Salt Spring Island OCP Bylaw No. 434 - Community Objectives

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Salt Spring Island Local Trust Committee         9                                                                  Otober 2020 
Official Community Plan Bylaw No. 434 – Volume 1 (Consolidated) 
 
 
A.4 COMMUNITY OBJECTIVES 
 
A.4.1 General Objectives 
 
A.4.1.1 To  recognize  and  protect  the  fragility  and  significance  of  our  natural  environment  as  one  of  our 
community's greatest and irreplaceable assets. 
 
A.4.1.2 To recognize and protect our unique nature as an island - a remote place, unconnected to other 
land masses, which exists at a smaller scale; a place where boundaries are absolute, resources 
are  finite,  and  biophysical  and  socioeconomic  impacts  can  be  concentrated  due  to  containment 
and proximity. 
 
A.4.1.3 To retain our island's rural  character and peaceful and quiet atmosphere; to guide  development 
so that it complements the outstanding natural beauty that surrounds us and reflects our unique 
community character.   To ensure that the predominant feature of Salt Spring Island remains the 
natural environment, rather than manmade structures. 
 
A.4.1.4 To  adopt  the  precautionary  principle  in  the  decision-making  of  the  Local  Trust  Committee.    The 
precautionary  principle  asserts  that,  when  an  activity  raises  threats  of  harm  to  human  health  or 
the  environment,  precautionary  measures  should be  taken  even  if  some  cause-and-effect 
relationships  are  not  fully  established  scientifically.    In  this  context,  the  essential  elements  of  a 
precautionary approach to decision-making include: 
 
 a. a duty to take anticipatory action to prevent harm; 
b. the right  for  the community  to  know  complete  and  accurate  information  on  potential  human 
health and environmental impacts as best it can be determined; 
c. requiring the proponent to supply this information to the public; 
d. an obligation to consider alternatives and select the alternative with the least potential impact 
on human health and the environment, including the alternative of no change; 
e. a  duty  to  consider broader  short-term  and  long-term  costs  and  benefits  to  the  community 
when evaluating potential alternatives; and 
f. a responsibility to make decisions in a transparent, participatory manner, relying on the best 
available information. 
 
A.4.1.5 To identify and protect important components of our island’s heritage, including archaeological 
and First Nations cultural sites, whether they are reminders of past or present lifestyles. 
 
A.4.1.6 To work cooperatively with other agencies, groups and the community in achieving the objectives 
of this Plan. 
 
A.4.2 Sustainability 
 
A.4.2.1 To  recognize  the  importance  of sustainability in  all  community  decisions.  To  avoid  land  use 
decisions that threaten the integrity or sustainability of natural ecosystems. 
 
A.4.2.2 To maintain  and  restore the  community's  natural  capital  represented  by  such  items  as  our 

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