Conservation Area Strategy - Public Consultation
All Conservation Authorities are required to prepare a "Conservation Area Strategy” by December 31, 2024. Ontario Regulation 686/21 (as amended) sets out the Mandatory Programs and Services that must be delivered by all Conservation Authorities in Ontario. The Conservation Area Strategy is noted in subsections 9 (1) to (11) of the regulation.
Cataraqui Conservation is a major landowner with 245 individual parcels totalling over 4,700 hectares (11,600 acres) of land covering more than 1% of our watershed area. These lands are locally, provincially and, in some cases, internationally significant. Representative features include forests, grasslands, wetlands, watercourses, karst, and lake shorelines across the jurisdiction.
Through the development of its corporate Strategic Plan 2024-2027, Cataraqui Conservation sought initial public input that included elements related to the future development of the Conservation Area Strategy. The adoption of the Corporate Strategic Plan 2024-2027 was approved by the Full Authority Board on June 26, 2024.
Conservation area management decisions are based on a hierarchy of support documents including, but not limited to, strategies, policies, guidelines, plans, and operating procedures. Cataraqui Conservation is developing Conservation Area Management Guidelines, and updating its Acquisition and Disposition guidelines. These guidelines will be posted for public comment as they are developed.
Cataraqui Conservation is seeking input on the draft Conservation Area Strategy to learn more about the values and priorities of our watershed’s residents and property visitors. An initial 30-day consultation period for the preliminary draft Conservation Area Strategy is open until August 7, 2024. A second 30-day consultation period will occur in September 2024.