By Chad Ingram
Updated 20 minutes ago
The county is moving towards the establishment of a tree preservation bylaw.
County councillors voted at a Jan. 26 meeting to put out a request to the four lower-tier municipalities to delegate all or part of their powers to create bylaws surrounding the destruction of trees to the county.
The bylaw would look mainly at the destruction of vegetation in shoreline areas and county planner Jane Tousaw said putting it in the hands of the county would be the most cost-effective for all municipalities.
Tousaw said the county would incur unknown costs affiliated with licensing, site inspections and enforcement related to the process, but that if not all townships agreed to the process, there could be overlapping of duties and possible duplication of costs.
"It's a huge enforcement issue if it isn't handled properly," said Dysart et al Reeve and county warden Murray Fearrey.
Tousaw said there was a drive from the public to see action on the issue.
"There is some urgency from the public's sort of view … to go through with this policy," she said.
Tousaw said while many people want to see increased protection of shoreline vegetation, there are some who don't feel it's not the government's place to be telling them what trees they can and can't cut on their properties.
The county's various lake associations should also be called on for input, she said.
Tousaw said how far the setback would be still has to be identified.
None of the county's townships currently has a such a bylaw.
