We support the amalgamation…

We support the amalgamation. There is currently too much overlapping of conservation authorities. One property can have 2 conservation authorities, plus the niagara escarpment conservation authority, the city zoning department and even be under Greenbelt restrictions. The flood zones also need to be reviewed and quite often they are erroneous. The insurance companies do not have some properties as flood risks and yet the conservation authorities do. Some areas are drought zones and have lack of water and yet listed as flood risk and have watersheds that are not. We would like to see one governing body per property with clear guidelines. New owners should be advised to avoid confusion. Some of the Greenbelt properties should be purchased by the ministry of agriculture to allow landowners the opportunity to sell their properties or at least allow them to have multiple residences for their families and the opportunity to run small business to supplement their income. For years the conservation authorities have not been supportive of property owners and on the flip side landowners who have not been good shepherds have been caught up in red tape that doesn’t stop them. Having 2 people work for Niagara escarpment is a major part of the problem. So yes we want the amalgamation and for the province to have people look at these properties and finally get them designated properly. Right now the whole organization seems disjointed