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To: Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario

Save Ontario's Conservation Authorities

Shrinking 36 Conservation Authorities to 9 will lose local expertise, and hands-on, daily monitoring to protect our widely varied watersheds, our drinking water, and our flood protections. Instead, create a program to deal with permits that is province-wide, send it to the CAs & train the people there to use it.

Why is this important?

Shrinking 36 Ontario Conservation Authorities (CAs) to 9 monster CAs will threaten our drinking water and our homes from flooding. We will lose our local expertise, and hands-on monitoring to protect our widely varied watersheds, our drinking water, and our flood protections. 85 % of Ontarians depend on our CAs to protect their drinking water. Our CAs maintain and monitor over 900 dams, dykes, channels & erosion structures & care for the wetlands that filter our water and cool summer's heat.

Ontario's Conservation Authorities are funded about 53% by surrounding municipalities, local citizens funding 35% (with small fees and fundraising.) The province only contributes 5 - 8% to fund them: a unique watershed-based system. This amalgamation means our cities & townships will lose the governance of their own money, despite funding the CAs. For example, in the proposed new "St. Lawrence CA" which will merge 5 large CAs into one, there are 70 municipalities with elected council members on those CA Boards.  The Ontario Environment Minister states they will appoint a central committee to oversee all CAs. 

The province states they want to amalgamate all the CAs to streamline the permitting system for developers.

Instead, the province could create a computer program to deal with permits province-wide, send it to the CAs with new computers, & train people there to use it.

(Then, we have to cross our fingers and hope the province does not start selling off our publicly owned Conservation Areas to developers, as they are doing to Wasaga Beach Provincial Park.)

How it will be delivered

An MP will deliver it in late March.

Updates

2026-03-10 18:28:05 -0400

Did you know that this PC government was voted in with only 43 % of the vote ? We need the Ontario NDPs, Greens and Liberals to gather all their supporters and demand that this be changed. If we care about protecting our watersheds and our local services, protections, and programs, hundreds of thousands of us should be organizing against this.

In the meantime, let's write to our NDP, Liberal and Green MPs and candidates and ask them to work together to fight this -- together-- and , as well, to all pledge to create Voting Reform if elected in the future-- (create a citizen's assembly across party lines to research better voting methods, and recommend one.) We must change our "First Past the Post" method or suffer a PC government again, and again, closing local hospitals, closing wind and solar projects, and selling off our protected natural lands and farms.

Pass this on to ten people.

2026-03-10 18:26:29 -0400

NEWS! The government of Ontario has declared it has "listened" to some feedback and has voted to enforce this amalgamation of the 36 Conservation Authorities into NINE, 9 giant CAs-- and a central office to rule them all. Today, March 10th, before the MPs have even returned to work since their long holiday from December.

https://news.ontario.ca/assets/files/20260310/b678493587ac02fcf88ab37f2dddf535.pdf

2026-01-02 21:53:13 -0500

Kingston City Council. South Frontenac Council. Tay Valley Council. -- All voted unanimously to oppose this amalgamation of the Conservation Authorities. They recognized they will still do the funding, but lose the governance and input, and the local expertise. Has your city or township council voted on a motion to oppose this amalgamation yet? If not, send your councilors this and the article in The Narwhal
https://thenarwhal.ca/ontario-conservation-authorities-consolidation/

2025-12-18 15:29:33 -0500

Northern Ont. leaders fight province’s conservation authority consolidation plans
CTV By Alana Everson Published: December 16, 2025

2025-12-18 15:20:20 -0500

Local environmental groups oppose conservation authority amalgamation
in KINGSTON WHIG STANDARD Dec 12, 2025. NAPANEE — 3 local environmental groups are expressing their disapproval of the Ontario government’s plan to amalgamate the province’s conservation authorities in larger regions.
Friends of the Salmon River, Friends of the Napanee River and Lennox & Addington Stewardship Council issued a media release on Dec. 4 opposing Bill 68, proposes the consolidation of 36 conservation authorities into seven.

The amalgamation would likely lead to a loss of local input, reduced quality of service and expertise, and present a risk to source water protection, increased costs and financial burden.

2025-12-07 20:57:36 -0500

100 signatures reached

2025-12-06 21:56:25 -0500

50 signatures reached

2025-12-06 14:29:23 -0500

25 signatures reached

2025-12-06 11:01:31 -0500

10 signatures reached