‘Using a sledgehammer to swat a fly’: Barrie siding with conservation authorities in spat with Ontario government

Barrie is wading into a power struggle unfolding between conservation authorities and the Ontario government.

On Nov. 30, the city’s general committee approved a motion asking the province to repeal or amend changes to the Conservation Authorities and Planning Acts, as set out in Bill 229.

Under the proposal, which must be ratified by council next week, Barrie will request the province delay passage of clauses affecting municipal concerns. A longer transition period — up to December 2022 — should be enacted to give time to properly budget for the changes, the city says.

The draft legislation introduces policies that alter conservation authorities’ role in regulating development, the permit appeal process and reviewing planning applications. Municipalities rely on these agencies for environmental-protection expertise, Coun. Clare Riepma said.

It also grants broader authority to the province to make decisions without conservation authority data and expertise, he said.

Mayor Jeff Lehman noted the Ontario Big City Mayors caucus, , approved a similar motion days ago.

“Every one of us felt reform was needed,” he said. “(But) the government needs to slow down and consult. We’ve had tremendous progress made in cleaning up Lake Simcoe — phosphorus reduction and the return of native fish species we thought were gone. That is really due to the efforts of the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority (LSRCA). Their mandate has proven to be very important. I would never defend the worst excesses of scope creep; however, this bill goes way beyond that.”

The caucus joined a chorus of municipalities and conservation authorities calling on the province to slow down.

But others opposed the city’s effort, noting Simcoe County recently decided against passing a similar resolution.

“I’ve not seen (conservation authorities) changing the way they do business and focusing primarily on their core mandates,” Coun. and city representative on the Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority board, Gary Harvey, said. “(They) argue Bill 229 will create more costs and delays, which is untrue. Some of these changes will actually streamline processes. Conservation authorities have more powers than police and bylaw officers. They can go onto property without a warrant. Some changes need to occur to provide a good balance between conservation, municipalities and landowners.”

Riepma compared the legislation to , which threaten to bypass elements of the planning process, and he called Harvey’s argument “one of the best pieces of spin doctoring” he’d seen in “a long time.”

“It’s been a while since we’ve seen such a display of alternative facts,” Riepma, who sits on the LSRCA board, said. “We have 36 conservation authorities in the province. There’s no doubt a couple of them may be quite dysfunctional. Something needs to be done about them. It seems this (legislation) is a bit like using a sledgehammer to swat a fly. In this case, the fly is sitting on a window. We’re not dealing with science anymore; it’s what will the minister approve.”

The motion would be sent to several provincial government officials, including Environment, Conservation and Parks Minister Jeff Yurek and Barrie area MPPs.