Section 4.5 of the cottage lot policy outlines the maximum amount of shoreline on each cottage lot that may be disturbed or be occupied by structures. The total amount of shoreline disturbance per cottage lot may not exceed 20 metres or 20 percent of the shoreline (whichever is less) and may not occur in more than two shoreline segments. In the initial package that cottagers were sent in October 2016, was the report “Summary of Findings”. Under the heading “Shoreline Development” you will find how many activity areas (shoreline segments) that were noted and the number of metres of shoreline that were estimated to be disturbed during the 2015 cottage lot inventory. Please note that this number was an estimate and that verification will have to take place to determine the exact amount of shoreline that is actually disturbed.
If your cottage lot was identified as having more than 20 metres of shoreline disturbed or more than two shoreline activity areas, then the Ministry staff will work with you on your cottage lot to determine what areas of your shoreline will be permitted to remain disturbed, and which areas must be allowed to restore naturally (e.g., where you will not be permitted to clear vegetation or otherwise disturb). In extreme cases cottagers may be required to work with the Ministry to conduct active restoration (where the extent of shoreline disturbance is extreme or where passive restoration may not be successful). This would involve the planting of native shoreline trees and shrubs.
The Ministry will be providing a fact sheet on the cottagers toolkit to outline why it is important to limit shoreline disturbance, and methods for both passive and active restoration of your shoreline areas. Please watch for this factsheet on the toolkit.