I am a resident of…

I am a resident of Gravenhurst and as such Graydon Smith is my representative to Queen’s Park. I am writing to express my concern about Bill 5, the “Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act”.

Bill 5 will allow the Premier/Cabinet to designate ANY project and choose ANY proponent any where, any time, for any reason and create a Special Economic Zone. Once designated these zones and their proponents are EXEMPT from all existing legislation.

Ontario has 250 000 lakes, 1/3 of the freshwater in Canada, the highest species biodiversity in the country and carbon stores that make up 20%-30% of the world’s carbon store so incredibly important. Protecting our ecosystem is critical to our survival. Bill 5 makes it possible to override any existing protections to this critical natural infrastructure.

The recent election did not give the Ford government a mandate to turn over vast parts of the province to his friends. We need to protect Ontario. We need to protect the people of Ontario and the fragile ecosystems on which all life depends. We need to stop Bill 5.