O. Reg. 232/14: GENERAL, Filed November 27, 2014 under Endangered Species Act, 2007, S.O. 2007, c. 6

ontario regulation 232/14

made under the

Endangered Species Act, 2007

Made: November 26, 2014
Filed: November 27, 2014
Published on e-Laws: November 28, 2014
Printed in The Ontario Gazette: December 13, 2014

Amending O. Reg. 242/08

(GENERAL)

1. Subsection 1 (1) of Ontario Regulation 242/08 is amended by adding the following definition:

“watercourse segment” means a section of the watercourse that,

(a) consists of relatively similar hydrography and surficial geology which is not separated by in-stream barriers that would prevent fish movement, and

(b) is delineated in accordance with the document entitled “Protocol for Applications Used in the Aquatic Landscape Inventory Software Application for Delineating, Characterizing and Classifying Valley Segments within the Great Lakes Basin”, dated September 2002, that is published by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and available on a website of the Government of Ontario; (“tronçon de cours d’eau”)

2. Subparagraph 10 i of subsection 23.14 (9) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “paragraph 8” and substituting “paragraph 9”.

3. (1) Clause 23.16 (2) (b) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:

(b) in the case of habitat of bobolink or eastern meadowlark, an area of habitat for the species was created or enhanced,

(i) in fulfilment of a condition of a safe harbour instrument, and

(ii) for the purpose of ensuring that the habitat exists for the species for the time period specified in the safe harbour instrument.

(2) Clause 23.16 (3) (a) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “other than bobolink or eastern meadowlark” in the portion before subclause (i).

4. The Regulation is amended by adding the following section:

Eastern sand darter habitat

25.1 (1) For the purpose of clause (a) of the definition of “habitat” in subsection 2 (1) of the Act, the areas described in subsection (2) that are located in the following geographic areas and parts of geographic areas are prescribed as the habitat of eastern sand darter:

1. The geographic areas of Brant, Chatham-Kent, Essex, Elgin, Haldimand, Middlesex, Norfolk and Prince Edward, including the water bodies of Lake Erie, Lake St. Clair and the Detroit River that are adjacent to those geographic areas.

2. The parts of the geographic area of Lambton composed of the lower tier municipalities of Brooke-Alvinston and Dawn-Euphemia.

(2) Subject to subsection (3), subsection (1) applies to the following areas:

1. Any part of a river, stream or other watercourse, other than the Detroit River, up to the high water mark, that is being used, or has been used at any time in the previous four years, by an eastern sand darter.

2. Any part of a river, stream or other watercourse, up to the high water mark, that is within the same watercourse segment as the area described in paragraph 1.

3. Any area adjacent to the part of a river, stream or other watercourse described in paragraph 1 or 2 that is,

i. an area consisting primarily of vegetation that occurs naturally or with minimal human intervention, such as a forest, woodland, thicket, wetland, old field, pasture or meadow, and

ii. within 30 metres of the relevant high water mark.

4. Any part of the Detroit River or other body of water, other than a watercourse described in paragraph 1, up to the high water mark, that is being used, or has been used at any time in the previous 4 years, by an eastern sand darter.

5. Any part of a body of water that is within the same body of water as an area described in paragraph 4 if that part is,

i. dominated by sand or fine gravel substrate, and

ii. within 1000 metres of the area described in paragraph 4.

(3) Subsection (1) does not apply to the following areas:

1. The part of the Sydenham River downstream of the downstream edge of the bridge on County Road 21 in the town of Dresden within the Municipality of Chatham-Kent.

2. A river, stream or watercourse that would be part of a watercourse segment described in paragraph 2 of subsection (2) that is a tributary to the watercourse containing the area described in paragraph 1 of subsection (2), unless that tributary is being used, or has been used at any time in the previous 4 years, by an eastern sand darter.

5. The English version of paragraph 6 of subsection 27.1 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eastern”.

6. (1) The English version of paragraph 5 of subsection 27.2 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “two or more gray ratsnake” and substituting “two or more gray ratsnakes”.

(2) The English version of paragraph 6 of subsection 27.2 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “eastern gray ratsnake” and substituting “gray ratsnakes”.

7. The Regulation is amended by adding the following sections:

Hine’s emerald habitat

27.3 (1) For the purpose of clause (a) of the definition of “habitat” in subsection 2 (1) of the Act, the areas described in subsection (2) that are located in the parts of the geographic area of Simcoe composed of the single-tier municipality of Barrie and the lower-tier municipalities of Adjala-Tosorontio, Clearview, Essa, Innisfil, Springwater and Wasaga Beach are prescribed as the habitat of Hine’s emerald.

(2) Subsection (1) applies to the following areas:

1. Any part of a fen, marsh, seepage area, pond or other body of water, including a vernal or other temporary pool, that is being used, or has been used at any time in the past, by a Hine’s emerald for egg laying or larval development.

