The Trent Severn Waterway – long the main regulator of shoreline development in the Kawarthas – may have no jurisdiction over the Clear Lake North Wetland.

TSW: no jurisdiction?

by Simon Conolly

The Trent Severn Waterway – long the main regulator of shoreline development in the Kawarthas – may have no jurisdiction over the Clear Lake North Wetland.

Rachel Corbett, president of the Kawartha Park Cottagers Association, told The Herald on Wednesday morning that Dawn Bronson, Superintendent of the Trent Severn Waterway, made a statement to that effect during a telephone conversation last week.

The problem dates back to 19th century land deeds, which described the shoreline prior to the flooding created with the construction of dams and locks.

Those land deeds do not describe the present day shoreline, leaving the TSW with no jurisdiction.

Apparently, the federal justice department is working to find a solution, but for the time being the Clear Lake North Wetland is under threat.

It is not immediately clear if the TSW’s jurisdiction problem applies only to the Clear Lake site, or may also affect other areas.

“My speculation is that this could have far-reaching consequences for the whole system,” Ms. Corbett said.

Sara Atkins, External Relations Manager for the TSW confirmed on Wednesday morning that there are questions about the TSW’s jurisdiction in the Clear Lake North Wetland.

She said those questions may also apply to other areas of the waterway.

On Tuesday the Kawartha Park Cottagers Associa sent a letter to Smith-Ennismore-Lakefield Township, the Otonabee Region Conservation Authority, the Ministry of Natural Resources, the TSW and the Peterborough County Planning Department urging someone to step up to the plate to protect the wetland.

The Facebook page for Friends of the Clear Lake North Wetland reports two independent sightings of a bald eagle in the wetland last weekend.