| Despite the abundance of freshwater resources in Ontario, drought-induced water shortages continue to occur. In response to the drought-like conditions experienced in Ontario in 1998 and 1999, the Province of Ontario created a set of guidelines to manage drought conditions. Ontario Low Water Response (2001) is designed to ensure provincial drought preparedness and to support and aid in the co-ordination of a local (watershed) response to drought. Under these guidelines, the province provides overall direction and co-ordinates policies, science and information systems, and emergency support. The local role is directed toward collecting information, interpreting policy, developing programs and responding to emergencies through the creation and implementation of water response teams.;The Ontario drought guidelines are problematic in that they assume that watershed-based communities have the capacity to conduct drought contingency planning. This thesis investigated community capacity to carry out drought contingency planning in two rural Ontario watersheds.;The Big Creek watershed is dominated by agriculture, while the upper Credit River watershed faces great pressure from urban development. Both watersheds are dependent upon groundwater and have experienced reduced water supply during recent drought-like conditions. Based on an investigation into the roles, responsibilities and communication patterns between and among agencies and organizations in each watershed, it was concluded that watershed communities have the capacity to create and implement a drought contingency plan. However, they require considerable assistance from the provincial government, especially in terms of regulating water withdrawals.;In addition, this thesis identified four barriers to locally-led drought contingency planning including drought definition, policy coordination, communication, and community empowerment. Examples of local level drought contingency planning in Australia and the United States were used to indicate strengths and weaknesses in the Ontario drought guidelines. It was determined that the Ontario guidelines promote a collaborative approach. However, they are based on too many assumptions. To be successful at proactive planning, and to ensure an effective and timely response to drought conditions, community capacity to conduct drought contingency planning must be evaluated first. This thesis proposed an evaluative framework, which can be used to evaluate a community's capacity to carry out drought contingency planning. |
