Heather Wright/The Independent

A Plympton-Wyoming councillor says Lambton will have even less representation on the new regional conservation authorities than first thought.

The province announced it would merge 36 local conservation authorities, including the St. Clair Region here, into seven. By May, the province changed that to nine and ordered local authorities to prepare a budget for 2027 immediately.

St. Clair passed its budget with a three per cent increase, taking about $33,000 from reserves to keep the tax rate low.

The province has now posted its plan on the Environmental Registry of Ontario and Plympton-Wyoming Councillor
Kristen Rodrigues is worried Lambton – which has important conservations lands but a smaller population – won’t have
as much representation as cities.

She expects Lambton will have just two seats at the regional board where now every municipality in Lambton has a say.

And Rodrigues is concerned about the added layers of bureaucracy in the new model. “It’s going to cost more money,
there’s no doubt about it.”

Rodrigues says residents can have their say about the new regional boards on the Environmental Registry of Ontario until Sept. 12.