Privacy Statement

ONTARIO HORTICULTURAL ASSOCIATION PRIVACY STATEMENT

INTRODUCTION

The Ontario Horticultural Association (OHA) is not-for-profit charitable organization with a volunteer Executive and Board of Directors whose purpose is to provide leadership and assist in the promotion of education and interest in all areas of horticulture and related environmental issues through an expanding network of horticultural societies, as outlined in the Agricultural and Horticultural Organizations Act R.S.O. 1990, Chapter A 9 and amendments thereto.

This summarizes the OHA’s privacy policies and procedures that have been developed to comply with Canada’s Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (“PIPEDA”).  PIPEDA sets out rules for the collection, use and disclosure of a member’s or volunteer’s personal information, as well as safeguarding that information in the course of its activity as defined in the legislation.

WHAT IS “PERSONAL INFORMATION”

Under PIPEDA, “Personal Information” means any information that is identifiable to an individual, including name, address, telephone number, Social Insurance Number, and date of birth. It also includes, but is not limited to, other information relating to identity, such as, nationality, gender, marital status, financial information and credit history.

PURPOSES FOR PERSONAL INFORMATION

The OHA collects only that personal information required to assess the eligibility of an individual to receive the benefits and programs offered by the OHA and its partners.

CONSENT

At the time of completing a membership application, the express, written consent of the individual applicant will be sought for the collection, use, retention and disclosure of their personal information for the purposes set out in the OHA’s privacy policy.

An applicant may choose not to provide some or all of the personal information requested, but if the OHA is unable to collect sufficient information to validate a membership and its benefits, the application may be turned down.

ACCURACY

The OHA endeavours to ensure that all personal information in active files is accurate, current and complete. When a member notifies the OHA that his or her personal information requires correction or updating, the necessary changes will be made. Information contained in closed files is not updated.

LIMITING USE, RETENTION & DISCLOSURE

The OHA uses and retains personal information for only those purposes to which the individual has consented.

Personal information will be disclosed to only those OHA Executive, Directors and committees, and/or Board of Directors that need to know the information for the purposes set out in the OHA Privacy Policy.

SAFEGUARDS

The OHA utilizes a number of physical, organizational and technological measures to safeguard personal information from unauthorized access or inadvertent disclosure in accordance with its Information Security, Retention and Destruction Policy, including but not limited to:

Physical

Active files are stored in a secure manner located in work areas restricted to OHA executive, directors, volunteers, or third parties who need to know this information for the purposes set out in this Privacy Policy. Closed files are stored in a secure manner for a period of ten years, after which, the information is shredded prior to disposal.

Organizational

The OHA executive, directors, volunteers, and third party service providers sign confidentiality agreements binding them to safeguarding the confidentiality of personal information to which they have access.

Technological

Personal information contained on the OHA computers and the electronic databases are password protected. As well, the Internet server or router has firewall protection to protect against virus attacks and hacking into the database.

Electronic Transmission of Information

Notwithstanding the technological safeguards implemented by the OHA, all Internet transmissions are susceptible to possible loss, misrouting, interception and misuse. For this reason, as part of the application that individual’s sign consenting to their personal information being collected, used, retained, and disclosed, the OHA will assume that it has the individual’s consent to communicate via the Internet unless notified to the contrary.

INDIVIDUAL ACCESS

An individual who wishes to review or verify what personal information is held by the OHA, may do so by making a request, in writing to the OHA’s Privacy Office. Upon verification of the individual’s identity, the Privacy Office will provide a written report within 60 days.

INVESTIGATING COMPLAINTS

Any concern or issue about the OHA’s personal information handling practises may be made, in writing, to the Privacy Office. Upon verification of the individual’s identity, the Privacy Office will act promptly to investigate the complaint and provide a written report to the individual.

If the individual is dissatisfied with the report provided by the Privacy Office, or feels that the corrective action taken by the OHA is insufficient, the individual may direct a complaint to the Federal Privacy Commissioner in writing. The address of the Federal Privacy Commissioner is provided in this Privacy Statement for your convenience.

AMENDMENTS TO OUR PRIVACY POLICY

The OHA Privacy Policy and this Privacy Statement are in effect January 1, 2004. The OHA’s Privacy Policy and this Privacy Statement may be updated from time to time to reflect amendments in applicable Federal and Provincial laws. Any changes to this Privacy Policy will be posted here, on the OHA website, and will apply to personal information collected from the date of the posting of the revised Privacy Policy.

CONTACT INFORMATION

If you have any questions regarding the Ontario Horticultural Association’s Privacy Policy, Information Security, Retention and Destruction Policy, and/or this Privacy Statement, or you wish to make an access to personal information request, please contact the secretary of the Ontario Horticultural Association via the Contact page.

OTHER HELPFUL PRIVACY LINKS

For a copy of PIPEDA, or for answers to other questions regarding privacy legislation, below are some helpful privacy links.

Federal Privacy Commissioner
112 Kent Street
Ottawa, ON  K1A 1H3

Ontario Privacy Commissioner
2 Bloor Street East, Suite 1400
Toronto, ON  M4W 1A8