What We Heard at the November 2011 Community Workshops

Community Meeting Locations

Community Workshops Purpose: Share information from the SOW report to increase understanding and awareness of the current conditions and issues that exist in our watersheds Encourage dialogue on the issues and opportunities facing our watersheds Provide an overview of the watershed management planning process and allow opportunity for feedback

Who came?

Focus Questions What do you appreciate about this watershed? What do you appreciate about the place you live? What are your concerns related to land and water management in our watershed? What are the major issues facing our watershed? What are your hopes for a resolution to these issues? What needs to change to resolve these issues?

What We Heard: Appreciation

Biodiversity Natural Features and Functions Recreation Landscape Rural Water Supply Culture and History Social Economic Watershed Management, Education, and Action

What We Heard: Concerns

Watershed Health Wetlands and Riparian Areas Water Quantity Water Quality Land Management Biodiversity Education, Awareness, and Action Governance and Watershed Management

What We Heard: Hopes

Know Care Act Education, Awareness, Participation and Action Governance and Watershed Management Policy and Legislation On-the-ground Action Cooperation and Collaboration

Watershed Management

Purpose of a comprehensive watershed management plan for the Battle River and Sounding Creek watersheds : to develop recommendations for policy directions and management practices that lead to the protection, improvement and long-term sustainability of our watersheds environmental, social and economic values.

Watershed Management Component Policy Research Public Engagement Policy Direction Development Bigstone Basin Guidelines Iron Basin Guidelines Paintearth Basin Guidelines Ribstone Basin Guidelines Blackfoot Basin Guidelines Sounding Basin Guideline

Dotmocracy Three dots per person Place your three dots on your top three priorities Each dot must be placed on a different priority What will be done with this information? Dotmocracy results will help the WMP Steering Committee to determine a schedule for completion of all watershed management components Schedule will be based on the dotmocracy results as well as consideration of the relative urgency and potential impact of each component

Cactus at Big Knife Provincial Park, in the Battle River watershed

Dotmocracy Ranking Surface, ground and source water protection: 33 Point Source Pollution Management: 10 Surface Water Quantity: 12 Ground Water Quantity: 15 Native and invasive species: 10 Environmentally Significant Areas: 12 Fish and Wildlife: 7 Land Use Practices: 27 Wetlands: 12 Riparian Areas: 14 Our promise to you: These results will be taken back to the WMP Steering Committee and will form the basis of future watershed management initiatives