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Governance

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The Grand River Conservation Authority (GRCA) manages water and other resources on behalf of close to one million people and 38 municipalities in the Grand River watershed.

The GRCA is the oldest water management agency in Canada and one of the oldest in the world.

The GRCA is a member of Conservation Ontario, an organization representing all 36 Conservation Authorities in the province.

Board of Directors Meetings, Management and Governing By-laws

Board of Directors

A 26-member board of directors oversees the policies, programs and budgets of the GRCA. Municipalities appoint the members of the board. Many appointees are also municipal councillors while some are citizen appointees. The board has adopted mission, vision and values statements. The GRCA Strategic Plan was approved in 2018.

Under the Clean Water Act, the members of the GRCA board also serve as members of the Grand River Source Protection Authority (GRSPA). GRSPA meetings are held when required to carry out duties associated with drinking water source protection. More information is available on the website of the Lake Erie Source Protection Region.

Agendas, reports, minutes and live-stream webcast

The live-stream meetings, board agendas, reports and minutes are available on our board meeting webpage. The board meets monthly, usually on the fourth Friday of the month. 

Management

The operations of the GRCA are overseen by Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Samantha Lawson.

The CAO is supported by two division directors:

  • Karen Armstrong, Secretary-Treasurer and Deputy CAO
  • Lisa Keys, Director of Land Management

Department managers report to the directors.

The GRCA has about 140 full-time employees. Most of them work in the Administration Centre at 400 Clyde Rd., Cambridge. Others work at conservation areas and nature centres throughout the watershed.

Visit the Contact Us page for more information.
Municipal Agreements

Municipal Memorandums of Understanding will be linked here upon completion. Existing Memorandas are provided in our Inventory of Programs and Services.
Legislation, regulations and GRCA by-law

The GRCA is governed by the Conservation Authorities Act and provincial regulations:

On October 4, 2021 the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP) released the Phase 1 regulations to implement amendments to the Conservation Authorities Act made in 2019/2020. These regulations include:

  • Ontario Regulation 686/21: Mandatory Programs and Services
  • Ontario Regulation 687/21: Transition Plans and Agreements for Programs and Services
  • Ontario Regulation 688/21: Rules of Conduct in Conservation Areas (This regulation is not yet in force. It comes into force on the day subsection 27 (1) of Schedule 4 to the Building Better Communities and Conserving Watersheds Act, 2017 comes into force, and will replace Ontario Regulation 106 Conservation Areas at that time.)

You can find information and requirements related to our transtion plan on our Conservation Authorities Act – Regulation 687/21 page.

To implement recent amendments to the Conservation Authorities Act, the following regulations and a policy, as listed below, have been finalized under the Act:

  1. Ontario Regulation 402/22: Budget and Apportionment has come into force and will be implemented for our 2024 budget year, as per the regulation. 402/22 replaces Ontario Regulation 139/96: Municipal Levies, and Ontario Regulation 670/00: Conservation Authority Levies, which are revoked as of July 1, 2023.
  2. Ontario Regulation 401/22: Determination of Amounts Under Subsection 27.2 (2) of the Act
  3. Minister’s Fee Classes Policy. This policy is a published list of the classes of programs and services for which a CA may charge a fee
  4. Ontario Regulation 400/22: Information Requirements
  5. Ontario Regulation 399/22: Amendment to the Minister’s Transition Plans and Agreements for Programs and Services Under Section 21.1.2 of the Act (Ontario Regulation 687/21)
  6. Ontario Regulation 596/22: Prescribed Acts - Subsections 21.1.1(1.1) and 21.1.2(1.1)

On December 28, 2022, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry provided a letter (101KB PDF) outlining legislative and regulation changes affecting conservation authorities, and issued the Minister's direction (204KB PDF) regarding fee changes associated with planning, development and permitting fees. Our 2023 fee schedules are available under GRCA Fee Policy and Schedules.
Budget and Financial Statements

The GRCA budget is approved by the board at the Annual General Meeting, held the fourth Friday in February. Financial statements are reviewed every year by independent auditors.
Strategic Plan

Our Strategic Plan 2019-2021 serves as our guide to enhance and build on our programs and services.
GRCA Fee Policy and Schedules

In accordance with the Conservation Authorities Act section 21.2, the GRCA has developed a Fee Policy (237KB PDF) to be implemented January 1, 2023, which includes the following fee schedules for programs and services as approved by the Minister:
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