Sproat Lake & Area OCP — Have Your Say

A resident-run feedback tool for Bylaw No. P1540 (the proposed Official Community Plan)

This is an independent website run by a Sproat Lake resident. It is not operated by, or affiliated with, the Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District (ACRD). It exists to collect and organize resident feedback on the proposed OCP Bylaw No. P1540 for presentation to the ACRD Board of Directors.

Tell the ACRD Where You Stand

The Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District (ACRD) is proposing a new Official Community Plan (Bylaw No. P1540) for Sproat Lake and Area. It would set land-use rules, development permit requirements, and permitting costs for property owners in the OCP boundary. Use this survey to tell the ACRD whether you support or oppose it as currently written — if any of it is unclear, the 10 Key Areas page below explains each part in plain language.

To help us count responses accurately, we ask for one submission per household — thank you for understanding!

Your name and general area (not your exact address) are collected so this feedback can be compiled as evidence of resident input and presented to the ACRD Board of Directors. See the privacy note below the form.

Do you support or oppose the proposed OCP Bylaw No. P1540, as currently written in the June 2026 draft?
Which of these 10 key areas apply to your concerns or interest? (optional, select all that apply)
Tap "More detail" under any item to see key points and exact bylaw quotes before deciding whether to select it.
More detail ▶

Agriculture land now needs a 4-hectare minimum lot (up from 2 ha in April). Rural land needs 2 hectares; Resource land needs 16 hectares — the largest of any designation. Short-term rentals are explicitly banned in the Recreational Residential designation, and the ACRD is pursuing an incorporation study for Electoral Area "D."

— Bylaw No. P1540, Section 4.0 & 4.1.3

Read the full breakdown →
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Construction within 30m of Sproat Lake, Great Central Lake, or named streams (15m for minor streams/wetlands) needs an Environmental Protection Development Permit. Docks need a Marine Habitat Assessment Report, only one moorage facility is allowed per lot, and a restoration security bond of up to 120% of costs can be required.

— Bylaw No. P1540, Section 7.4

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Covers more than steep slopes: also the entire tsunami zone (below 20m elevation) and the mapped 200-year floodplain. A Qualified Professional must certify under 10% probability of hazard damage in 50 years before development is allowed — and if the report finds a hazard, development isn't permitted at all.

— Bylaw No. P1540, Section 7.5

Read the full breakdown →
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Applies to commercial, industrial, multi-family, and some "intensive residential" development. Requires a landscape plan with a professional cost estimate, a 3m landscaped buffer along Highway 4, MOTT-approved emergency access, and full cut-off outdoor lighting.

— Bylaw No. P1540, Section 7.6

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New in June: farming activity on Agricultural Land Reserve land is exempt. Forestry operations on Private Managed Forest Land and provincial Crown forestry land are exempt entirely — a broad industry carve-out individual property owners don't get. Docks and boathouses are still not named as exempt anywhere.

— Bylaw No. P1540, Section 7.2

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Targets a 40% cut in GHG emissions from 2007 levels by 2040, via an 11-point plan (EV chargers, woodstove incentives, retrofits, and more). Also plans closer assessment of waterfront (DPA I) septic systems, "slow – no wake" zones near residential shoreline, and a new tipping fee structure for high-volume waste users.

— Bylaw No. P1540, Section 5.1

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Prioritizes agriculture on Agriculture-designated land and discourages small, uneconomical ALR subdivisions. Also supports adding MORE land into the ALR from Rural, Rural Central Lake, Agriculture, and Resource designations, and supports abattoir facilities on ALR land.

— Bylaw No. P1540, Section 5.2

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Developers must pay for infrastructure upgrades their project requires. Development can be limited wherever water quality/quantity or septic capacity would be impacted — a broad, discretionary power. Density-increasing amendments on Agricultural, Rural, and Rural Central Lake land are discouraged.

— Bylaw No. P1540, Section 5.3

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Detached ADUs now allowed on 5 designations (lots over 0.4 ha); attached secondary suites need no minimum lot size at all. Houseboats and float homes are both "strongly discouraged" from increasing on Sproat Lake. Based on a report projecting 297 new units needed by 2041 and a 71% home-price rise from 2019–2022.

— Bylaw No. P1540, Section 5.4

Read the full breakdown →
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Commits to meaningful consultation with Tseshaht and Hupačasath First Nations, triggered specifically when Crown-land/boundary designations or salmon/water-impacting development are proposed. Shortened from April's draft — references to UNDRIP and DRIPA (Indigenous rights frameworks) were removed.

— Bylaw No. P1540, Section 5.5

Read the full breakdown →
Which general area of Sproat Lake and Area do you live in?
Move your mouse (or finger) over the map to see the grid, then tap the square nearest your home. This tells the ACRD roughly where responses are coming from without asking for your exact address. This is the ACRD's own Schedule A boundary map.
100% Zoomed in? Drag/scroll to pan around.
ACRD Schedule A: Map 1 Official Community Plan Boundary for Sproat Lake and Area
No area selected yet — hover and click the map above.
This is the ACRD's Schedule A: Map 1 Official Community Plan Boundary (Bylaw No. P1540, 2026), cropped for web use. Not for navigation.
Not required — the map above is enough. Add your address only if you specifically want it included as evidence of your response.
Privacy note: Submissions are stored by the site's form service and are only used for tallying resident feedback and preparing a submission to the ACRD. This site does not sell or share your information for any other purpose. We only ask for your general area, not your exact address. If you'd rather not submit a response here, you can still make your voice heard directly at the ACRD public hearing or by written submission to the ACRD clerk.

The ACRD is updating the Sproat Lake and Area OCP

The ACRD's proposed Official Community Plan (Bylaw No. P1540) went to first reading on June 10, 2026, and is moving toward a public hearing and further readings. This bylaw will set land-use rules, development permit requirements, and permitting costs for property owners across the Sproat Lake and Area OCP boundary for years to come.

Want more detail before deciding? Read the 10 key areas of the June 2026 draft below — each point is sourced directly from the bylaw text with the exact section numbers cited, so you can verify it yourself.

Read the 10 Key Areas →