Below are comments on the…

Below are comments on the points of the proposal:

1) Mandatory programs and services that conservation authorities would be required to provide, including core watershed-based resource management strategies.

- Making certain services mandatory if fine, and ensure that there is a clear standard that conservation authorities must meet. However, the adequate resource should be delivered to be conservation authorities to carrying out the mandatory services up-front, and ensure that these services can be EASILY delivered. As it stands right now, many conservation authorities are underfunded and as a result are just barely scraping by to be able to deliver their services. The province needs to be spend more on conservation authorities so their mandatory services can be of high quality, not only just meeting the standard.

2) A requirement for agreements between conservation authorities and their participating municipalities for the use of municipal levies to fund non-mandatory programs and services an authority determines are advisable in its jurisdiction.

- many of the programs seen as non-mandatory in the watershed are are still important and even essential. There needs to be some ability for the conservation authority to have the autonomy to carry out such programs without difficulty from the municipality. Perhaps requiring municipalities to fund up to a certain number of "non-mandatory" programs the conservation authority desires or requires would be advisable, with anything beyond that subject to specific agreements. This would give autonomy to conservation authorities and limit the ability of municipalities that don't value the environment to simply strip them to bare bones, when they should have to autonomy, authority and resources to sustain their watersheds

3) The proposed regulation may set out a specific time in which the agreements must be reviewed and to determine whether or not the agreements will be renewed.

- the time to review should be generous.

4) Requirements for each conservation authority to establish a community advisory board to include members of the public, and providing that conservation authority by-laws may govern the operation of these and other advisory boards that may be established by the authority.

- This is a laudable idea and I have no objections to it based on the consultation guide description. Any opportunities for members of the public to become more engaged with civic affairs in their community is important, including in decisions relating to sustainability of the local environment. Assuming a broad representation of the community, this will provide a different perspective than those of solely local politicians, who tend to be homogenous by age and socioeconomic status.