2. Any part of a wetland, watercourse, pond or other body of water, including a vernal or other temporary pool, up to the high water mark, that is within 1600 metres of an area described in paragraph 1.

3. Any area that does not have an impervious surface and that is within 500 metres of an area described in paragraph 2.

(3) In this section,

“impervious surface” means a surface that does not permit the infiltration of water, such as a rooftop, sidewalk, paved roadway, driveway or parking lot; (“surface imperméable”)

“seepage area” means a site of emergence of ground water where the water table is present at the ground surface, including a spring. (“surface de suintement”)

Hungerford’s crawling water beetle habitat

27.4 (1) For the purpose of clause (a) of the definition of “habitat” in subsection 2 (1) of the Act, the areas described in subsection (2) that are located in the following geographic areas are prescribed as the habitat of Hungerford’s crawling water beetle:

1. The parts of the geographic area of Bruce composed of the lower-tier municipalities of Arran-Elderslie, Brockton, South Bruce and South Bruce Peninsula.

2. The parts of the geographic area of Grey composed of the lower-tier municipalities of Chatsworth, Hanover and West Grey.

(2) Subsection (1) applies to the following areas:

1. Any part of a river, stream or other watercourse, up to the high water mark, that is being used, or has been used at any time in the previous five years, by a Hungerford’s crawling water beetle.

2. Any part of a river, stream or other watercourse, up to the high water mark, that is within 400 metres of an area described in paragraph 1.

3. Any area adjacent to the part of a river, stream or other watercourse described in paragraph 1 or 2 that is,

i. an area consisting primarily of vegetation that occurs naturally or with minimal human intervention, such as forest, woodland, thicket, wetland, old field, pasture or meadow, and

ii. within 30 metres of the relevant high water mark.

. . . . .

Pitcher’s thistle habitat

28.3 (1) For the purpose of clause (a) of the definition of “habitat” in subsection 2 (1) of the Act, the areas described in subsection (2) that are located in the following geographic areas and geographic townships are prescribed as the habitat of Pitcher’s thistle:

1. The part of the geographic area of Bruce composed of the lower-tier municipality of Kincardine.

2. The part of the geographic area of Lambton composed of the lower-tier municipality of Lambton Shores.

3. The parts of the geographic area of Manitoulin composed of the single-tier municipalities of Burpee and Mills, Central Manitoulin, Cockburn Island, Northeast Manitoulin and the Islands and Tehkummah.

4. The geographic townships of Dawson and Robinson within the geographic area of Manitoulin.

(2) Subsection (1) applies to the following areas:

1. A sand dune with less than 25 per cent tree cover, where Pitcher’s thistle exists or has existed at any time in the previous five years.

2. Any area that is within 15 metres of the area referred to in paragraph 1, if the area consists primarily of vegetation that occurs naturally or with minimal human intervention and has greater than 25 per cent tree cover.

. . . . .

Wavy-rayed lampmussel habitat

29.3 (1) For the purpose of clause (a) of the definition of “habitat” in subsection 2 (1) of the Act, the following areas are prescribed as the habitat of wavy-rayed lampmussel:

1. In the geographic areas of Brant, Chatham-Kent, Huron, Lambton, Middlesex, Oxford, Perth, Waterloo and Wellington,

i. any part of a river, stream or other watercourse, other than the St. Clair River, up to the high water mark, that is being used, or has been used at any time in the past, by a wavy-rayed lampmussel,

ii. any part of a river, stream or other watercourse, up to the high water mark, that is,

A. within the same watercourse segment as the area described in subparagraph i, and

B. of a stream order greater than two,

iii. the area adjacent to the part of a river, stream or other watercourse described in subparagraphs i or ii that is,

A. an area consisting primarily of vegetation that occurs naturally or with minimal human intervention, such as a forest, woodland, thicket, wetland, old field, pasture or meadow, and

B. within 30 metres of the relevant high water mark.

2. In Lake St. Clair,

i. any part of Lake St. Clair, up to the high water mark, that has a water depth of two metres or less and that is being used, or has been used at any time in the past, by a wavy-rayed lampmussel,

ii. any part of Lake St. Clair, up to the high water mark, that has a water depth of two metres or less and that is within 5 kilometres of an area described in subparagraph i.

3. In the St. Clair River,

i. any part of the St. Clair River, up to the high water mark, that is being used, or has been used at any time in the past, by a wavy-rayed lampmussel,

ii. any part of the St. Clair River, up to the high water mark, that is within 5 kilometres of an area described in subparagraph i.

(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to the part of the Sydenham River located downstream of the downstream edge of the bridge on County Road 21 in the town of Dresden within the Municipality of Chatham-Kent.

(3) In this section,

“stream order” means the ordering of streams in which the smallest unbranched channels are considered first order, the joining of such channels forms a second order and subsequent unions of similar stream orders results in successively higher stream orders. (“ordre de cours d’eau”)

Commencement

8. This Regulation comes into force on the later of January 1, 2015 and the day it is filed.