Environmental Advisory Services (Planning)

Consideration for the natural environment is an important part of land use planning. Kawartha Conservation provides input to the municipal land use planning process by working with landowners to ensure that development proposals have regard for the environment and will not lead to problems on adjacent lands.

Advisory fees are charged on a user pay principle to cover the costs of reviewing the application.

A member of the public or any other party of interest such as a lawyer or real estate agent can also submit an information request for a fee directly to the Authority.

A comprehensive review of each application is performed to ensure that natural heritage and natural hazard features will not be adversely affected by the proposed development. At the same time we work to ensure the completed project will not itself be adversely affected by environmental factors such as flooding. We strive to balance environmental protection, economic development and human health and safety.

Natural heritage features considered include significant wetlands, environmentally sensitive areas, fish habitat, species at risk habitat and areas of natural and scientific interest (ANSIs). Natural hazard features such as flood and erosion prone land, and unstable slopes are also considered.

When applicable, sediment control and surface water quality and quantity controls are reviewed. We also ascertain that a proposal complies with regulations pertaining to the placement or removal of fill, alteration to a watercourse or wetland and/or construction near a watercourse or wetland as under Ontario Regulation 182/06. Some types of development will require a new permit application under this regulation.

Some of the tools used to assist with our reviews include background searches, mapping interpretation, policy application and site checks, and may involve modelling interpretation of heavy regional and 100-year rainfall events, potential for flooding and water quality/quantity evaluations.