King City East (North) Landowners Group Inc. - Permit for activities to achieve an overall benefit to a species

The King City East (North) Landowners Group Inc. is seeking an overall benefit permit under clause 17(2)(c) of the Endangered Species Act, 2007 (ESA) for the construction of a bridge over the Eaton Hall Tributary in the Township of King, Ontario.

The proposal may adversely impact:

• Redside Dace individuals
• approximately 2,785 m² of Redside Dace habitat

Protecting species under the Endangered Species Act

Sections 9 and 10 of the ESA provide protection for individual members of a species and their habitat if that species is listed on the Species at Risk in Ontario List as either:

• extirpated
• endangered
• threatened

Redside Dace is listed as endangered; therefore, it is protected.

Under clause 17(2)(c) of the ESA, the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks may issue a permit authorizing a person to engage in an activity that would otherwise be prohibited by sections 9 or 10 of the ESA if the minister believes that:

• an overall benefit to the species will be achieved within a reasonable time through the conditions of the permit
• reasonable alternatives have been considered, including alternatives that would not negatively affect the species, and the best alternative has been adopted
• reasonable steps to minimize negative effects on individual members of the species are required by conditions of the permit

Providing an overall benefit to a protected species under the ESA involves improving circumstances for the species in Ontario. Overall benefit is:

• more than "no net loss" or an exchange of "like for like"
• grounded in the protection and recovery of the species at risk
• more than mitigation measures or "replacing" what is lost

Actions to achieve an overall benefit to the species

King City East (North) Landowners Group Inc. is working to identify actions that would achieve an overall benefit for the species, which may involve:

• removing an online pond and dam structure, located north of the proposed crossing, to promote fish passage upstream (to previously occupied reaches) and reduce thermal impacts within the Eaton Hall Tributary
• designing a natural channel to establish bank stability and suitable habitat features, including plantings
• specifically, by removing the dam and creating a watercourse through natural channel design, 514 metres of linear channel will be created, and an additional 400 metres of watercourse will be opened up for fish migration
• monitoring the restored stream channel post construction including bank stability and success of the riparian area

These proposed actions are expected to achieve overall benefits for Redside Dace, resulting in:

• fish barrier passage remediation
• natural channel design
• riparian habitat enhancements

Reasonable alternatives being considered

King City East (North) Landowners Group Inc. has explored a range of alternatives, including alternatives that would not adversely affect Redside Dace and its habitat. These include:

• do nothing (bridge is not constructed and the existing online pond and dam structure remain along the watercourse)
• creating a central crossing (one south-central valley crossing at narrowest point of the valley)
• creating a dam crossing (one north-central valley crossing above existing dam location and servicing crossing within roadway)
• creating a dam crossing and separate servicing location (e.g. one north-central valley crossing at the existing dam location and servicing crossing under valley lands south of dam location)

King City East (North) Landowners Group Inc. has concluded that the best alternative includes constructing the central crossing. They identified this option crosses at the narrowest point of the valley and overall, has the fewest natural environment impacts of all the options while still providing the necessary road connection for the development.

Actions to minimize negative effects to the species

King City East (North) Landowners Group Inc. is seeking ways to minimize adverse effects on Redside Dace and their habitat. These may include:

• working at a time of year when Redside Dace are less sensitive to disturbance (e.g. July 1 to September 15)
• defining work areas with construction fencing to minimize the area of disturbance
• installing sediment control measures before construction to prevent sediments from entering the watercourse
• ensuring materials and equipment are operated and stored in a way that prevents harmful substances from entering the watercourse
• ensuring vehicles and equipment refueling and maintenance will be conducted away from watercourse
• using qualified professionals to monitor the various stages of work including fish rescues, stream work and erosion and sediment control measures
• isolating all in-water work and conducting work ‘in the dry’
• ensuring disturbed riparian areas are sufficiently stabilized and revegetated as soon as construction activities are completed

Other information

The Province has published a government response statement under subsection 12.1 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) with respect to Redside Dace. The response statement will be considered before a decision to issue an overall benefit permit.

Posting this proposal on the Environmental Registry does not imply that the Minister will issue a permit. A permit may only be issued where the legal requirements set out in clause 17(2)(c) of the ESA have been satisfied.