Is the Conservation Authority Merger Really a False Flag?

In an October 31 News Release the Ontario government says it will soon introduce legislation to “create the Ontario Provincial Conservation Agency (OPCA) with the aim of improving the province’s conservation authority system to help get shovels in the ground faster on homes and other local infrastructure projects.” This is a curious perspective because it assumes that somehow Conservation Authorities (CAs) are impeding or delaying “getting shovels in the ground on homes.” But is this true?

The CAs only have direct permitting authority with respect to housing development on wetlands where the responsible CA has to issue a permit under Sec.28 of their legislation. And, if there is some delay in the permitting process, the Cabinet and the Minister, respectively, have discretion in modifying the terms of these permits including providing exclusions if they see fit.

Other than Sec. 28 permits, CAs are only tasked with providing technical reviews to the planning process at the regional/ municipal level. In this capacity they are consultants with no direct power to deny anything. It is up to the municipal planning authority under the Planning Act to take action to approve, deny or delay a housing development as they see fit. And, again, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs has the legislative power to intervene if it choses.

The Press Release correctly discusses that the existing CAs vary widely in their technical capacity to advise the various municipal planners. But that is because the Province stopped funding CAs back in 1996 and, except for the (now sunsetting) drinking water source protection program, they are entirely supported by levies made on the municipalities they serve.

Are the CAs being falsely labelled as the scapegoat here? Is the Province's real intention to meddle with or deauthorize the municipal planning process by imposing this new agency? Are they really just trying to surreptitiously seize control over the land development process away from municipalities and place it under this seemingly arm’s length puppet agency?

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