Ramsar plan hits stumbling block
Niagara Parks slammed for lack of support for ‘symbolic’ designation
After finally making progress toward a years’ long effort to get the Canadian side of the Niagara River designated under the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, proponents are facing new stumbling blocks.
They fear the recent opposition has more to do with politics than concerns about any impact the “symbolic” designation could have on future development or agriculture, said Jocelyn Baker, co-chair of the Niagara River Ramsar steering committee.
Members the Niagara Region’s planning a development services committee voted to put their support behind the initiative on Sept. 9 — but Niagara Parks Commission board members met a day later and voted against acting as the lead nominator for the designation, and to step down from participating in the steering committee.
Meanwhile, Niagara Region councillors voted last week to defer a decision on the planning committee’s support for initiative, pending an external legal review of the initiative.
The setback was a disappointment for Baker and members of the steering committee who have been working toward obtaining the designation for about seven years.
“It’s unfortunate that these types of things can become so small-p politicized,” said steering committee member Patrick Robson. “I appreciate the Region taking a pause. They haven’t said no. So, we’ll see where that goes, and hopefully level heads prevail.”
Baker said she believes the recent opposition was influenced by “some of the bad information still leaving a lasting impact unfortunately,” after the proposal was shot down by Niagara-on-the-lake town council five years ago.
“That’s been difficult to recover from,” she said. “It’s really unfortunate when the agricultural community was given inaccurate information.”
Baker has repeatedly said the designation will have no impact on agriculture or access to river water for irrigation.
Baker said the use of the term wetlands in the Ramsar literature has also caused confusion, despite her efforts to clarify that the term refers to “a water-based ecosystem” rather than “wetlands as we know them in southern Ontario to be a regulated feature.”
“But people are going to hear what they want to hear and what aligns with their agendas,” she said.
Baker said the designation will also not have a bearing on developments in the area, including a marina being proposed on the river in Fort Erie and the Paradise project, commonly known as Thundering Waters, in Niagara Falls.
“Despite the fact that we provided assurances from the federal government, the very people in charge of delivering Ramsar in Canada, there are a small minority unfortunately that are controlling the debate that we’ve seen in the last couple of weeks, still spreading misinformation, fears and lies. What more can I say?” she said. “There are a group of people, politicians who are locked into their position and we’ll never change them.”
Niagara Parks Commission chief executive officer David Adames said he can’t comment on any political influences board members may have had when making their decision.
However, he said his staff recommended against supporting the designation based on a legal review of the Ramsar proposal and concerns it could conflict with the organization’s mandate.
“The legal review provided a few cautions,” Adames said, referring to perceived conflicts between the Niagara Parks Act and any responsibilities the commission may have while acting as lead nominator for the Ramsar designation.