Is a Sault Ste. Marie address in a regulated flood area, and who says so?

The Sault Ste. Marie Region Conservation Authority's jurisdiction is the City of Sault Ste. Marie and about two-thirds of Prince Township, draining to the St. Marys River. Its permits page says staff will help determine whether a property is in an area regulated under Ontario Regulation 41/24, by appointment or by email, and that only its staff can confirm whether a property is affected; it publishes no online map. A permit may be needed for work that changes a watercourse or a wetland, and for development, such as building, an addition, a change that adds dwelling units, site grading or fill, in areas near shorelines and inland lakes that may be affected by flooding, erosion, dynamic beaches or unstable soil or bedrock. The authority says its dam and five flood control channels have reduced the flooding that regularly occurred before they were built.

The City's building permit page lists conservation authority approvals among the applicable law that must be met before a building permit is issued, so the authority's permit is a separate approval from the City's. A regulated-area answer governs permits; it is not a forecast that a home will flood, and a home outside the regulated area can still take water through a basement. Under the Conservation Authorities Act as amended in 2026, the Sault Ste. Marie Region authority is to join the Northeastern Ontario Regional Conservation Authority on 1 February 2027 or a later date set by regulation.

• SSMRCA: permits: how to find out if a property is regulated, and what may need a permit
• SSMRCA: about: the authority's jurisdiction, dam and flood control channels
• Building permits: related links: the City's page on applicable law, conservation authority approvals included
• Bill 97, Plan to Protect Ontario Act (Budget Measures), 2026: Schedule 3 amends the Conservation Authorities Act; the transition date is 1 February 2027 or a later date set by regulation
• Regional conservation authority boundaries (ERO 025-1257): the Province's decision of 10 March 2026 on which authority joins which of the nine regional authorities
• Ontario Regulation 41/24: Prohibited Activities, Exemptions and Permits, the regulation behind every conservation authority's regulated area

Conservation-authority regulated-area and flood plain checks are not currently included in our reports, so for a Sault Ste. Marie home the authority's own staff are the place to ask. The full report's water and flooding group does cover past floods seen by satellite, nearby creeks, rivers and ponds, and mapped wetlands for any Sault Ste. Marie address.

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