Please do not pass Bill 68,…

Please do not pass Bill 68, the provincial budget bill. The part related to amalgamating Ontario's conservation authorities into 7 regional organizations is a cynical attempt to ignore the current science on climate change in favour of short-term thinking. Comments from scientists who study climate change in our area should have the greatest weight in this decision. Their view is that watershed management needs to align with LOCAL ecology, hydrology and climates of particular regions. This is essential to prevent flooding.

The proposal to amalgamate across watersheds with distinctly different environmental conditions would also slow down decision-making. I was around for floods caused by the 1954 Hurricane Hazel. Conservation Authorities were set up to protect our land and people at a watershed scale. Combining CA's would undo all of that work to build flood-resistant communities.

I beg you to think hard about the welfare of Ontario communities in terms of flood resilience, clean water and a healthy natural environment - and put this ahead of whatever permitting, land use and budget considerations are behind this proposal.