Online mapping provides information about our watershed, including Conservation Halton Parks and other properties, including the Niagara Escarpment and the Greenbelt, as well as our Approximate Regulation Limit mapping.
Over the past few years, Conservation Halton has embarked on a major review and update of our regulatory mapping (e.g., flood hazard mapping, wetland mapping, watercourse mapping, etc.). Updates to technical studies and modelling, using new tools and technologies, help us to better understand the nature and extent of existing hazards and/or wetlands. Mapping is a dynamic process. As mapping reviews and updates progress, refinements to the Approximate Regulation Limit mapping will be necessary, as additional hazard or regulated areas may be identified or removed.
Conservation Halton developed a protocol to establish at what point in the mapping update process will the draft data or mapping be considered “best available information” for understanding the extent of the hazard, assessing potential risk to life and property, identifying potential interference to a wetland, identifying areas requiring further analysis, making decisions when development is contemplated in hazardous or regulated areas and administering Ontario Regulation 162/06. The Mapping Implementation Protocol establishes the key stages in the mapping update and study process, what data will be used at each stage of the process, how the data will be presented in online mapping, when the data can be used for administering Ontario Regulation 162/06, and when public and stakeholder engagement will occur.
The Conservation Halton Board of Directors endorsed the Mapping Implementation Protocol Report for use on November 26, 2021.
The Floodplain Mapping program is responsible for updating and maintaining watershed floodplain mapping, which identifies flood risk and hazards. This information is used to develop approximate regulation limit mapping for purposes of review associated with Ontario Regulation 162/06, as well as used to support flood risk management decisions and communications
The first step to reducing the impact of flood damage within a community is to have mapping that helps us identify flood hazards, accurately. Conservation Halton is working with our partners to reduce flood risk in our communities by updating our floodplain maps, some of which are more than 20 years old. Updates to technical studies and modelling, using new tools and technologies, help us to better understand the extent of flood hazards. As mapping reviews and updates progress, refinements to Approximate Regulation Limit mapping will be necessary, as additional hazard or regulated areas may be identified and some may be removed.
How can you get involved?
Conservation Halton encourages the public to participate in flood hazard mapping studies. Public involvement provides greater certainty and transparency for the floodplain mapping program, and it benefits from receiving observations about the watershed from the people who experience these watershed conditions.
We host public engagement sessions on floodplain mapping studies to notify the public and stakeholders that a study is occurring in their area and to share information on the study process and draft mapping updates for review and input. Floodplain mapping study notifications and updates on public engagement are published in community newspapers and posted on the Conservation Halton website and social media. You can also request to be added to the email contact list for the study to receive direct notifications.
Recent Mapping Studies:
Wetlands are the most biologically diverse kind of ecosystem, as they support both aquatic and terrestrial plant and wildlife species. These ecosystems provide a range of benefits, such as flood management, water quality improvement, groundwater replenishment and climate resilience, as well as recreation and economic opportunities, such as for timber, hunting and fishing.
Conservation Halton uses wetland mapping to identify potential wetlands and to determine if a property may be regulated by us. We regulate all watercourses, valleylands, wetlands, Lake Ontario and Burlington Bay shoreline, and hazardous lands, as well as lands adjacent to these features. Up-to-date mapping supports the delivery of our regulatory and planning programs and helps ensure wetlands are protected.
A report on Conservation Halton’s Wetland Mapping Review and Update project was brought to the Conservation Halton Board of Directors on June 23, 2022. The associated public engagement period began July 13, 2022, continuing until the end of 2022. Conservation Halton staff held engagement sessions, discussions with individuals and stakeholders, and undertook site visits to confirm and delineate wetlands on individual properties.
Staff were on track to bring the mapping to the Conservation Halton Board for approval in Q1 of 2023; however, in late Fall 2023, the Province introduced Bill 23 and other proposals that could impact how Conservation Authorities regulate and map wetlands in the future (e.g., proposed changes regulations under Section 28 of the CA Act; changes to the Ontario Wetland Evaluation System, etc.). Conservation Halton’s Wetland Mapping Review and Update project is on hold. Staff updated the Board on the status of the project on February 16, 2023.
The following next steps will be taken for this project:
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- Staff continue to review and make edits to the mapping, where necessary.
- Where requested, staff will complete site visits to ground truth the mapping.
- Final draft mapping will be taken to the Board of Directors for approval once the Province releases new Section 28 regulations and/or wetland mapping guidance for Conservation Authorities.
