Thank you for reading my…

Thank you for reading my submission about this proposal for a *drastic shift* in governance of Ontario's Conservation Authority boundaries.

Local expertise is essential to the work conservation authorities undertake. A more distant bureaucracy will eliminate the local connections that have been established over decades of the CAs' existence, creating confusion and slowing the approvals these changes are supposed to speed up.

The conservation authority system was begun by the Progressive Conservative government in 1946 in response to rampant deforestation. Their mandates were strengthened after Hurricane Hazel to include development near waterways to manage flood plains and eliminate deadly floods.

Geography should dictate the boundaries of CAs has it has in the past. Watersheds have distinct geology and land use/flood-risk patterns.

Instead of making the changes as proposed, it would be better to standardize operating procedures across CAs and give them the tools and funding needed to speed up approvals (or disapprovals) as required by this Ontario government.

The new structure as proposed will weaken local municipal voices. Imposing control from above -- a centralized structure -- is not in the best interests of the future of our watersheds and the people living in Ontario.