HomeMy WebLinkAboutCL 03-04
REPORT TO
COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE
32
Report Number: Cl 03-04
Date: January 2,2004
From:
Bruce Taylor, AMCT, CMM
City Clerk
Subject:
Appointment to Rouge Watershed Plan Task Force
Recommendation:
1.
That Clerk's Report Cl 03-04 regarding the appointment of a Member of Council
and an alternate to the Rouge Watershed Plan Task Force be received.
2.
That Councillor
Task Force and that
be appointed to the Rouge Watershed Plan
be appointed as the alternate.
Executive Summary:
Not applicable
Financial Implications:
Not applicable
Background:
Please find attached to this Report correspondence jointly signed by the CAO of the
TRCA and the General Manager of the Rouge Park Alliance regarding the
establishment of a Task Force to oversee the preparation and implementation of a
Watershed Plan for the Rouge River.
The TRCA and the Rouge Park Alliance will be preparing a strategic plan for the Rouge
River Watershed. It will be the mandate of the Task Force to focus on developing a
watershed management plan and ensuring the interests of all watershed stakeholders
are considered.
The Terms of Reference for the Rouge Watershed Task Force are attached for
information.
The TRCA and the Rouge Park Alliance are requesting that one Member of Council and
an alternate be appointed to the Task Force for a period to expire on December 30,
2005.
33 Report CL 03-04
Subject: Appointment to the Rouge Watershed Task Force
January 2, 2004
Page 2
Attachments:
1.
2.
Letter from TRCA and Rouge Park Alliance dated December 22, 2003
Terms of Reference of Rouge Watershed Task Force
Prepared By:
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Bfuce Taylor
City Clerk
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Attachments
Copy: Division Head, Corporate Projects & Policy
Recommended for the consideration of
Pickering City Council
CORPO227-07/01
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Rouge Park
Wild in the City!
50 Bloomington Road West
Aurora,Ontario
L4G 3G8
Phone 905.713.7426
Fax 905.713.6028
rougepark@rougepark.com
www.rougepark.com
ATTACH M ENT # í. TO REPORT #...!:!:.. ó s - oV
~70RONTO AND REGfONt;V-
Ø'\-onserva Ion
for The Living City
5 Shoreham Drive, Downsview, Ontario M3N 184
Phone 416.661.6600 Fax 416.661.6898
www.trca.on.ca
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Strategic Plan for the. Rouge Watershed
34
December 22, 2003
Mr. Bruce J. Taylor
City Clerk
City of Pickering
One The Esplanade
Pickering, ON L 1V 6K7
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CITY OF PICKERING
PICKERING, ONTARIO
Dear Mr. Taylor:
The Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) and the Rouge Park Alliance are establishing a
Task Force to oversee the preparation and implementation of a Watershed Plan for the Rouge River.
Members of this Task Force will include municipal and government politicians and staff, community
groups, business and industry, and watershed residents. The Plan will recommend effective management
strategies that will, in concert with existing Rouge Park management plans, guide land use and resource
use decisions throughout the watershed. The mandate does not include formal commenting on ongoing
activities and development proposals.
We request that the City of Pickering provide one Task Force member from your Council, and an alternate.
The term would extend from February 2004 to December 30, 2005. Meetings will be held every four to
six weeks within the watershed at a mutually agreed time. Members unable to attend three consecutive
meetings will be replaced.
Attached are initial Terms of Reference for this study that have been approved by the TRCAand the Rouge
Park Alliance.
We look forward to your participation in this vital initiative. Please feel free to contact Patricia Mohr,
Project Manager, at (416) 661-6600, extension 5624, if you require additional information.
Sincerely,
Brian Denney
Chief Administrative Officer/Secretary Treasurer
Toronto and Region Conservation Authority
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Lewis Yeager
General Manager
Rouge Park
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35
Attachment 1
THE ROUGE WATERSHED TASK FORCE
TERMS OF REFERENCE
Draft - October 24, 2003
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36
THE ROUGE WATERSHED TASK FORCE
TERMS OF REFERENCE
1.0
GOAL
The goal of the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) and the Rouge Park
Alliance in establishing the Rouge Watershed Task Force is to provide a venue for all
stakeholder groups to work together in directing and having input to the development of a
strategic plan for the Rouge River Watershed. Task Force members will be sought from
municipal and agency politicians and staff; community groups; business and industry; watershed
residents; and the general public.
