The existing land uses within and surrounding the ASP area are illustrated in Map 7 - Existing Zoning and Land Use. Specific land use districts within the area include Agricultural, Agricultural-Nature Conservation, and Heavy Industrial. Land uses within and surrounding the ASP area are described below.
Agricultural – Over half of the Plan area is zoned Agricultural. Much is actively farmed in extensive and intensive agriculture operations, including cropping, livestock grazing and some Confined Feeding Operations. Some land is still in tree cover or not used for agricultural purposes. Much of the zoning surrounding the Plan area is also Agricultural
Agricultural–Nature Conservation (A-NC) – Agricultural-Nature Conservation is included to protect natural and environmentally sensitive areas in the Plan area. This land use is found on both sides of the Sturgeon River Valley and the west side of North Saskatchewan River Valley except for the Agrium and Synenco lands which are zoned Industrial Heavy (I-H) to the river’s edge.
Industrial Heavy (I-H) – The largest land use district is Industrial Heavy accounting for about 5,330 ha. Industrial Heavy (I-H) lands are located in the central, eastern and southern parts of the ASP area. A range of heavy industrial operations are located in the ASP area including oil and gas refining, petrochemical operations, hydrogen peroxide and fertilizer manufacturing. Major industrial facilities are operated by Agrium, North West Upgrading, Degussa, Provident / Williams, PetroCanada and Access Pipeline. Syneco is also planning a major upgrader.
Urban Fringe (UF) – Two Urban Fringe Districts are just outside the Plan area. To the west north of Twp Rd 643 is Urban Fringe land for the Town of Gibbons, and north of the Plan area a large Urban Fringe District surrounds the Town of Redwater.
Industrial-Rural (I-R) – To the southwest of the Plan area is a large Industrial-Rural District which includes the W4/Sturgeon Industrial Park.
County Residential (CR) – There are no Country Residential subdivisions within the ASP boundary. Six Country Residential subdivisions, each on approximately 160 acres of land, surround the Plan area. They are the Juniper Hills and Waterdale Park subdivisions on the northern perimeter of the ASP boundary, Hu Haven and Riverside Park on the southern boundary, Casa Vista 1 km west of the boundary on the Sturgeon River, and an unnamed subdivision south of Twp Rd 570 on the west boundary.
Approximately 137 individual residences are located within the ASP area.