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If you would like to visit our draft mapping, visit our online mapping:
If you have any questions about this project, please contact:
Lesley Matich
Manager, Planning Ecology
Office 905.336.1158 (ext. 2323)
wetlandmapping@hrca.on.ca
Note: Conservation Halton staff will review and update the mapping on a site-by-site basis, where necessary, and after the mapping is approved by the Board of Directors.
Updates to technical studies and new flood hazard modelling can help us better understand the nature and extent of existing flood hazards. These updates can also result in changes to hazard and conservation authority regulation mapping.
The City of Burlington recently completed a Phase 2 Flood Hazard and Scoped Stormwater Management Assessment for downtown Burlington and the Burlington GO Major Transit Station Area (MTSA). The Phase 2 study is considered the best available information for decision making when development is contemplated in hazard lands.
Conservation Halton’s approximate regulation limit mapping will be updated to reflect the Phase 2 study findings in Fall 2023.
Under Ontario Regulation 162/06, Conservation Halton regulates all watercourses, valleylands, wetlands, Lake Ontario and Burlington Bay shoreline and hazardous lands, as well as lands adjacent to these features. Permission is required from Conservation Halton to undertake development within these areas.
| For more information about Conservation Halton’s regulated areas and your property, please contact:
Email: floodplainmapping@hrca.on.ca Phone: 905-336-1158 ext. 2296 |
For more information about the Phase 2 Study, please visit:
http://getinvolvedburlington.ca/mtsa Email: mtsa@burlington.ca | Phone: 905-335-7600 ext. 7426 |
Conservation Halton has updated flood hazard mapping for Tuck, Shoreacres, Appleby, and Sheldon Creeks in your community.
Flood hazard mapping is an important tool that supports Conservation Halton’s regulatory, planning and flood forecasting and warning programs, as well as municipal emergency management, flood mitigation, and infrastructure design. Advances in technology allow us to understand flood risks and develop better flood hazard mapping.
Flood hazards include floodplains and spills. A floodplain is an area of land that is flooded with water by a nearby creek or lake during large storms. Spills occur when flood waters leave the valley and floodplain and “spill” into surrounding lands, rejoining the watercourse at a distance downstream or moving into another watershed.
One of Conservation Halton’s top priorities is to protect life and property from natural hazards and updating hazard mapping is one of the ways we do that.
In 2021, Conservation Halton retained the engineering consulting firm WSP, to update the flood hazard modelling and mapping for Tuck, Shoreacres, Appleby and Sheldon Creeks which cross through parts of east Burlington and southwest Oakville (referred to as ‘East Burlington Creeks Flood Hazard Mapping Study’). Updated mapping and modelling provides Conservation Halton, municipalities, the public, and stakeholders with a current understanding of the magnitude and extent of riverine flood hazards in this area. The study also provides background information and technical details about how the riverine flood hazard modelling and mapping was updated.
As part of this study, Conservation Halton hosted two public engagement sessions. The first engagement session occurred in October 2021 to provide notification of study commencement. This engagement session also provided an opportunity for property owners, residents and other stakeholders to ask questions and share feedback. Draft final mapping was shared during the second virtual engagement session held on June 6, 2023.
Presentation material from the final public engagement session is available here: East Burlington Creeks Food Hazard Mapping – Final Consultation.
If you have any questions, comments or concerns, please email floodplainmapping@hrca.on.ca.
Conservation Halton has retained consulting and engineering company, Greck and Associates, to update flood hazard mapping and modelling for the West Branch of Sixteen Mile Creek in the Town of Milton. Advances in technology allows us to better understand flood hazards and to develop more accurate floodplain mapping. One of Conservation Halton’s top priorities is to protect life and property from natural hazards and updating flood hazard mapping is one of the ways we do that. An important part of the process of updating flood hazard mapping is to inform and engage with residents and other stakeholders in the study area.
Flood hazard mapping is used by Conservation Halton and municipal partners to identify areas that may be susceptible to riverine or shoreline flooding, and to inform flood forecasting, emergency response, community planning, infrastructure upgrades and other flood prevention efforts. Flood hazards include floodplains and spills. A floodplain is an area of land that is flooded by a nearby creek or lake during large storms. Spills occur when flood waters leave the valley and floodplain and “spill” into surrounding lands, rejoining the watercourse at a distance downstream or moving into another watershed.
As part of this study, Conservation Halton hosted three public engagement sessions. The first engagement session occurred in October 2019 to announce the study. A second engagement session in March 2020 presented high-level draft results. The final engagement session in February 2023 shared the detailed draft final mapping. Presentation material from the final public engagement session is available here: Urban Milton Flood Hazard Mapping—Final Consultation.
If you have any questions, comments or concerns, please email floodplainmapping@hrca.on.ca.