The general manager of the Essex Region Conservation Authority has questions after learning the province will cut funding for flood management in half.
The Ford government is looking for ways to eliminate Ontario's $11.7 billion deficit, and funding for flood management is another casualty of that effort.
Previously, conservation authorities across Ontario received $7.4 million, and ERCA got about $202,000 of that. Now, it can expect to run the program with just $104,000 from the provincial government.
General Manager Richard Wyma said conservation authorities also have not had an increase in funding for flood management since the mid-1990s.
"The funding program that supports our flood program is very, very lean to begin with, and it's underserviced, to begin with when you look at the scope of work that we do through that program," he said.
Heavy rain in Windsor creates flooding on Walker Rd. in the Walkerville area on August 24, 2016. (Photo by Ricardo Veneza)
Much of the local flood management plan addresses flood prevention by advising municipalities about development in flood-prone areas, creating wetlands, monitoring current conditions, and helping homeowners avoid flooding. Not providing services is not an option, but how to move forward is something Wyma needs to examine.
"We can't sort of look at taking half measures when it comes to flooding and erosion," he stated. "It's one of those things that we can't scale back. We can't look at it a little differently. We have to look internally at other programs or other funding or reserves."
Related story: 2017 Flood Largest In Windsor History
The municipal levy also supplies funding for flood management, but the City of Windsor and towns in Essex County have already set their budgets for this year. Wyma will not say ERCA will look for an increase in that levy, but he is not ruling it out either.
"It's hard to say right now," he said. "I think we'd take a look at what all the other budget requirements are that we have as a conservation authority. We know municipalities are also being affected by changes in their budgets."
According to Insurance Business Magazine, insurers paid $300 million in claims after flooding in 2016 and 2017 in Windsor and Essex County. The Ontario Disaster Recovery Fund paid out $1.4 million in flooding claims after the flood of 2017.
The Ontario government's Made in Ontario Environment Plan speaks to how urban development is impacting waterways, and how climate change has already caused property damage.