Integrated Land Management (ILM)
Last review/updated: September 26, 2007
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As Alberta's industrial sector booms and the population
expands, there is increasing pressure on our land and natural resources.
People are heading out in droves to public land areas all over the
province on bicycles, dirt bikes, quads, 4x4s and horses.
They are also hiking, camping, fishing and hunting. Industry is harvesting trees, drilling for oil and gas, building access roads, mining, and grazing livestock. Communities from large cities to small towns are growing—building houses, businesses and roads. Natural disturbances, such as fire and insects, also leave a mark on the landscape.
All of this activity, individually and collectively, has an impact on the environment and the land. The Alberta government, in partnership with industry, recreation, environment, conservation and Aboriginal groups, are developing a comprehensive plan to manage the collective footprint.
Integrated Land Management is an initiative which encourages cooperation among land users. For example, when a forestry company needs to build a road to a proposed cut-block, they would contact other area land users to determine if anyone else has need for a road. If so, then they would work together to build one road instead of several. This means less land, water, wildlife and trees are disturbed, and significant cost savings are realized while partnerships are built.
Some industrial land users have been voluntarily developing very successful
integrated land management initiatives for several years already. The
government's ILM initiative will encourage everyone to think, plan,
implement and monitor their activities on the land with a mind-set
to manage our natural resources with care so they can be enjoyed for
many more generations.
