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Environmental Planning and Permits

Conservation authorities have become the primary local agency to review and comment on development proposals pursuant to the Planning Act and the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA) mandate to manage the watershed's natural resources and to protect life and property.

ABCA staff will provide comments to the applicant or appropriate agency for:

  • Plans of subdivision
  • Severances
  • Official plans
  • Zoning bylaws
  • Municipal drainage reports
  • Environmental assessments

Applicants are advised of significant natural areas, flood plain lands, steep slopes, erosion rates, faulty septic systems (in portions of Middlesex County only), the need for stormwater control, buffer strips, and wildlife corridors linking existing natural areas.

Mapping

Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority has a public web mapping site giving users to access to information on properties we own and hazard areas we regulate:

Stormwater Management Policies and Technical Guidelines

This is the Stormwater Management Policies and Technical Guidelines (2009) of Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA):

Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority delivers planning and regulations programs as directed through current legislation and regulations.

To learn more, please visit our Development and Regulations web page.

Ontario Regulation (O. Reg.) 41/24: Prohibited Activities, Exemptions and Permits, under Conservation Authorities Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. C.27, came into effect on April 1, 2024.

To learn more contact Geoff Cade or Daniel King at 519-235-2610 or toll-free 1-888-286-2610.

Prevention of loss of life and property damage from flooding and erosion, as well as enhancing natural resources, is a key mandate of a Conservation Authority and planning and regulations help to fulfill that mandate.

Call to see if you are in a regulated area

Before undertaking any filling, construction or altering of watercourses, contact the ABCA or your municipality to determine if you are in a ‘regulated area'. If applicable, ABCA staff will guide applicants through a permit process that involves gathering on-site information, survey work, and providing specific conditions to reduce risk to life and property, reduce potential social disruption and protect the environment from naturally occurring flooding and erosion.

A document about the provincial regulation can be downloaded from the Conservation Ontario website.

ABCA reviews development, filling and construction activity within:

  • Watercourses
  • Environmentally sensitive areas
  • Hazard lands
  • Flood-prone areas adjacent to creeks, rivers and municipal drains
  • Areas of slope instability due to erosion, slumping or shifting of steep bluffs or ravines

Before undertaking any filling, construction or altering of watercourses, contact the ABCA or your municipality to determine if you are in a ‘regulated area'. If applicable, ABCA staff will guide applicants through a permit process that involves gathering on-site information, survey work and providing specific conditions to reduce risk to life and property, reduce potential social disruption and protect the environment from naturally occurring flooding and erosion.

Shoreline Management Web Page

For the approved Updated Shoreline Management Plan (SMP) please visit the shoreline management plan page at this link:

Shore Protection Policy Change 2021 – Dynamic Beaches Only

Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority, after having received written comments, until March 5, 2021, approved shoreline policy changes related to shore protection structures in regulated dynamic beach areas.

Find out more at this web page: 

Ausable River Erosion Discussion Document

The following is a 6 MB (very large) PDF file of an Ausable River erosion discussion document:

This Armstrong West Revetment erosion investigation, posted for discussion only, was prepared by Ecosystem Recovery Inc. (February 1, 2021)

Examples of How Environmental Planning Works to Protect Life and Property

The following examples illustrate how useful environmental planning can be:

Example #1

Mr. Smith submits an application to construct a house located within a 40-acre woodlot. Portions of the woodlot are located adjacent to a creek and have been designated as a provincially-significant wetland.

The Conservation Authority requests an environmental review of the proposal which will ensure the following;

That the house and septic system will not damage the woodlot, creek or wetland;
That the wetland, that provides flood storage for downstream lands, will not be reduced or negatively impacted by the proposal;
That the woodlot, and any adjacent adjoining woodlots, will not be damaged through unnecessary tree removal or other forestry related impacts;
That the habitat of threatened and endangered species is not encroached upon or adversely affected.

Example #2
A Lawyer submits an enquiry to our office prior to her or his client's purchase of a lakeshore cottage. Our review indicates that the lot is subject to excessive rates of erosion, which may impact the building during the next 25-50 years - the client chooses not to pursue the deal.

Example #3
A developer proposes to construct five residential building lots adjacent to a river. The Conservation Authority recommends that a stormwater management plan be completed to ensure that adjacent properties are not damaged due to increased runoff following construction. It is also determined that three of the lots are located within the flood plain. The buildings proposed for these lots are moved outside of the flood plain.

Flood plain lands located adjacent to the river are reserved for the creation of a walkway and natural belt so that all residents can continue to enjoy the beauty of the river corridor.

Programs