Development of the Rouge Watershed Plan will raise awareness of watershed issues and
detennine an effective, proactive strategy for managing the watershed. It will also promote
stewardship activities by bringing together communities and their watersheds. Through
participation in the development of this plan, all watershed stakeholders should share a sense of
responsibility for its implementation.
Figure 1 outlines the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority's Watershed Planning Process
and the roles served by a watershed task force.
2.0
T ASK FORCE MANDATE
The mandate of the Task Force is to focus on developing a watershed management plan and
ensuring the interests of all watershed stakeholders are considered. The goal of the plan is to
recommend effective management strategies that will guide land use and resource use decisions,
such that the overall health of the Rouge Watershed is protected and enhanced. A draft workplan
(October, 2003) outlines a proposed scope of work for this initiative. The Task Force mandate
does not include formal commenting on ongoing activities and development proposals in the
watersheds.
To develop the watershed plan, the Task Force will:
set watershed management goals, objectives, and targets
define issues and management approaches for analysis
evaluate alternative management approaches
recommend effective management approaches and set priorities for protection,
enhancement, and regeneration
review and comment on draft Task Force documents (e.g. State of the Watershed Report
including a baseline Report Card on watershed health, technical analysis summaries,
watershed plan, implementation plan and model policy)
participate on subcommittees, or working groups, of the Task Force to discuss specific
issues in more detail
follow the Authority's Policies and Procedures with respect to purchasing
provide a draft watershed plan to the Authority by June 30, 2005.
To ensure the interests of all stakeholders are considered and to foster the plan's implementation,
Task Force members will, throughout the process:
keep members of the broader group that he/she represents (e.g. municipal council,
industry, environmental group, etc.) informed of the study progress and solicit input from
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the broader group
in addition to representing their own constituency, the individual Task Force member
must be committed to achieving a consensus in the development of a management plan
that is in the best interests of the overall watershed
attend community group/service club meetings with TRCA and Rouge Park staff and
make presentations on behalf of the Task Force
attend community open houses and focus group meetings to assist in consulting and
involving individuals, technical experts, interest groups, business and industry.
Figure 1 - TRCA's Watershed Planning Process
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for The Living City
- Establ ish Implementation
T ask Force.
-SecUré',fRêsöUrces
-DevéIJ>peártnerships
- F oster~Ctiori
-Monitoring
WA TERSHED
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-Data collection and analysis
-Constituency building
PLANNING PROCESS
-Constituency building
-Broad corrnrnjhity anq , ,
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-Establish Planning
Task Force
-Issue assessment
-Visioning.
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3.0
TASK FORCE MEMBERSHIP
3.1
Membership and Term
Members of the Task Force will be appointed by the Authority for a term beginning in
February, 2004 and ending December 30, 2005. With the exception of the watershed
residents, each of the following stakeholder groups will be invited to identify one
representative and one alternate to fonn the Task Force membership:
Municipal government
One elected representative and one alternate (elected or senior
staff) from each of the four local and three regional
municipalities within the watershed, including:
Industry
17. Urban Development Institue (UD!)
18. Agricultural sector
19. Golf Courses
20. Greater Toronto Airports Authority
21. Aggregate industry
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Town of Markham
Town ofWhitchurch-Stouffville
Town of Richmond Hill
City of Pickering
City of Toronto
York Region
Durham Region
Federal and Provincial Government
22. Transport Canada
23. Environment Canada
24. Dept. of Fisheries and Oceans
25. MNR
26. MOE
27. MMAH
28. OMAF
29. MTO
Other government
8. Aboriginal community
9. Toronto Zoo
10. Rouge Park Alliance
11. TRCA
Watershed residents
30. _from Toronto
31. from Markham
32. _from Richmond Hill
33. _from Whitchurch-Stouffville
34. _from Pickering
Environmental Groups
12. Save the Rouge Valley System
13. Friends of the Rouge
14. Richmond Hill Naturalists
15. Rouge Valley Foundation
16. Milne Park Conservation Assoc.
Task Force meetings will be held approximately every 4-6 weeks, at a mutually agreed
upon time, and will be held at locations within the watershed.
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3.2
Selection, Appointment, and Replacement Process
Except for the citizen members, a letter will be sent to each of the stakeholder groups
requesting the appointment ofa Task Force representative. Citizen members will be
selected through an application and interview process. Advertisements for citizen
applicants will be posted in local newspapers and distributed at the November
Community Open House meetings. A selection committee, consisting of the Rouge Park
Alliance Chair, Rouge Park General Manager, a TRC.'\. Board Member, and a TRCA
staff person will review the applications and conduct interviews. Selection criteria will
include consideration for: residency within the Rouge watershed, demonstrated interest
in watershed management, and previous volunteer experience, with an attempt to ensure
geographic representation from throughout the watershed study area from among the
citizen members.
