South Huron trail agreement approved by council

By John Miner

With the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA) in its final days, South Huron and the Authority have agreed on a plan to expand and manage the popular South Huron Trail.

South Huron municipal council was assured at its last meeting that the trail agreement will remain intact when the local authority is absorbed into the Lake Huron Regional Conservation Authority in early 2027.

“Anything that is in place now will carry forward into the new organization,” Coun. Marissa Vaughan, South Huron council’s representative on the ABCA board, said.

The merger of the ABCA with six other local authorities is part of the Ontario government’s plan to collapse the existing 36 conservation authorities into nine regional ones.

The South Huron trail, which runs from MacNaughton Park in Exeter to the Morrison Dam Conservation Area and around the reservoir, is heavily used with more than 90,000 annual visits, according to data collected by Huron County.

Although the trail was established in 2004, there has been no formal agreement between South Huron and the ABCA on the management of the trail that crosses private and municipally owned properties and conservation authority land.

A memorandum of understanding, proposed by ABCA and approved by South Huron council at its Aug. 10 meeting, specifies that South Huron will maintain the trail and related infrastructure on MacNaughton Park, carry insurance coverage for that area, and provide enforcement of bylaws by provincial offences officers.

The conservation authority will do the same for other portions of the trail, as well as providing limited grass maintenance in areas along the walking path. All other areas are to be left in a naturalized state.

The agreement can be terminated by either party with 90 days written notice.

The agreement also supports a proposed expansion of the ABCA’s commemorative woods at the Morrison Dam Conservation Area with 100 metres of new trail crossing municipal property and connecting to the existing South Huron trail.

South Huron council was advised that ABCA has the resources needed to complete the trail expansion, including materials, labour, equipment and funding.

The upcoming consolidation of conservation authorities is already having a local impact.

Vaughan advised council that Davin Heinbuck, ABCA’s general manager and secretary-treasurer, has accepted a position as the general manager of the future Western Lake Erie Regional Conservation Authority. The new authority will amalgamate the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority with the Essex Region Conservation Authority, Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority, and St. Clair Region Conservation Authority.

“It is a step up for Davin, well deserved,” said Vaughan.

Filling Heinbuck’s role at the ABCA on an acting basis is Nathan Schoelier.

Vaughan said Schoelier has been a tremendous asset for the ABCA.

Don Goodyear, who has been a general manager of watershed management with the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority, will be the new general manager of the Lake Huron Regional Conservation Authority that will include the ABCA.

Vaughan said Goodyear has been described as someone who is easy to get along with and very interested in understanding what is going on in the conservation authorities that will be part of the new regional one.

“Things are sounding positive. That’s good,” Vaughan said.