There is a serious issue with how local environmental decisions are made. I speak from experience...

In response to your story this morning about the Carp River ³Restoration² project. In 1995, the provincial government downloaded the responsibility of funding conservation programs to local municipal governments. Since that time, the staff in Conservation Authorities, most notably the General Managers have had to work very hard to maintain any funding for all the work they do. They are responsible for forestry, fisheries, water quality, and wildlife and typically do some very good research and scientific work in this area. BUT - I currently work at a Conservation Authority and I can tell you - that more often than not- the studies are pushed aside in favor of development in order to keep their funders happy. How can you blame them? Every year - they have to fight hard to keep their funding from local municipalities in order to stay alive at all, and keep staffing the people that do the good work that gets ignored...Interesting dilemna isn¹t it?

I contact you because there needs to be a lot more public information and media attention on this issue. The general public assumes the government is looking after these things. In fact, these very important decisions about where to build, what wetlands to protect or destroy, what forests to cut down are made by municipal representatives that we all know are determined
to keep their developers happy.

After the fall out from the Walkerton incident and the subsequent inquiry - they decided to put in some legislation about protecting our Source Water.  This very important, multi billion dollar project has been handed down to conservation authorities for local management. So - we now have to trust our conservation authorities for maintaining the quality of our drinking water.  I am afraid for what this means to Ottawa¹s residents. Sewage back up, agricultural and development run off, proof management - all have a major effect on our health and futures, when you consider water is the seed of all life. 

We need to look at how these important decisions are made. I encourage the media to dig deep into not only this Carp River issue, but also the Leitrim Wetlands and other development projects around Ottawa, and specifically at the source of the decisions. There are public records and minutes on these board meetings and good reporter might find some interesting conflicts of interest that need to be made public!

An interesting article -many important points in it, and the final outcome is certainly something to watch
out for. 

One point that comes to mind is: if a bad mayor or councillor -say, one of those who claim to be so
concerned about taxpayers' money- votes to approve something on behalf of the city that will go wrong and
bring a lawsuit against the city (at taxpayers' cost there, of course), should he/she not be personally
accountable if they have been presented evidence that shows it's a bad decision? It's too easy (meaning,
free of personal consequences) for such mayors and councillors to vote badly now, and after his/her term,
the deluge... 

Of course, first and foremost it is (at least in my opinion, but perhaps not in the legal system) the
developer's responsibility not to build in the wrong place -and that includes responsibility for hiring
consultants that will tailor their findings to suit the client...

J.P. Unger


http://www.cbc.ca/canada/ottawa/story/2006/10/30/kanata-flood.html

City, residents sue over sewage flood in Kanata North homes

Lawsuits are flowing out of a storm that pumped raw sewage into 44 homes in Ottawa's Kanata North neighbourhood two years ago.

Residents are suing the City of Ottawa, which they blame for approving a development called Marshes Village on a nearby flood plain close to Shirley's Bay on the Ottawa River.

Meanwhile the city is suing the development company it says is responsible for the flood.

The city says a construction road built to the new development blocked the flow of water, forcing it into a sewage pump station that became overloaded.

That shut it down and rerouted sewer water into basements of nearby residents.

According to the city, the road was not approved or inspected.

The developer, Kanata Research Park, declined to be interviewed by the CBC.

Gary Kelleher, one of the residents who had to deal with sewage in his home, blamed the city for not monitoring the developers more closely.

"Before they started construction, they did not have a permit and it was not inspected by the city," said Kelleher, who has since moved.

Dennis Jacobs, head of planning at the City of Ottawa, said residents were simply unlucky.

"A storm event occurred that happened to be coincidental with a construction project that wasn't finished," he said. "As a result, the system was overwhelmed by that storm."

Land raised, streams changed for development

Ted Cooper, a water resources engineer working in Eastern Ontario, said more than bad luck was involved.

He noted that creeks, streams and ditches in Kanata North were re-engineered for development, and he said manipulating natural waterways like that inevitably leads to problems.

In the case of Marshes Village, a municipal watershed study had previously  recommended against building at that location.

However, the city approved changes to its official plan, rezoning of industrial land for the development and the special permits required to add fill to a flood plain. The land was raised, and streams were changed for the development. 

Cooper is critical of the planning behind the approvals.

"I can't understand how development ended up where it's located," he said. "One would have to question why development was allowed to occur in the flood plain in the first place."