By: Sylene Argent, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Source: Essex Free Press

The Ontario Government has introduced a new piece of legislation, which has already received two readings and is headed to the committee stage for further analysis. If passed, it would put restrictions on foreign ownership of farmland.

Essex MPP Anthony Leardi (PC) noted the legislation – Bill 109: Protecting Ontario’s Food Independence Act – is not an absolute prohibition, but puts restrictions on foreign ownership.

Chatham-Kent-Leamington MPP Trevor Jones, who is also the Minister of Agriculture, Food, and Agribusiness, sponsored Bill 109.

“It is going to be a piece of legislation that allows the government to set up regulations and the restrictions will be in the regulations,” Leardi explained.

Information the Province posted about the Bill on Newsroom Ontario noted “the proposed changes, if passed, will deliver on the government’s plan to protect Ontario by strengthening domestic food production and further protecting farmers and the quality of Ontario’s food system.

“Alongside these changes, the Province is also taking next steps to update its Grow Ontario Strategy to build a more competitive, resilient, and self-reliant agri-food sector in the face of U.S. tariffs and economic uncertainty.”

It adds that if passed, the Bill and its related measures would protect local ownership of provincial agriculture by creating restrictions on foreign acquisition of Ontario farmland to prioritize Ontario farmers’ access to Ontario farmland. It would also expand agricultural production in northern Ontario by making it easier for Ontario farmers to lease or access arable land on the Clay Belt, continue the work on modernizing the practice of veterinary medicine in Ontario and implement a number of measures to modernize, streamline, and improve regulations for the agri-food sector, and reduce red tape for industry partners.

“We never, ever want to be in the position of relying on any other country for food,” Leardi said. “In fact, Canada is one of only approximately 10 net food exporters in the world.”

That means, Leardi said, there are really only around 10 countries in the world that can feed themselves and also feed other countries. The others rely on importing food from other countries, importing more than they export.

“We never want to lose that position,” Leardi added.

There are over 100 farms in the local area that are over 100-years-old, Leardi said. “That’s a great legacy. We don’t want to lose that legacy. We want to protect that legacy.”

Leardi is continuing to voice concerns about flooding locally.

He said Harrow has had three floods in four-years.

“This is not about climate change. This is not about geography. This is not about extraneous forces. This is about lack of infrastructure,” Leardi stated.

He does not believe the Town of Essex needs a committee to discuss flooding and mitigation options, like Essex Mayor Sherry Bondy has suggested.

At the April 20 Essex Council meeting, she presented the Notice of Motion that could establish a Flooding Task Force. On May 4, Essex Council deferred the motion to the May 19 regular meeting, after administration presented the alternative of a Flood Advisory Committee comprised of members of Council to work directly alongside the Servicing Master Plan being created. At the May 19 meeting, she deferred her own motion, wanting it to be discussed at a roundtable meeting with delegates to discuss both options.

Bondy wants the committee to investigate the underlying causes of recurring flooding within the municipality; review existing stormwater systems, drainage infrastructure, and flood mitigation measures; engage with relevant experts, consult with residents and affected stakeholders; identify immediate, medium-term, and long-term mitigation strategies; and provide recommendations to Council, including cost-estimates and potential funding opportunities.

The Task Force would report back to Council with findings and actionable recommendations.

Forming a committee, Leardi said, “is a useless waste of time.

“We need Essex Council to make this their number one concern. And part of this can be solved by building the Colchester Treatment Plant,” Leardi said.

Essex Free Press files notes in April of 2024, Council voted to apply for the Province’s Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund (HEWSF), and appointed Stantec Consulting Ltd. to provide engineering design services in the amount of around $2.4M to complete a detailed design of the treatment plant.

It is around 90% complete currently.

Previously, it was noted the total cost estimate for the phase one upgrades for the Colchester Water Pollution Control Plant was estimated at $42.8M. If the Town wanted to look at completing the project around 2031 or later, the municipal contribution would be around $63M, as it would have to fund the entirety of the project, with around $20M in interest.

Later in 2024, Council learned it was not successful in earning funding for the Colchester Water Pollution Control Plant through HEWSF. Essex Council decided not to apply for the second-round of applications.

“They have to rethink that,” Leardi said, noting six out of seven Essex County municipalities received funding from the Provincial Government when they applied for the grant. “Essex didn’t get money because it didn’t apply.”

At the present time, there is no grant application open, “so, they missed their window.”

He said the Town of Essex already has plans for the Colchester Water Treatment Plant, and that is going to help alleviate some of the flooding. A committee is not needed.

“It will happen again,” Leardi predicted of flooding.

Mayor Sherry Bondy responded the Town did have a delegation recently at the Rural Ontario Municipal Association (ROMA) Conference, where the Province was approached about flooding initiatives for existing homes.

“That is the main concern. Sure, the Province has programs out there, but they are more growth-related. Right now, our existing residents want financial support for what is happening here.”

She spoke of how Essex has urban and rural areas. Rural residents are all under the Drainage Act. Because of that, the Town hosted a Drainage Open House at the end of November in Harrow to educate members of the public on how municipal drainage works, and how it can be utilized to improve drainage in residential neighbourhoods.

At that meeting, it was explained the Drainage Act is a provincial regulation that is a paid-by-benefit system. That means it is not included with municipal taxes and is instead assessed to the benefitting property owners. Because of that, residents can sometimes be surprised when they receive a drainage bill.

“We are looking to inform residents of what we are doing in terms of rural areas,” Bondy said. She said the Town has also had a report on every single rural drain to see where they are.

“There is a lot of work being put together,” Bondy added, noting there are a couple of drainage reports on each agenda.

Back in February, Council for the Town of Essex approved sending $499K, not including HST, to retain Stantec Consulting Ltd. to conduct a town-wide Servicing Master Plan for providing water, wastewater, and stormwater services to residents and businesses.

The Master Servicing Plan will provide a comprehensive, system-wide technical assessment of the existing capacity, future demand, and performance under growth and climate stress scenarios, Kevin Girard, Director of Infrastructure Services, explained previously.

The idea of a Flooding Task Force was to have members summarize that work to the public, “because members of the public are still questioning what we are doing, even though we are doing lots of things.”

The committee would also allow members of the public to get involved and be part of the information dissemination and work on the matter together.

The Town does want sewage treatment plants, Bondy added.

“They are the ideal infrastructure for sanitary waste. At the same time, we have to make sure we are not taking on too much debt without getting the properties built. We know there are some developments coming to Colchester, but at this point we are not convinced as a Council to increase our debt millions and millions of dollars for a few more residents.”

Council is – and will continue to look – as to where they want more homes. That will likely be in Harrow and Essex Centre.

“We have to think about it, is it really fiscally responsible to build something where there are not a lot of people paying for the system,” Bondy added.

It was noted there is sufficient capacity at the current Colchester plant for all the developments in the queue, as well.