I oppose Bill C-5. I oppose…

I oppose Bill C-5. I oppose overriding the law in special economic zones. I am a deeply concerned citizen worried about Bill 5. This bill would lead to unemployment in Environment Assessment and Cultural Resource Management (CRM) archaeology. Development companies should not be able to develop unchecked at the expense of the environment and Indigenous cultural heritage archaeology. I want stronger protections for endangered species and I oppose shortcuts for industry with no public oversight.

The implied reduction in environment and archaeological assessments would lead to lay-offs and unemployment. Not only would workers directly in these fields lose their jobs but the companies which support these fields would lose significant business and income such as vehicle rentals, hotels, equipment manufacturers, and especially rural businesses where travelling assessment workers frequent such as gas stations, convenience stores and the hospitality sector. Many rural businesses might rely on non-local sources of income which include environmental and archaeological assessment workers. Therefore, this bill poses a threat to the financial well-being of many citizens.

It is ever important for me to iterate that development companies should not be exempt from heritage laws. Heritage laws are crucial to protecting historical and Indigenous sites that foster an important sense of cultural identity for the citizens of Ontario. Furthermore, heritage laws have the fruitful potential to benefit local economies by drawing in tourists who support local hotels and businesses. A great example of this in North America is the Newark Earthworks discovered in Ohio. The Newark Earthworks are a UNESCO World Heritage site visited by many tourists.

Indeed, nearly all archaeology in Canada occurs as part of pre-development assessments. Archaeological assessments are how a vast majority of Indigenous archaeological sites are found, and moreover Indigenous sites are the majority of those in Canada stretching at least 13,000 years ago whereas European settlers arrived around 400 years ago. While Bill C-5 states development will avoid cemeteries this poses a strong bias in protection for settler cemeteries. Settler cemeteries are typically documented whereas Indigenous burials are not and require archaeological assessments to be found. Burial sites which are unknown without assessment cannot not be protected as the Bill claims. The public representation of Ontario would reflect very poorly if Bill 5 inevitably allowed the destruction of precious and culturally significant Indigenous archaeological heritage such as a burial site. Due to the bias of burial site protection, this is an Indigenous rights issue and would act as an extension of colonial oppression.

In summary, I am a concerned citizen opposing Bill C-5 due to its potential negative impacts on the financial standing of various citizens and businesses who rely on environmental and archaeological assessments. I additionally oppose Bill C-5 due to its allowance of the destruction of culturally significant Indigenous archaeological heritage sites.