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”!