The Ontario Broker - Volume 22, Issue 3 - 8

COLUMNS
Conservation Authorities Important
Role in Ontario
Jo-Anne Rzadki
Manager of Business Development and Partnerships at Conservation Ontario
developers and others
in order to promote
proper land-use planning.
Regulating new and
existing development
protects lives and property
and reduces the cost of
flooding to all levels of
government. Conservation
authorities also protect
and restore important
natural systems such
as wetlands, trees and
shoreline vegetation to
help slow or absorb flood
waters.
Conservation Ontario
represents the network
of the 36 conservation
authorities and is pleased
to collaborate with the
IBAO to develop a RIBOaccredited
eLearning
course on this subject,
Flood and Erosion Risk
Management in Ontario.
FLOODING HAS BEEN THE LEADING CAUSE
of public emergency in Ontario and conservation authorities are the
first line of defense in prevention and reducing the impacts of these
costly and devasting events. According to the Intact Centre on Climate
Adaption at the University of Waterloo, the costliest impact of climate
change affecting Canadians is residential basement flooding. Part
of this is caused by the fact that almost four million people live in a
floodplain.
Ontario's 36 conservation authorities play a big role in helping to
reduce or mitigate the risk of flooding and erosion across the province,
particularly in or near towns and cities. They monitor and report on
flood conditions issuing various levels of warnings for municipalities,
businesses, and homeowners.
Conservation authorities, help to prevent flooding and erosion
impacts from happening in the first place by developing floodplain
mapping and providing flood risk information to municipalities,
Flooding and erosion are natural and important parts of healthy river
and lake systems, however, the impacts of these events can be severe.
The need for effective flood and erosion management is made clear by
loss of life, property devastation and long-term social, emotional and
economic disruption, as well as the staggering clean-up costs in the
aftermath of a flood.
Ninety-five percent of Ontario's population lives in a watershed
managed by a conservation authority. This is close to 40% of the
population of Canada. The local watershed expertise of conservation
authorities helps Ontario to significantly reduce the risk of flooding and
erosion compared to other parts of the country.
While good planning and preparation restrict development in floodprone
areas today, there are older towns, cities and infrastructure
established prior to regulations that are still at risk from flooding.
Conservation authorities help these property owners to flood-proof
their properties as much as possible.
8
THE ONTARIO BROKER
The Ontario Broker - Volume 22, Issue 3

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Ontario Broker - Volume 22, Issue 3
