What are Legal Objectives?

There are numerous legal mechanisms that may be used for implementing the outcomes of strategic land and resource planning processes. These mechanisms all require Cabinet or a Minister (or Minister Delegate) to employ a specific statutory power for establishing a land use designation or land/resource objective. Once established, the land designation/objective provides direction to land use activities that may subsequently occur in the designation, and/or identifies the officials that have authority for approving activities in the designation. Through these means, the intent of the land and resource plan is achieved.

The benefits of creating legal management direction are:

  • Provides certainty on the land base for industry to access and utilize resources
  • Protects sensitive resource values (e.g., Species at Risk, First Nations sites of significance, wildlife corridors, scenic areas)
  • Reduces conflict between alternative resource users
  • Help to maintain balance between the ecological and economic values that is necessary for healthy communities.

Several examples of legal tools that may be used to implement the direction contained in approved Strategic Land and Resource Plans (SLRPs) are shown below.
Forest and Range Practices Act

  • Designation of Community Watersheds by Ministry of Environment (MoE)
  • Establishing objectives for managing forestry activities under the Government Actions Regulation (GAR) by Ministry of Forests and Range (MFR).

Land Act

  • Reserving specified Crown land from future disposition
  • Prohibition of specific uses of Crown land in a designated area
  • Establishment of geographic designations of Crown land and creation of land use objectives for these designations
  • Establishment of objectives for forest values such as biodiversity, wildlife, forage and water for the purpose of regulating forest practices under the Forest and Range Practices Act.

Park Act

  • Establishment of Crown land as a park or conservancy.

Wildlife Act

  • Designation of Wildlife Management Areas.

On February 1, 2006, the Land Use Objectives Regulation (LUOR) came into force. The LUOR, under the Land Act, authorizes the Minister of Agriculture and Lands (MAL) to establish legal land use objectives (LUOs) for the purposes of the Forest and Range Practices Act (FRPA). The FRPA framework provides for the establishment of LUOs under the LUOR in order to provide for an appropriate balance of social, economic and environmental benefits that may not otherwise be achieved by applying the FRPA model without LUOs.