Some managers in eastern Ontario are raising questions about the province’s plan to significantly consolidate its conservation authorities.

Conservation authorities are responsible for issuing permits for various types of housing and infrastructure development in floodplains, shorelines and wetlands.

On Tuesday, the Ontario government announced it will fold the province’s 36 authorities into nine regional ones. Environment Minister Todd McCarthy said the reduced number of authorities will operate under the newly created Ontario Provincial Conservation Agency (OPCA) and be operational by 2027.

The province is hopeful the new model will better position conservation authorities “to support the building of new homes and infrastructure” while continuing to protect communities from flooding and other natural hazards, according its news release about the plan.

But some conservation authority managers in eastern Ontario are expressing reservations about the plan, which still requires provincial legislators to pass amendments to the Conservation Authorities Act before moving ahead.

Sally McIntyre, general manager for the Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority, which manages natural resources in the Mississippi and Carp watersheds and portions of the Ottawa watershed, said the increased size of regional authorities will need effective management given their large geographic jurisdictions and staff.

“I don’t anticipate a centralized management team being able to effectively oversee such a large area,” she said.

McIntyre added she doesn’t want the amalgamation process to be rushed under a tight deadline.

The regional breakdown

The nine amalgamated conservation authorities will be governed by regional municipalities, counties and cities. Towns and townships will no longer participate in the conservation authority’s governance.

Under the new setup, each regional conservation authority will be tasked with the creation of at least one watershed council to identify priorities for conservation programs and services.

“Ontario currently has a fragmented system of conservation authorities, each of which have different policies, different standards, different fees and different levels of staffing and technical capabilities,” McCarthy said.

McCarthy said there will be no staffing reductions.

Three conservation authorities jointly covering the Ottawa watershed — Mississippi Valley, Rideau Valley and South Nation — along with the Raisin Region Conservation Authority, which covers eastern Ontario communities including Cornwall and area, will be amalgamated into the St. Lawrence River Regional Conservation Authority.

The Cataraqui Region Conservation Authority will be part of the Eastern Lake Ontario Regional Conservation Authority.

Preserving local knowledge

The province’s plan comes after a 45-day consultation period with existing conservation authorities, municipalities and Indigenous communities about the proposed new boundaries.

David Ellingwood, the general manager of the Cataraqui Region Conservation Authority, which oversees 11 watersheds from Greater Napanee in the west to Brockville in the east, says the most critical question is how the new model will incorporate local knowledge.

“Having a permit system where staff do a site visit and they know the developers, they know what that section of water course is like, how it behaves, where the flood problems might be…. that should still be top of mind of their mind, is maintaining that local system, that local knowledge,” he said.

McCarthy said local knowledge will remain central to the work of the conservation authorities.