A MNR hosted public Open House is expected to occur in mid March. The FINAL draft of the CLUAH (Crown land Use Atlas Harmonization) project will be presented to the Manitouwadge public at this time.
The MNR guidelines, which will govern how, when, and where you will be able to enjoy the publicly owned land which surrounds our community, will be presented. Removing culverts, installing signage, inserting berms and other means of decommissioning roads to prevent public access are being discussed. This is your opportunity to have your say to the people creating this document. It is part of their mandate to carry back your comments to their superiors who control these decisions.
We, your local Manitouwadge Outdoor Enthusiasts (MOE), have been collecting public opinions via the public meeting held last year and through discussions with many local residents. We have been feeding these opinions back to the MNR. We have also, through articles in the Echo, tried to keep the public aware of outdoor issues of local concern.
We would like to share various options presented to us by the local public. The intent of these options is to relieve the tension between the public, and the MNR’s stance on access restrictions to remote designated outfitter lakes and their surrounding areas.
Option: The Remote designated lakes not being used, could retain their designation as remote lakes while allowing the public motorized access to them. If overfishing is a concern then a rotational system could be implemented as well as a restocking program to prevent  fish depletion.
Option: Winter access to Remote designated Lakes should be allowed via the most convenient route. It has been shown that lakes like Garnham can maintain its fish levels while allowing public winter fishing. It is just creating hard feelings between the public and the MNR to force the public to use long trails through the woods (disturbing natural habitat) when there is easy access by road. Allow winter access through the most direct routes.
Option: Cancel all Remote Lake designations and give the outfitters a tax break on the camps they have established on these lakes. Let the outfitter fly people into truly remote lakes where the public can’t get to, instead of trying to artificially create remote areas. Unless the MNR has a way to stop the growing population of Ontario, it makes no sense to believe that they can expand remoteness. More people require more space. At one time Toronto was a remote area. It is not a reasonable approach to believe the clock can be turned back or even stopped. Remoteness is a dynamic condition; therefore the businesses which rely on it should be able to adapt.
These are some of the options put forward by the people of Manitouwadge. What are your ideas? We need them. Write them down (important to do) and come to the open house prepared to learn what the MNR is proposing, and to explain to the MNR why you believe your (or one or more of the above ideas) is valid.
More opinions will be shared in the Echo next week.