PROJECT TRACKING – FULL VERSION June, 2018
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CONSERVATION ONTARIO PROJECT TRACKING – FULL VERSION June, 2018 GOVERNMENT RELATIONS Project Lead(s) & Project Description Committee Push for a Provincial Integrated Water Policy K.Gavine (CO) See background note May/01 and Jun/12 and Dec/13 chart. The Walkerton submissions recommend development of a Provincial integrated water policy framework and this need is reiterated wherever appropriate in dealings with the province. CO’s 2011-2015 Strategic Directions reaffirm the commitment to facilitating the development of a provincial water management framework and national water strategy (2.1). Most likely vehicles to further this agenda are implementation of Ontario’s Great Lakes Strategy and the Watershed Management Futures whitepaper. A meeting between CO/CAs and several Ministries has been scheduled for April 9th to discuss the whitepaper. CO staff and CAs met with the ministries of Natural Resources, Environment and Municipal Affairs and Housing on April 9th to discuss the whitepaper. CO agreed to further flesh out the proposed amendments and return to this group for further examination and discussion. Political meetings have also taken place with the Minister Jeffrey (MMAH) on April 24/13, Minister Leal (Rural Affairs) on May 13/13 and Christine Leduce (Policy Advisor – MNR) on June 6/13. Minister Chan (Tourism, Culture and Sport) on July 22/13, Gord Miller (Environmental Commissioner) on July 25/13, Linda Kamerman (Mining and Lands Commissioner) on September 3rd, Laurie Scott (MPP Haliburton, Kawartha Lakes, Brod) on September 12/13, Frank Klees (MPP Newmarket – Aurora) on September 27/13. The CO endorsed Whitepaper working group will continue to identify options for promoting the Whitepaper. Their next meeting is scheduled for April 1, 2014.The Whitepaper Working Group met on April 1st and discussed progress to date on the Whitepaper. Given the limited provincial leadership on this file, the group recommended that instead Conservation Ontario focus on “getting their own house in order” and working more closely with the municipalities in creating greater efficiencies and effectiveness. Two areas identified as requiring additional attention including; planning and regulations and governance. A recommendation will be going forward to Council for them to endorse this new direction. At his request, Kim Gavine and General Managers from 5 CAs (Upper Thames, Lower Thames, Long Point, Kettle and Catfish) met with Jeff Yurek (MPP – Elgin-Middlesex-London and Natural Resources and Forestry critic with the Conservative Party) to discuss the work of Conservation Authorities. In December 2014, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry’s Parliamentary Assistant, Eleanor McMahon, received her mandate letter which included a directive for a review of the Conservation Authorities Act. A preliminary response was provided back to the PA asking that CO and the CAs be engaged in the review. At their December 8, 2014 Council meeting, members endorsed the creation of a CA Act Review Working Group. Made up of 15 General Managers, this group first met on January 26th to discuss goals, objectives, messages, and strategies. It was agreed that the elements of the Whtepaper should be promoted as part of the CA Act Review. A very brief and preliminary meeting was held between CO’s General Manager and the PA on March 3rd with the agreement that a follow-up meeting would be set up in the near future to flesh out a workplan for the review. On March 31st, CO’s Whitepaper Working group met to discuss the CA Act Review. They recommended that CO push for a larger Integrated Watershed Management position with the Province rather than just a technical review of the Act but a review of the CA Program and how this review could contribute to IWM in Ontario. On May 12, K. Gavine and B. Denney met with Premier’s staff to discuss the review. They were advised that a discussion paper had been prepared and was being circulated amongst provincial ministries for review and comment. st MNRF staff have shared with CO that a discussion paper will be posted on the EBR (date unknown and length unknown) On July 21 , the MNRF posted the Conservation Authorities Act Review Discussion Paper. The paper focuses on three key areas: roles & responsibilities, governance and funding. A CO CA Act Review Committee and a smaller sub-committee identified 4 key priorities through the review: CO’s General Manager met with the PA to share our key priorities. A number of engagement sessions with municpialities, conservation authorities, the development sector, the agriculture sector and the environmental sector have been set up around the province. CO has had the benefit of attending all meetings as an observer. This has enabled CO to identify key concerns and red flags within the various sectors. CO has also been requesting and meeting with politicial appointments, ministers, their staff and other key stakeholders i.e. AMO and BILD. CO has