Lesson 4: Content of Regional Plans

The Content of Regional Plans

A regional plan essentially is a vision for the future, consisting of the desired outcomes for the region in question and the province of Alberta. It also contains the strategies and actions that will be followed to ensure the region strives towards its vision and outcomes and develops accordingly.

The Alberta Land Stewardship Act (ALSA) stipulates the legal requirements for the contents of regional plans. In essence, the plan must contain the following (quoted from the Government of Alberta Land-use Framework):

• Policy Context — Includes key policy direction and instructions provided by the government that helped shape the plan's development.
  
  
• Regional Vision Statement — A statement that describes the desired future and vision for the region. It will support the outcomes and principles of the Land-use Framework.
  
  
• Regional Outcomes — The plan will outline the results we want at the regional level to support the three outcomes of the Land-use Framework: a healthy economy supported by our natural resources, healthy ecosystems and environment, and people-friendly communities with ample recreational and cultural opportunities.
  

• Objectives and Goals — The plan will describe what must be done to achieve the regional vision and outcomes, including choices to balance economic development with environmental and social issues. It will also set measurable targets and thresholds, identify trade-offs and choices, and provide the reasoning for these choices. 
  
  
• Strategies, Actions and Approaches — Direction for possible regulatory and non-regulatory approaches that could be used to reach the plan's objectives and goals.
  
  
• Monitoring and Reporting — Information on how the Government of Alberta will monitor, track, and report on the progress or achievement of targets and thresholds in the plan.
  
  
• Subregional/Issue Specific Plans — Sometimes issues within a region may require the development of a subregional issue specific plan. These plans go into more depth than a regional plan can, and focus on the specifics of the situation. If accepted by government, the subregional issue specific plan would be included in the regional plan.

An approved regional plan is law. That law can assist in managing activities in the area the regional plan was developed for.