To the Ford government, I…

To the Ford government,

I am appalled at the changes proposed to the Endangered Species Act. This proposal will remove existing Indigenous rights, environmental protections, and community consultation requirements in order to push forward plans that will only benefit developers, not the regular people of Ontario. I find this to be disrespectful, irresponsible and downright dangerous to give developers this much power.

Developers only care about building structures fast, not properly and not in a way that benefits the general public. Allowing them to cut even more corners is a bad idea because they only care about money and not what Ontarians actually need. The housing crisis is happening because no one is building affordable houses, not because there isn't enough housing for all. If real planning, management and implementation was done correctly, there could have been a better way to approach this situation before it got to this point.

The long-term benefits of having protected green spaces massively outweight the short-term visions of your government. The environment protects not only wildlife, but human health and safety, mentally and physically, as well. Climate change is a growing problem in today's society, all over the world, and I'd hope that Ontario would help to do their part in slowing it down by giving our natural heritage systems stronger protections.

By removing protections, habitat destruction will continue to decimate sensitive species and habitats, making it harder for wildlife to carry out vital life processes. Humans also rely on many of our native species, whether it is flora or fauna, and the decline of these species will be detrimental to how humans live alongside nature in the long-term.

With no oversight given to developers, who knows how much destruction to natural spaces will occur. It is important to preserve Ontario's natural heritage for future generations. Indigenous people of Ontario have been stewards of the land for thousands of years, long before colonialism. This side step of important community consultations is massively disrespectful, given that we are trying to reconcile and rebuild these important relationships.

I am deeply disturbed at the fact that this proposal comes while we are also battling the other reckless projects you are trying to push through, including the Bradford Bypass through prime agricultural lands and natural heritage features, the Ontario Place Spa mess, and the Greenbelt scandal.

I, along with many other Ontarians, strongly believe that your government should reconsider your proposal.

Sincerely,
A very concerned citizen.