Credit Valley Conservation, which serves Mississauga, Brampton and other communities in the region, is condemning an Ontario government plan to consolidate the province’s 36 conservation authorities into nine bodies by 2027.
The local conservation authority warns such a restructuring would “disrupt one of the province’s most efficient and high-performing conservation authorities” and slow down development by creating “unnecessary disruption in one of Ontario’s fastest-growing regions, resulting in less shovels in the ground and less houses being built.”
Established by the Ontario government in 1954 to protect, restore and enhance the natural environment of the Credit River Watershed, Credit Valley Conservation, like other such authorities, is also responsible for issuing permits for various types of housing and infrastructure development in floodplains, shorelines and wetlands.
The CVC board of directors said in a news release on Thursday the provincial government’s proposal to replace CVC with a larger regional conservation authority is not the way to proceed.
Development would be negatively impacted: CVC
While it supports the province’s goals of modernizing services, reducing duplication and accelerating housing approvals, CVC’s board said dismantling and consolidating CVC into a regional conservation authority will negatively impact development.
“Credit Valley Conservation is already delivering exactly what the province says it wants — efficient approvals, strong municipal coordination and the protection of public safety,” said CVC board chair and Brampton city councillor Michael Palleschi. “We support modernization, but dismantling a high-performing authority that is already meeting provincial objectives does not advance that goal.”
CVC officials say the local conservation authority currently processes development permit applications in an average of 14 days or so, “far exceeding the province’s 90-day service standard.”
Municipal planners, builders and applicants “benefit from predictable timelines and a team of experts deeply familiar with local watershed conditions and municipal planning processes,” the CVC board said in its news release. “This change will slow down service standards in Peel and Halton regions.”
Palleschi added that “in the context of Ontario’s housing crisis, the last thing we should do is disrupt a system that is already helping get homes built. Transitioning to a new regional bureaucracy would almost certainly slow approvals while staff, systems and governance structures are reorganized.”
“Growth and safety go hand in hand”
Beyond housing approvals, the board emphasized that CVC’s work “protects public safety in a complex urban watershed where flood risk management requires highly specialized local expertise, including floodplain mapping, modelling, ice-jam management and real-time flood forecasting.”
Mississauga city councillor Alvin Tedjo, who serves as vice-chair of the CVC board, noted growth and safety go hand in hand.
“Local watershed knowledge allows development to move forward quickly while ensuring communities remain protected from flooding and other natural hazards,” he said.
In announcing the provincial government’s reorganizing plans last week, Environment Minister Todd McCarthy said there would be no job losses as a result.
He added the province listened to feedback about its plan, including some 14,000 comments from the public. The initial proposal called for seven conservation authorities.
The new authorities, McCarthy said, would operate under the newly created Ontario Provincial Conservation Agency and be operational within the next two years.
— with files from The Canadian Press
INsauga’s Editorial Standards and Policies
Last 30 Days: 33,802 Votes
All Time: 1,262,479 Votes
307 VOTES
Will Pierre Poilievre’s Joe Rogan appearance help or hurt him?
WIN A $100 GIFT CARD
Subscribe to INsauga’s daily email newsletter for a chance to win a $100 Amazon gift card.