The chair of the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority (UTRCA) is raising concerns over what he believes is a lack of public transparency in the province’s plan to consolidate conservation authorities. “We want to be at the table to make sure our voices are being heard, but we want to be able to do that in an open and transparent way,” said Brian Petrie, UTRCA Chair and mayor of Ingersoll. Petrie says he’s uncomfortable with rules handed down by the province to transition committees, those appointed to oversee the amalgamation of Conservation Authorities (CAs). Petrie says the Terms of Reference make all business of these committees confidential, with no public oversight. Further, Petrie says members have been directed to sign non-disclosure agreements. “It’s something I’m not comfortable with. We are open. We are required by the Municipal Act to be open as much as possible. There’s certainly circumstances where you need to take things behind closed doors to make sure peoples’ identities and confidential information is kept quiet, but it’s one of those things where it’s certainly not the norm,” Petrie said. Ontario’s 36 CAs will be down to nine regional groups as of February of 2027. UTRCA will join three other CAs in becoming part of the Western Lake Erie Regional Conservation Authority. Oxford County Warden Marcus Ryan says for municipalities, it means minimal input for major decisions. “The challenge then is, that as it gets larger and larger and larger, that proportional representation is less and less meaningful, right? You got your two people, or whatever it is, but they’re in such a large group, is it meaningful? Can you actually change direction,” he questioned. Alexandru Cioban, spokesperson for Todd McCarthy, Minister of Environment, Conservation and Parks issued a statement to CTV News, which says, in part: Throughout this process, conservation authorities remain municipally governed, and budget decisions continue to be made by conservation authority boards, which consist of representatives appointed by participating municipalities. Confidentiality expectations are routine and regularly employed by municipalities when individuals have access to sensitive and confidential information, including financial, legal and human resources records. In the meantime, Petrie has called an emergency meeting of the UTRCA Board, where concerns over confidentiality and public accountability are expected to be discussed. Petrie will also seek direction from his board before signing an NDA, or agreeing to take part in the transition committee for this region. That meeting is set for Tuesday morning.
