The Ford government intends to create a new central agency to oversee conservation authorities.
The Ontario Provincial Conservation Agency (OPCA) aims to improve the conservation authority system to speed up development projects, while strengthening the role authorities play in managing watersheds and protecting communities from floods and natural hazards.
Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, Todd McCarthy, says the current system has fragmented and outdated data systems, and a patchwork of standards and service delivery.
“This has led to unpredictable and inconsistent turnaround times for approvals,” says McCarthy.
“This creates uncertainty and delays for builders, homeowners and landowners that is holding back Ontario.”
McCarthy says the immediate objective is to establish a single digital permitting platform that ensures the process to apply for a conservation authority permit is the same across Ontario.
“The agency will also work to set clear province-wide performance standards and support the consistent application of these standards with centralized data and updated floodplain mapping,” says McCarthy.
The Minister is also looking to consolidate the existing 36 conservation authorities into several watershed-based regional authorities.
He says this will reduce duplication, free up resources for frontline conservation work, and ensure the authorities are more responsive to the needs of the area they serve.
The Lakehead Region Conservation Authority, based in Thunder Bay, is the only conservation authority in northwestern Ontario.
