Wabanong Nakaygum Okimawin (WNO)

     "East Side of the Lake Governance"

(Formerly known as the East Side Planning Initiative)

PHASE 1

In July, 2000, Manitoba announced its acceptance of the Consultation On Sustainable Development Implementation (COSDI) Report.  The report recommended that the implementation of sustainable development include the creation of Broad Area Plans across the province.

In August of that year, Conservation Minister, Oscar Lathlin, announced that government would initiate Broad Area Planning on the east side of Lake Winnipeg as a pilot for Broad Area Planning across the province.  The area was chosen for two primary reasons:

1.   The east side of Lake Winnipeg is a unique region of the province because it contains a vast expanse of undeveloped, contiguous, boreal forest.  The need for sustainable planning in this area has been reinforced by the recent Manitoba Climate Change Task Force Report.  This report stated that Manitoba is at risk of losing both the southern and northern edges of the boreal forest to climate change.

2.   The east side of Lake Winnipeg is a unique region with communities that do not have access to the transportation networks and economic opportunities that most Manitobans take for granted.  The need for planning in this regard has also been reinforced by the Climate Change Task Force Report that highlighted the dramatic effects of climate change on winter road and food distribution systems for communities in this, and other, remote and northern regions.

At the time, the development of the Broad Area Plan for the east side of Lake Winnipeg was to be undertaken in two phases:

1.   preliminary discussions, and

2.   plan preparation and adoption.