Resignations may be filled by the Authority and Rouge Park on the recommendation of
the selection committee, described above, and the Task Force.
Task Force members or their alternates are required to attend all Task Force meetings on
a regular basis. Members unable to fulfill this commitment will be replaced after
missing three consecutive meetings to ensure broad and effective representation on
watershed issues.
4.0
TASK FORCE REPORTING RELATIONSHIP
The Task Force will report to the Rouge Park Alliance and ultimately to the TRCA' s Full
Authority through the Watershed Management Advisory Board, according to the reporting
relationship shown in Figure 2. It is the intent of the TRCA and the Rouge Park Alliance that a
consensus position be developed to the extent possible among all stakeholders on all decisions,
before a report is taken to the Full Authority. The Task Force will report at least semi-annually
on its progress.
Municipal Task Force members are responsible for taking reports ofthe Rouge Watershed Task
Force back to their respective municipal councils. Likewise, provincial and federal government
members are responsible for taking reports to senior Ministry officials. Authority staff will assist
in providing information for reports. Municipal, provincial and federal staff will be invited to
attend all meetings, and may effectively participate on working group committees.
The Task Force may establish sub-committees, or "working groups", as issues dictate to allow
for more in-depth discussion than time would allow at Task Force meetings and to engage
additional expertise. The Chair of each working group will be a Task Force member.
At such time as provincial source protection planning legislation is introduced, the Task Force's
reporting relationship with any designated source protection planning committee will be clarified
and amended, as necessary.
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5.0
RULES OF CONDUCT
The Task Force will follow the Rules of Conduct of the Authority (The Metropolitan Toronto
and Region Conservation Authority), as adopted by Resolution #3 of the Authority Meeting
#2/86, or as may be amended. A quorum will consist of a majority of the members of the Task
Force. Under the Authority's Rules of Conduct, final decisions are made by vote. Only Task
Force members or alternates can vote. It is the intent that adequate time wìll be provided for a
thorough discussion of issues and development of a consensus position, to the extent possible,
before any vote is called. Depending on the subject at hand, the services of a professional
facilitator may be contracted to assist in meetings and workshops.
A Chair and Vice Chair of the Task Force will be nominated from among the Task Force
membership, and will be elected by the Task Force at their second meeting. The TRCA Chair
wìll chair the first two Task Force meetings, until a Task Force Chair is elected. All subsequent
meetings will be chaired by the Task Force Chair or Vice Chair. All meeting agendas will be set
by TRCA and Rouge Park staff, with input and approval of the Task Force Chair. The Chair and
Vice Chair will be ex-officio members of all working groups.
Municipal Task Force members are responsible for keeping their alternate municipal
representatives informed of Task Force business, and for ensuring the alternate attends meetings
in the Task Force member's absence.
Task Force meetings are open to the public. Members of the public may make deputations to the
Task Force, but only based upon a prior written request that is approved by the Chair.
Figure 2
Rouge Watershed Task Force Reporting Structure
TORONTO AND REGION CONSERVATION
AUTHORITY BOARD
WATERSHED MANAGEMENT
ADVISORY BOARD
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6.0
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RESOURCES AVAILABLE TO THE TASKFORCE
The Task Force are charged with creating a Watershed Plan by June of 2005. In order to assist in
meeting this deadline, the following resources are available.
6.1
6.2
6.3
Project Management Team and Support Staff
A Project Management Team consisting of a TRCA senior staff person, a project
manager, and the Rouge Park General Manager will meet regularly, in consultation with
the Task Force Chair, to ensure the planning process is fulfilling the agreed-upon
objectives.
Administrative assistance and communications expertise will be available to assist in
Task Force meeting arrangements, record keeping, and consultation.
Technical Study Coordination
TRCA staff will be responsible for coordination of the integrated watershed planning
process and supporting technical studies, under the direction of the Task Force.
Individual technical studies will be either be conducted by in-house staff at the TRCA,
partner municipalities, or consultants.
Funding
A number of funding sources have been pursued. The primary funding requests for plan
development have been made by the Authority to their regional municipal members,
namely York Region and the City of Toronto.
Funding needs are also being discussed with local municipal governments as well as
provincial and federal agencies. These funds would be used to undertake project specific
work, and may be pursued to initiate priority projects that are identified as the plan is
developed.