Consultation on regulatory proposals under the Conservation Authorities Act, Clean Water Act, and Lake Simcoe Protection Act to align with legislative changes and the regional consolidation of conservation authorities

Ontario is committed to the successful consolidation of Ontario’s conservation authorities (CAs) to create nine regional CAs on February 1, 2027, to strengthen watershed management, support economic growth, and maintain strong environmental and drinking water source protections. As a next step, the government plans to introduce amendments to the Conservation Authorities Act (CAA), the Clean Water Act, 2006 (CWA), and the Lake Simcoe Protection Act, 2008 (LSPA) to align with the new regional CA framework and ensure continuity of the vital programs and services that CAs deliver under these legislation.

Once in place, the planned changes would maintain protections from natural hazards like flooding, protections for sources of drinking water, and the protection and restoration of the ecological health of the Lake Simcoe watershed under the regional CA framework. The government is committed to ensuring the continuity of these protections following the consolidation of CAs.

The planned amendments to these Acts would support effective governance of the regional CAs, update and create processes for any future CA boundary changes and restructuring, create regulation-making authority to confirm the area of jurisdiction and participating municipalities of the regional CAs, and clarify and improve the Ontario Provincial Conservation Agency’s (OPCA) ability to coordinate the consolidation of CAs. The planned amendments would also support the effective delivery of the source protection program in accordance with the CWA under the new regional CA framework, maintain the existing source protection areas and source protection plans and ensure local watershed priorities in decision-making, as well as ensure the continued implementation of the LSPA and Lake Simcoe Protection Plan (LSPP) for the protection and restoration of the ecological health of the Lake Simcoe watershed. More information about the planned legislative amendments is provided at RR# 26-MECP017.

In addition, to align with planned legislative changes and support the successful consolidation of CAs, including the continued delivery of vital programs and services, the government is proposing regulatory changes under the CAA, CWA, and LSPA and is consulting on these regulatory proposals from October 22 to December 6, 2026. We invite you to provide comments on these proposals through the following Environmental Registry notices:

• Regulatory proposals under the Conservation Authorities Act
• Regulatory proposals under the Clean Water Act, 2006
• Regulatory proposal under the Lake Simcoe Protection Act, 2008

Seeking your input on a future regulatory proposal: Watershed Councils

As the province transitions to a regional CA framework under the CAA, regional CAs will be required to establish one or more watershed councils to ensure that watershed management continues to be informed by local knowledge, expertise and input. This commitment includes planned amendments to the CWA to set out that watershed councils would fulfill the role of source protection committees (SPC), supporting continued local cooperation in the protection of drinking water sources.

The government is committed to the successful development and implementation of these locally led watershed councils to strengthen watershed management and local cooperation in the protection of drinking water sources.

We are seeking your input and ideas to inform a future regulatory proposal that would prescribe the requirements related to watershed councils under the CAA, to provide input, please visit the watershed councils discussion questions ERO page.