Kamloops. We learned that the mandate for LWBC has changed, with a de-emphasis on revenue from developing crown land and that all development proposals were being re-evaluated. Peter will be presenting our many issues to his superiors and a decision on the future of the currently proposed development, should be made in June.

Newsletter

In May, we distributed to every lake property, the first edition of our general newsletter. For those members with property on the lakes, one was tucked near your door. For the benefit of our members, this newsletter will soon be posted on our website and is attached to the mail-out of the June Quarterly Update. Your feedback to Marie Wallewein would be helpful for the upcoming Fall edition.

Lake Monitoring

In May, Marge Sidney from the Ministry of Environment, took readings on Lac des Roches and Birch Lake with our lake monitors. This surface to bottom monitoring is in addition to the regular measurements, which are taken throughout the summer by our lake monitors on all three lakes.

Stewardship

We are planning to expand our stewardship role to include the major streams in our sensitive watershed, monitoring Deep Creek (between Lac des Roches and Birch Lake) and the larger feeder streams. We are currently members of BCLSS (Lake keepers) and Barry Reid will apply for membership into BC Stream keepers.

Regional Boundary Change

Although there is multi-level government support for this change, Maureen Pinkney of the Cariboo Regional District has indicated that it will be a lengthy process. The Thompson Nicola Regional District is looking at adjusting the boundary lines for all of the lakes that are currently divided. Some residents of area lakes may not be as agreeable to change.

Membership

Gordon Marshall reported at the May General Meeting, our membership totaled 150.

Annual General Meeting

Our AGM is scheduled for August 30 at 7:00 pm at Bridge Lake School. There are several executive positions up for election or re-election for two-year terms.

Petition

Thanks to Cariboo South MLA, Charlie Wyse, our 700-signature petition was formally introduced into the Legislature by on March 30, 2006.

Around the Lake

Gordon Marshall reports that the ice went off Little Lac des Roches (and we think Birch Lake) on April 28 and off Lac des Roches April 30.

Wendy Marshall reports that loon chicks to June 19 on all of Lac des Roches total only three.

The new “dead slow” signage at both ends of the channel have been respected by an abundance of boaters using the lake since the May long weekend.

It has been a very wet May and June and lake levels are high. Boat wakes could potentially be very harmful to waterfowl nests so lake users should take care.

Dam … Dam … Dam!

Dam, yet another development plan for our lakes! Executive members attended an information session in Little Fort and learned that the Federal and Provincial Agriculture Ministries are working with a group of citizens in Little Fort to secure more water for irrigation. They are targeting the Lemieux Creek watershed, which extends into the Northern Nehalliston Plateau and includes Lac des Roches and Birch Lake, which – due to their size – are high on their list of potential dam sites. Friends of Lac des Roches and Birch Lake have responded with a letter of opposition stating problems of siltation and lake level alteration as only a few of our many environmental concerns. We will monitor this initiative closely.

The Development – Status

The major development proposed for the east end of Lac des Roches is still alive – as reported in December, however the most recent letters from provincial and regional offices indicate that the project is under re-assessment in light of the BC Government’s “5 great goals”. Our actions are to continue to request the name of the selected proponent and confirm that there is no rezoning application yet submitted to the Thompson Nicola Regional District. We have secured the support of Charlie Wyse, Cariboo South MLA who will enter our 700 plus signature petition into the legislature. We have not ruled out some previously researched options of alternate uses of the land through conservation and land acquisition processes. As more resources become available during the summer months, and members attend our July and August meetings, we will determine a definite action plan.

Lake Monitoring Results

The BC Lake Stewardship Society has used our monitoring data to complete their 2005 report on Lac des Roches and it will soon be on their website, with a link from our site. Marge Sidney of the Ministry of Environment has advised us that lake monitoring on Lac des Roches will be elevated to “Level 2”, to obtain more baseline data. We are very encouraged by the increased interest in the well-being of our lakes.

Regional Boundary Change

We are very optimistic about the effect, of moving the east end of Lac des Roches, Birch Lake and Phinetta Lake into the Cariboo Regional District, could have on the development proposal. Although we have support from the Cariboo Regional District (CRD), our local MLA and the Minister responsible, the talks between the CRD and TNRD have been slow in starting. There is no further action we can take on this item – it is in the hands of the Regional District directors. Maureen Pinkney, our CRD director, sends regular emails providing the latest plans for the groups to meet. We have obtained a significant number of signatures to ensure we had the support of property owners. Ms. Pinkney has indicated that public meetings will be part of the process.

