• Why dismantle a governance…

• Why dismantle a governance model that has demonstrated effectiveness; one grounded in local expertise, accountability, and watershed-specific solutions?
• This amalgamation lumps together over 80 municipalities with vastly different economic realities and watershed conditions.
• The unique landscape and environmental challenges of individual regions require local, place-based expertise.
• The provincial plan must include a commitment to maintain local offices or face loss of local voices, exorbitant transition costs and delays in permitting and project delivery.
• Local staff is essential during flooding and storm events.
• How will the new entities be funded? Will local funds still support priorities here at home?
• Ontario’s conservation system isn’t broken. It’s evolving. But evolution works best when it’s collaborative, not imposed from the top down. A pause for real dialogue with municipalities, Indigenous communities, and local partners would go a long way toward building a solution that actually delivers on the province’s goals.
*** if you MUST consolidate, at least follow the 19 Source Protection Areas, which are already delineated by watershed and will not require hacking up that legislation as well in order to change those boundaries.