also developed a CA Act Toolkit for Conservation Authorities along with a number of fact sheets, brochures and background information on CAs.CO’s first Queen’s Park Day was held on March 10, 2016. The purpose of this event was to showcase the significant work of CAs and how they are contributing to many provincial priorities. Both Minister Mauro and Parliamentary Assistant Eleanor McMahon addressed the crowd acknowledging the work of CAs. They also indicated that while definitive actions had not been confirmed, they were very close to having next steps revealed for the CA Act Review. On May 13, 2016, the MNRF released their suggested priorities for renewal of the Conservation Authorities Act: Conserving our Future: Proposed Priorities for Renewal. The Province held a two day meeting with a CONSERVATION ONTARIO PROJECT TRACKING – FULL VERSION 2 June, 2018 GOVERNMENT RELATIONS Project Lead(s) & Project Description Committee stakeholder advisory group to obtain some preliminary feedback on the priorities. CO with five CAs were part of this group. The Province also held five engagement sessions across the Province to obtain feedback. The priority paper is posted on the EBR and comments are due September 9th. CO will be providing a collective submission and all CAs will be encouraged to submit as well. CO has prepared advocacy material for the members and will be implementing a social media campaign about the review over the summer. On July 28th, CO submitted its collective comments on the CA Act Review. Of particular focus was our request that legislative changes be made to include Preamble/Purpose Statement which reinforced the role of CAs as watershed management agencies. Meetings were held with MNRF staff over the summer to discuss and promote our legislative and workplan priorities. Meetings were also held with key stakeholders such as OFA, AMO, OHBA, BILD and CELA to discuss a multi-logo letter where common goals and objectives could be requested of the Province. A multi- logo letter was prepared with the Ontario Federation of Agriculture, the Association of Municipalities of Ontario and the Canadian Environmental Law Association and focused on improving client service delivery and the provincial funding gap. A meeting between Dick Hibma and Kim Gavine were held with the new Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry, Kathryn McGarry and her senior Policy Advisor, Mark Tyler. At this meeting, our position was shared. Continued discussions between MNRF staff and CO staff also took place. The Minister spoke at Counci’s September 28th meeting where she advised the members that they would be creating a multi-stakeholder table (similar to the Conservation Authorities Liasion Committee). CO staff continue to prod ministerial and bureaucratic staff to table proposed legislative amendments. We have been advised something will be introduced spring 2017. Bill 139 – Building Better Communities and Conserving Watersheds Act was passed on December 12, 2017. A three-year Memorandum of Cooperation was signed with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry on April 17, 2018. Work is well underway with the Service Delivery Review Committee to made amendments to the CA regulations (see Conservation Authorities Act below) Association of Municipalities of Ontario K.Gavine (CO) See other background in Apr/09 and Jun/12 chart. Recent AMO staffing changes (2012) will provide an opportunity for new relationships to be D. Hibma (CO) established around some common municipal/CA issues. CO attended and exhibitied at the ROMA/OGRA Conference in February 2013. Kim Gavine and Bonnie Fox met with Pat Vanini and Monika Turner from AMO on May 21/13 to introduce and discuss the Whitepaper. AMO has advised the Province that should any committees be created, that they would want to be part of that committee. CO attended and exhibited at the ROMA/OGRA conference Feb 23-26, 2014. K. Gavine attended AMO’s 2014 conference and had the opportunity to share with the Grand Rivers Conservation Authority delegations to the Deputy Minister of Rural Affairs and the Parliamentary Assistant to the Ministry of Natural Resources. CO attended and exhibited at the ROMA/OGRA conference Feb. 2015. K. Gavine and D. Hibma attended AMO’s 2015 conference. K. Gavine had an opportunity to share a delegation with the Grand River Conservation Authority to Eleanor McMahon. There was also an opportunity to speak with Minister Mauro and many other elected officials. CO attended ROMA’s 2016 Conference in February. A question from NVCA’s Chair was posed to Minister Mauro re the CA Act Review and the need for a inter-ministerial approach. K. Gavine met with staff from AMO to discuss the CA Act Review and identify synergies and opportunities for collaboration. Bonnie Fox and Dick Hibma attended the 2016 AMO Conference where they had an opportunity to meet with several key municipal and provincial representatives. K. Gavine and B. Fox had preliminary discussions with AMO staff re the proposed changes to the CA Act on June 13, 2017.