I can attribute a great deal…

I can attribute a great deal of my personal and professional development to the role conservation authorities play in Ontario today. I was gained much of my volunteer experience during high school through the Kettle Creek Conservation Authority, where I volunteered at the St. Thomas-Elgin Children's Water Festival. This allowed me to educate myself and others on the important role water plays in all of our lives in a fun, interactive way. This experience encouraged me to take the next step in continuing to volunteer, in the collection of water samples from across the Kettle Creek watershed. While I always enjoyed my science courses in high school, and this gave me the opportunity to see some of that science applied in a direct, applicable, real-world way, that had a direct impact on the health of the community and environment. This was a significant driver in my decision to pursue further education beyond high school, in the field of engineering. Later, I also had the opportunity to spend two summers, one after high school, and one after my first year of university, working for the Long Point Region Conservation Authority at the Backus Heritage Conservation Area, both as a day camp leader and as a heritage interpreter. This allowed me to continue exploring my passion for the environment, and to continue contributing to public education on the role conservation authorities play, both for the health of the watershed and environment, but also on public health and safety.

The proposed changes concern me significantly because, in my view, the changes will dramatically change and weaken the greatest strength of our conservation authorities: their local reach and impact. The two conservation authorities I have had the pleasure of working with would be combined into the new "Lake Erie Regional Conservation Authority", which would greatly reduce their effectiveness. The needs of people and conditions in Windsor are dramatically different than those in St. Thomas, just as the needs of people and conditions of St. Thomas are dramatically different than those of Long Point. A centralised body with such a large coverage area cannot effectively manage these differences.

While there are many opportunities in which the mandate and operation of Ontario's Conservation Authorities can be improved and changed; a reduction in number is not the way to do it. In my experience, their mandate and scope should only be expanded, not restricted. I now reside in the Timiskaming District, and I notice the gaps by no longer enjoying the coverage, protection and experiences provided by conservation authorities. Consider the flooding of New Liskeard in 2021, the flooding in Kirkland Lake in 2024, and the landslide in Englehart this year, in 2025. In my view, having a conservation authority in place for the Blanche, Wabi and Englehart River watersheds could have reduced the severity and impact of these events on the communities affected.

I hope that these proposed changes will be retracted and reconsidered. In their current form they would only reduce the effectiveness of Ontario's Conservation Authorities, remove opportunities for Ontario's youth, and put the public and environment at greater risk.