Homesite Consultations
WHAT IS A HOMESITE CONSULTATION?
Click here to download our Homesite Consultation Brochure!
The Homesite Consultation Program is a core program of the Living by Water Project (LbyW). LbyW focuses on the relationship between natural shorelines and shoreline communities by ensuring that permanent or seasonal residents have the knowledge and tools necessary to understand their effect on fisheries, habitat or wildlife resources and water quality in their communities.
IT'S CONFIDENTIAL AND FREE!!!
The Homesite Consultation Program teaches residents about the positive actions they can make to maintain healthy shorelines. Together with residents, LbyW’s Homesite Technicians evaluate residential properties on issues pertaining to lakeshore property activities - such as: Is my beach natural or imported and what is the difference, or Do I take my boat to other lakes without cleaning and why should it matter. Residents receive customized recommendations for actions which will help them “save time and money, and protect their health and their wealth, naturally”! The information and recommendations offered as part of the consultation will help residents make their homes and properties more environment-friendly and wildlife-habitat friendly. The evaluation addresses five aspects of shoreline living including: 1) buffer zone; 2) built structures; 3) yard; 4) house; and 5) boating.
Over time, it is the Project’s objective to identify changes which have occurred over time. To record these changes, the Homesite Consultation Program will be implemented within a community over a number of years.
WHAT DO WE LOOK AT AROUND YOUR PROPERTY?
The evaluation process starts as the Technician drives the access road to the client’s home or cottage, and notice key features such as:
- Driveway surface (paved or gravel)
- Overall topography
- Overall vegetation – native, non-native, evidence of invasive plant species
Some of the features that could be noted during the outside walkabout include:
- Septic and well or surface water intake (if relevant) – locations with respect to eachother, to house, to nearby trees, to hardened surfaces, to drainage and runoff gullies etc.
- Driveway and runoff – how managed?
- Shoreline (vegetation present, type, retaining wall, etc.)
- Beach (sand imported, etc.)
- Dock – materials, how built, etc.
- Boating practices (how is fuel stored? how is boat cleaned?)
- Garden and yard – location with respect to surface water
- Waste management – recycling and composting
WE GIVE YOU RECOMMENDATIONS TO BE MORE ENVIRONMENTALLY-FRIENDLY AT YOUR HOUSE!
The Technician’s recommendations will include actions that should be implemented on the property, with the client’s suggested priorities highlighted. The Technician may point out actions that can be easily implemented, and those that may be costly (such as septic upgrading). Actions identified as a priority will reflect the client’s interests, coupled with what the Technician evaluates as critical to environmental health, wildlife habitat, or water quality.
IT'S CONFIDENTIAL AND FREE!
LbyW has a privacy policy which specifically addresses the issue of information gathered during evaluations and clearly stating what the use of the information collected will be. Simply, the information collected will be used for the sole purpose of creating a database of shoreline activities along the shores of Alberta. All information will remain confidential and shall not be reported to regulatory agencies. However, if during the course of data collection, a site has been identified which may affect the health of the human population; LbyW and its parent organization Nature Alberta may report such activities to the appropriate regulatory agency.
INTERESTED? CALL OR EMAIL US!
If you are interested in having a Homesite Consultation, contact Jesse Hitchcock, who will make the necessary arrangements or direct you to the co-coordinator for your lake or area. Jesse can be contacted by phone: (780) 427-8124 or by email: jesseh( @ )naturealberta.ca
