Richard Froese
South Peace News

Priorities for broadband service in the High Prairie region have been included in a draft report of the Northern Alberta Broadband Preparedness Project released in mid August.

Northern Alberta Development Council has led the project in partnership with regional economic development alliances, including the Lesser Slave Lake Economic Alliance (LSLEA).

“We are finally getting to the end stage of the NADC-REDA broadband preparedness report,” says Linda Cox, general manager of the LSLEA and the mayor of the Town of High Prairie.
“We will be setting up information seminars in late September or early October to discuss next steps.”

Specifically, the desired state data collection and analysis focuses on:

– The most significant issues and challenges facing each community over the next five years and whether broadband can play a role to address those issues and challenges.

– Whether broadband is on each municipal council’s agenda.

– The factors that directly impact each community’s capability to pursue a broadband/fibre initiative.

– Communities’ short-term and long-term visions.

– Identifying communities, clusters of communities, or regions wishing to move forward with their broadband plans in the next three years.
The report outlines the desired state of broadband that includes priorities to:

– Incorporate fibre network requirements during local and regional planning.

– Seek additional investment from the incumbent service providers in urban centres.

– Support wireless internet service providers in rural areas.

– Sudsidize private providers.

– Establish a community or regional broadband network.

Several municipalities and communities progress on local projects.

Within the Lesser Slave Lake Economic Alliance, Big Lakes County, the Town of High Prairie, Swan Hills and Slave Lake, Gift Lake Metis Settlement and M.D. of Lesser Slave River are working in a partnership supported by funding Big Lakes County received from the Alberta Community Partnership Program for the Inter-Municipal Broadband Discovery Project to assess the best ways to enhance broadband in the region.

Indigenous communities are working together on Southshore Area First Nations and Lakeshore Internet Services under the Lesser Slave Lake Indian Regional Council, which is locally governed by Kapawe’no, Swan River, Driftpile, Sucker Creek First Nations.

For more information or to review the full documents, visit the websites of NADC or the LSLEA.