In conversation with Brian Denny - the road ahead

NRU
Aug. 22, 2017
By Sarah Niedoba

While municipalities across Ontario struggle to deal with the effects of climate change, the work of conservation authorities has taken on a greater degree of importance-and in ways not always anticipated.

"I think that anyone who knows anything about climate change knows that we're still moving in the wrong direction at an alarming rate," Toronto and Region Conservation Authority CEO Brian Denney told NRU. "Any small victories we've made are only that, and are nowhere near at the scale we need to be in order to ensure that we have a sustainable urban region in the future."

He explains that what the people that put together the Conservation Authorities Act back in the 1940s were really talking about was regional sustainability, and the scope of activity intended under the rubric of water resource management was very broad. And, this continues to be the case today.

"While there was a time when people were more familiar with conservation authorities for their work in flood and erosion control, in the TRCA's case we have some good examples of what conservation authority work needs to look like in the future when it comes to climate change," Denney told NRU.

Denney, who will be retiring as CEO come fall, has seen the role of the TRCA change over the course of his 34 years with the organization. He says programs like Partners in Project Green—which encourages businesses within the industrial area surrounding Toronto Pearson International Airport to collaborate on environmental initiatives-are the type of work conservation authorities need to prioritize moving forward.

"That whole eco-industrial park notion of conservation, which deals with things such as water management, urban forestry, energy efficiency, transportation efficiency, electrification of the transportation grid, all within a specific context or geography, is, I think, the future of what conservation looks like," he says.

As another practical example, he points to the TCRA's Sustainable Neighborhood Action Plans, which focus on finding ways to make existing neighbourhoods more sustainable.

"I think those are templates that need to thrive if we're going to be successful in addressing climate change," he says. "A big part of the challenge is looking at how we can retrofit communities, neighborhood by neighborhood, going forward. I think conservation authorities have a role in that."

Denney says that, while he is confident that TCRA has a solid foundation in good water management practices, the uncertainty of the scale of climate change poses a challenge.

"I think the fact that we don't really know how bad it might get is the biggest single thing that keeps us up at night," he says.

One unknown variable is population growth-Denney is worried that climate change could bring large groups of climate refugees to the region, numbers not reflected in traditional population forecasts and long-range plans. He's also concerned that, as urban density increases, greenspaces may deteriorate with high concentrations of people using them.

"How can we provide enough high quality greenspace to accommodate the number of people that are going to want to use them, particularly in areas that are already heavily urbanized?" he asks. It's a particularly challenging question, given that TRCA's land acquisition program is "largely stalled," according to Denney.

"We opened our last new conservation area in 1975, with Petticoat Creek," he says. "We have not opened a new conservation area since then, as we have not acquired a land base that would support that [scale] of greenspace since then."

While TRCA has been adding greenspace to Ontario's natural heritage system for years through a combination of provincial and federal funding, the process has slowed in recent times.

"The last round of funding was really associated with a provincial grant in support of the Oak Ridges Moraine [Conservation] Plan. With the end of that program we're pretty much stalled right now for land acquisition," he says.

Denney says that, despite these challenges, he's confident in the resourcefulness and the ingenuity of TRCA staff to find innovative solutions to the difficult questions that lie ahead.

"We've got a great legacy here-we've got lots of challenges that face us, but I think we're in really good shape to continue to progress and be a valuable part of the public sector infrastructure system that's creating, and protecting, one of the best urban regions in the world," he says.

Denney steps down as CEO in September, when newly appointed CEO John Mackenzie takes up the reins.