Ontario Advances Changes To Conservation Authorities Act For Safer Development

A new regulation under Ontario's Conservation Authorities Act (the "Act"), Ontario Regulation 41/24: Prohibited Activities, Exemptions and Permits, will come into effect on April 1, 2024.

These updates will revoke the existing 36 distinct conservation authority regulations and consolidate them into a single Minister's regulation governing prohibited activities, exemptions and permits under the Act. The changes are designed to streamline approvals under the Act to focus on natural hazards and to improve clarity and consistency in decision-making.

The new regulation refines where development is prohibited. It updates the definition of "watercourse" and adjusts the scope of development restrictions around wetlands. The regulation maintains some regulated areas as they were previously described by regulation, including river and stream valley limits, and areas that are adjacent or close to the shoreline of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River System or to inland lakes.