I am opposed to the proposed…

I am opposed to the proposed interim changes to the Endangered Species Act, 2007 and the proposal for the Species Conservation Act, 2025.

The purpose of the species protection legislation will not be to drive species protection and conservation while taking into account social and economic considerations, including the need for sustainable economic growth in Ontario. This legislation will drive the government’s desire for economic growth through development, taking into account social and economic considerations, while placing species protection and conservation in the backseat.

Specifically, this proposed Species Conservation Act, 2025:

will not protect species as they travel within their habitat or range, or during migration

It creates a system where a proponent merely registers and then immediately starts a project and then relies on the honour system to protect species and the environment. If a habitat is destroyed, it cannot simply be restored or the species replaced. (How can a developer be made accountable for the destruction of habitat containing 300-year-old trees, and the birds that relied on those old trees)?

Allows proponents to be exempt from environmental assessment, based on subjective terms of what's deemed "reasonable" or "sensible" by the government, or by a minister.

This is a veiled act that allows land development to always supersede environmental protection, in the name of economic need alone.