Conservation authority chairs release joint statement ahead of consolidation

ONTARIO - Four conservation authorities, including Grand River Conservation Authority, have pledged to stay transparent throughout a province-wide merger of conservation authorities forced by the Doug Ford government.

Ontario’s 36 conservation authorities are being consolidated into just nine regional authorities.

The province argues the current system is fragmented and inefficient, slowing permits and development, while critics fear a loss of local voices.

The Grand River Conservation Authority (GRCA) will join the Long Point Region, Catfish Creek and Kettle Creek authorities to form the Eastern Lake Erie Regional Conservation in 2027.

GRCA board vice chair and Centre Wellington Mayor Shawn Watters has called the change inevitable, saying the authority chose to work with the province rather than fight it. 

“By consolidating, it just makes it better for everybody,” Watters told the Advertiser in March, noting the four authorities oversee watersheds draining into Lake Erie.

A joint June 19 statement signed by the chairs of the four authorities outlines seven guidelines for transition, including: 

- accountable and transparent governance;

- fiscal responsibility;

- commitment to workforce stability and talent retention;

- service excellence;

- risk management and business continuity;

- watershed-based science informed management; and

- transparency, trust and clear communication.

“As leaders of four separate conservation authorities, we value the local connections with landowners, community groups and member municipalities that have shaped our history,” the statement reads.

“We are committed to shaping the identity of the new Eastern Lake Erie Regional Conservation Authority based on the same commitment to science, local knowledge and strong partnerships that have defined conservation authorities for over 80 years,” the chairs wrote.

A new Ontario Provincial Conservation Agency is overseeing the transition process and appointing a project executive to chair a transition committee made up of each authority’s general manager and one elected board member, according to the statement. Boards must name representatives by June 30, and the committee is expected to convene in late summer.

“There is no doubt that this is a pivotal moment in our individual and collective histories,” the chairs wrote.

The GRCA stated in a news release there are no immediate changes to governance structure, programs, services, or day-to-day operations.