LUB amendment would ban manure spreading in Picture Butte
By Nikki Jamieson on March 25, 2021.
LETHBRIDGE HERALDssnews@sunnysouthnews.com
Picture Butte town council is considering whether to ban livestock grazing and manure spreading in the Urban Reserve land district.
During their regular March 8 meeting, Picture Butte town council reviewed a posted land-use bylaw amendment regarding Urban Reserve land.
Bylaw No. 911-21 would amend the town’s LUB to remove some uses from the Urban Reserve land-use district, with the intent of ensuring these lands are compatible with adjacent development within the town, particularly residential development.
Back in 2017, the town was experiencing problems with a specific landowner spreading manure on a parcel of undeveloped agricultural land within the town corporate limits, and there were complaints the landowner had moved livestock onto the land. The LUB, at the time, did not allow either manure spreading or the grazing of livestock. ORRSC and the town had reviewed options with the NRCB, and in 2018, an amendment to the LUB was passed, that provided further clarification on extensive agriculture, livestock, farm animals, grazing and pasturing of livestock in the LUB, and allowed “manure application/spreading” and “pasturing and grazing of livestock” temporarily, as permitted uses in the Urban Reserve land-use district.
However, in February 2021, the town had received a letter from the owner of Maple Estates – along with a group letter from 26 residents of Maple Estates expressing their concern with the allowable uses within the UR district, in regards to a recent incident where the landowner to the south of them had swathed a crop, left it on the ground and allowed the cows to graze on it, and a significant amount of the swathed crop was then blown into adjacent landowners’ yards.
The matter was discussed at a council committee meeting Feb. 16 and council agreed to consider an LUB amendment to remove the option for livestock grazing and manure spreading in the Urban Reserve LUB.
Bylaw 911-21 would remove the uses of manure application/spreading and pasturing and grazing of livestock from the LUB, and delete associated regulations that manage these uses. While some of the components of the 2018 amendment will be kept, as they add needed clarification information, the amendment would generally return the allowable activities in the UR district to what they were prior to 2018.
“We’re kind of back to the same spot again where we’re experiencing some concerns,” said Madeleine Baldwin, a planner with the Oldman River Regional Services Commission.
“The amendments proposed kind of address the concerns of the residents, and then, just recognizing we do have agriculture (activity) in the town. Although it’s an important part of the original economy, we want it to be comparable with residential and commercial development, and not have noxious odours or not having crop blow (into) people’s yards obviously and negatively impacting residents in Picture Butte.”
To address the specific incident mentioned above, it needs to be clear on the enforcement options possible as a result of the proposed land-use bylaw amendment.
The land in question does not have an approval or registration with the Natural Resources Conservation Board (NRCB), who have indicated this land is considered farmland, which could be utilized for seasonal grazing depending on the types of crops grown, and they do not have jurisdiction on grazing lands.
If the town were to prohibit activities through the LUB, the town would be the one to enforce it.
If the amendment is approved, the town could work with the landowner to explain the change in allowable uses to see if they can bring their operation in compliance with the updated regulations. If that does not work, a stop-order process could be followed.
If the amendment was not approved, it would still be important for the town to review the landowner’s current activities to ensure they were complying with the existing LUB regulations, and if the landowner is not complying with these standards, a warning letter and subsequent stop-order process could follow.
Coun. Cynthia Papworth asked if the town put the amendment in place, whether there was any time for the landowner to ask for a special permit to graze cattle out there for a couple of months.
Baldwin said that wouldn’t be possible, as if the use wasn’t listed, it is not something the town can put a discretion in for. The only course of action would be to go back and amend the LUB.
Council passed first reading of Bylaw 911-21. A Public Hearing date was yet to be announced at press deadline.
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