Staying in Focus!

In order to best utilize the time of the few members available in the winter months, a motion was passed at the March meeting to reduce the number of scheduled meetings. Our new annual meeting schedule is as follows: February; May; July; August (AGM); and November. Meetings will still be on the last Wednesday of the particular month and held at the Bridge Lake Community School. As before, the executive will meet prior to each of the general meetings as well as on an “as needed” basis, as before.

The executives also reviewed our goals going forward. Although we have discussed and reported on other pursuits suggested by our members in 2005, we will be focusing on the stewardship of our sensitive lakes. It is through our united voice that our group and our mandate are now recognized and supported throughout the many levels of regional and provincial governments. We will continue our opposition to the development proposal as well as dam construction and will provide information to lake users on the many aspects of our lakes that make them so pristine, and our responsibility to keep them this way. Watch for our public newsletter coming in April. It will be distributed to all property users on the lakes as well as members.

If it Sounds Too Good to be True …

The development proposal is still on the table although it is “on hold” pending further review. This is the latest official word received by the executive. The latest update came from Charlie Wyse, the elected MLA for Cariboo South. Charlie attended our November general meeting. Following this, on December 13, he met with Robin Levesque and Peter Walters from Integrated Land Management Bureau (ILMB), (formerly Land and Water BC) to share our concerns. The key points from this meeting were;

• The project is on hold and under review,
• Charlie relayed his feelings about the project after meeting with us,
• Charlie’s comments will be taken back to ILMB for further review and a decision to be made,
• If the project “is not shelved”, Charlie will be sure to notify us of all future meetings.

Profiling our Lakes

Our lake monitors have submitted their 2005 data to the BC Lake Stewardship Society. The readings from Lac des Roches and Birch Lake, will be analyzed and resulting lake profiles will be summarized in a future newsletter and posted on our website. Thanks again to our monitors, Ralph Watson, Heidi Ruegg, Al Wallewein, Marie Wallewein and Gordon Marshall for their continued hard work! Ice on dates for 2005 were;

• Little Lac des Roches – November 27
• Big Lac des Roches – December 3

Locals are skiing, skating and sledding on the “little” lake and the shoreline of the “big” lake.

More let-t-ters

Members please keep writing those letters, especially in light of the new members of parliament and the restructuring of the Government since the May election. See our website for the new contact list with mailing addresses, or contact us.

Change is Good – Regional Boundary

Our request to the Cariboo Regional District (CRD), about changing the CRD boundary has started discussions between the two affected districts. As reported by our elected CRD Area Director, Maureen Pinkney, meetings are underway with the Thompson-Nicola Regional District, which could move the existing boundary eastward, to include the Lac des Roches, Birch Lake and Phinetta Lake shared watershed. Charlie Wyse, our elected MLA has also written a letter to the Minister overseeing boundaries, indicating his support of our request. Ultimately, the change of the regional boundary, to put our entire watershed in the hands of the CRD, would result in many benefits to our lakes. The CRD designates Lac des Roches as a “highly sensitive” lake and restricts further development, which could significantly change the proposal for the east end of the lake. Recognizing that the boundary change is a property owner issue, we contacted users of the lake, not just those who are members of Friends of Lac des Roches and Birch Lake. Of those we were able to contact in August and September, the support for this boundary change was overwhelming. More than 95% of property owners contacted have signed our letter. We will continue to obtain signatures over the holidays and into the new year.

Keeping it Together!

A recent email received from Maureen Pinkney congratulated our group for our hard work during the past year. Maureen went on to say that in her experience, united groups like ours, have a much stronger voice than we have as individuals, and encouraged us to continue our work safeguarding the future of our lakes. Our mission statement was not restricted to the development alone, and we are seeing a growing interest among our members to pursue lake stewardship, historical preservation and recycling initiatives.

Intercontinental Membership

Since our inception, we have had an international membership, with several members (including executive) from the USA. In November, our membership expanded to England and is now 141 strong – and continually growing!