Regionally Valuable Landscape Areas
That May Be Vulnerable

The map at the right shows important areas for watershed management. Regionally valuable landscape areas were overlaid, with higher concentrations corresponding to more overlap. Human footprint density (percentage of a township covered by the ABMI Human Footprint) was put over these areas. The areas where human footprint and valuable landscape areas overlap are important areas for water supply and aquatic ecosystem health. They are the most likely to be under stress (excluding wetlands due to lack of data). These high-priority areas should be examined more closely and appropriate management actions considered. For areas with a high concentration of valued landscape areas but low human footprint density (e.g., Wabasca and Utikoumak areas, upper Little Smoky River), conservation and protection from future disturbance may be the focus of management. For other areas, different strategies may be employed. For example, while the majority of existing wetlands occur in areas with a relatively low human footprint, many such areas face expanding industrial activity. These activities should be discussed as part of regional Land Use Framework planning, as land management actions are likely to be generated through that process.

The various elements of the analysis are available separately by viewing an interactive version of the map.