Conservation Halton, also known as the Halton Region Conservation Authority, is a conservation authority established under the Conservation Authorities Act of Ontario. It forms a partnership with the Province of

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, the

Ministry of Natural Resources Ministry of Natural Resources may refer to: * Minister of Natural Resources (Canada) * Ministry of Natural Resources (China) * Ministry of Natural Resources (Ontario) * Ministry of Natural Resources (Somalia) * Ministry of Natural Resources and En ...

and the regional municipalities of Halton,

Peel Peel or Peeling may refer to: Places Australia * Peel (Western Australia) * Peel, New South Wales * Peel River (New South Wales) Canada * Peel Parish, New Brunswick * Peel, New Brunswick, an unincorporated community in Peel Parish * Pee ...

, The County of Wellington, and surrounding municipalities. Conservation Halton serves the communities in which it resides in various functions. It provides environmental protection to the large local

forest A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense ecological community, community of trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, ...

resource and assists in maintaining and improving the health of the watershed's natural environment. This includes the watershed's most significant natural feature, the Niagara Escarpment. Conservation Halton also manages

water Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known liv ...

resources; ensuring the surrounding communities receive clean water and protecting them from

flood A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant con ...

ing. Conservation Halton employs 339 staff (2003) including full-time, part-time and seasonal employees. Its administration office is located in Lowville, a rural village in

Burlington, Ontario Burlington, officially the City of Burlington, is a city and List of municipalities in Ontario#Lower-tier municipalities, lower-tier municipality in Regional Municipality of Halton, Halton Region at the west end of Lake Ontario in Ontario, Can ...

. In 2004 Conservation Halton was featured as one of

Canada's Top 100 Employers Canada's Top 100 Employers is an annual editorial competition that recognizes the best places in Canada to work. First held in 1999, the project aims to single out the employers that lead their industries in offering exceptional working condition ...

Maclean's ''Maclean's'' is a Canadian magazine founded in 1905 which reports on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, trends and current events. Its founder, publisher John Bayne Maclean, established the magazine to provide a uniquely Canadian ...

magazine for their progressive human resources policies and perks, including free access to local parks for employees and their families.

History

Conservation Halton was formed in 1956 as the Sixteen Mile Conservation Authority followed by the formation of the Twelve Mile Conservation Authority in 1957. In 1963 these conservation authorities amalgamated to form the Halton Region Conservation Authority which later became known as Conservation Halton. It was created based on the watershed of the two creek systems, by representatives from the municipalities of

Mississauga Mississauga is a Canadian city in the province of Ontario. Situated on the north-western shore of Lake Ontario in the Regional Municipality of Peel, it borders Toronto (Etobicoke) to the east, Brampton to the north, Milton to the northwest, ...

Flamborough Flamborough is a village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately north-east of Bridlington town centre on the prominent coastal feature of Flamborough Head. The most prominent man-made feature o ...

(now part of the City of Hamilton, Oakville, Trafalgar Township (now part of Oakville), Burlington, Nelson Township (now part of Burlington), Milton, and Esquesing Township (now

Halton Hills Halton Hills is a town in the Regional Municipality of Halton, located in the northwestern end of the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada with a population of 62,951 (2021). There are many natural features within these bounds; they include the ...

Parks

The authority operates seven conservation

park A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...

s year-round, most with full-time staff. These seven parks are all located in the Halton region. Additionally, Conservation Halton maintains a number of smaller conservation lands with limited staff and facilities, as well as local properties that have no facilities or public access. Because parks are funded on a self-sustaining basis, entrance fees are charged at the staffed parks. All parks except Mountsberg offer connections to the

Bruce Trail The Bruce Trail is a hiking trail in southern Ontario, Canada, from the Niagara River to the tip of Tobermory, Ontario. The main trail is more than long and there are over of associated side trails. The trail mostly follows the edge of the Nia ...

. *

Crawford Lake Conservation Area Crawford Lake Conservation Area is a conservation area owned and operated by Conservation Halton near the community of Campbellville in Milton, Halton, Ontario, Canada. It is categorized as a regional environmentally sensitive area, an Ontar ...

* Glen Eden Ski & Snowboard Centre * Hilton Falls Conservation Area *

Kelso Conservation Area Kelso Conservation Area is located near Milton, Ontario on the Niagara Escarpment and is owned and operated by Conservation Halton. This park has an area of 3.97 square kilometres and contains Lake Kelso which was built for flood control of Sixt ...

Mount Nemo Conservation Area The Mount Nemo Conservation Area in Burlington, Ontario is a conservation area owned and operated by Conservation Halton. It is popular with rock climbers in the Greater Toronto Area and the Golden Horseshoe, along with nearby Rattlesnake Point C ...

* Mountsberg Conservation Area * Rattlesnake Point Conservation Area * Robert Edmondson Conservation Area

References

*Macklem, Katherine (Oct. 20, 2003)
Canada's Top 100 Employers
''Maclean's''. *Whitnell, Tim (March 15, 2006). "What a difference a Day makes". Burlington Post, p. 1.

External links

Conservation Halton
{{Authority control Regional Municipality of Halton Protected areas of the Regional Municipality of Halton Niagara Escarpment Conservation authorities in Ontario 1956 establishments in Ontario