To whom it may concern, I…

To whom it may concern,
I live near downtown Guelph and my place has so many beautiful sounds from the various birds, the bees, even seeing the little chipmunks and squirrels make me smile. They all get a long so well and even with me sitting on my deck in the morning.
When I go up north, I have the same. The wonderment and joy I get out of being able to live so close to so much beauty is astounding.

It pains me to think that these creatures are at threat. Without the bugs, the birds will lose their food source. Without plants and streams, more creatures will die, and one day it will be us humans. We are at a tipping point. We are on the top of a very delicate pyramid and once the foundation fails or crumbles, we will fall hard. We will have no drinkable water, we will have no food. If you want beer, without bees you won't get it.

They can't speak, the animals and our nature need good protection. There are ways to live in harmony.

I plant native plants, the bees are plentiful. I plant veggies and fruits, the rabbits and I share. I try to use environmentally and sustainable products including food. I enjoy buying my meat from the local market where I can get to know the farmers and how much love they have for their land and for the animals they eventually sell. The food we eat relies on good and loving care.

I don't want to live in a world where the only place to hear birds sing is on tv, or to see the last caribou living a sad life in a zoo. This is not my dream for the future, for the future of my unborn child. I don't want to live in an Ontario where there is no caring or love for what is around us. Nature will find a way to come back once we're gone, and I don't want that day to be in 10 years.
I want to live to 100 in a world I love, and others can enjoy all the beauty of everything.

I am a scientist, a lover of animals and nature, and a member of Nature Guelph, Nature Ontario, CPWAS, and other organizations.

I stand by the science, the organizations that fight. And so many of my family, friends and neighbors are fighting for this protection to maintain it's strength, in fact it should be made stronger.
In the past 40 years, the Earth has lost more than half of its wildlife. Without a strong Endangered Species Act (ESA), the more than 230 species at-risk in Ontario will be in dire straits. Environmental protection is not red tape.

In Ontario, there are over 230 plant and animal species that are at-risk of extinction or of disappearing from the province, a number which is growing every year. Their loss or decline affects the functioning and resilience of food webs and landscapes – jeopardizing the well-being of all living things, including humans.

The Government should realize that you are reviewing the Endangered Species Act, not the Endangered Business Act. The law’s purpose is to protect and recover Ontario’s most vulnerable plants and animals. To that end two changes MECP should be considering are:

- Repealing the long list of exemptions for forestry, hydro, mining and commercial development, approved by Cabinet in 2013; and
- Amending the law to set a higher bar for creating exemptions through regulation by ensuring they cannot jeopardize the recovery of threatened or endangered species.

Please:
Repeal the 2013 exemptions for the forestry, hydro, mining and commercial development industries;
Amend section 57(1)1 of the ESA so that any future exemptions cannot jeopardize the recovery of endangered and threatened species;
Maintain mandatory habitat protection for endangered and threatened species. (The law already provides enough flexibility through habitat regulations and permitting, so there’s no need to politicize the process by adding ministerial discretion);
Maintain COSSARO’s current species listing process, “based on the best available scientific information, including information obtained from community knowledge and aboriginal traditional knowledge” (ESA, section 5 (3)); and
Require compensation that results in a direct overall benefit to affected species where harmful activities are permitted. (Do not allow proponents of harmful activities to bypass protections by simply paying into a fund.)

I will be very disappointed and angry if none of these comments are even brought forth to be read. The last comment period had hundreds that were ignored. I thought we are in a democracy.

Be better Ontario, this needs to be fixed and improved and keep non-science people and greedy business' out of the delicate ecosystem in Ontario.

Doug Ford -Ontario is far more than just "open for business" . You need to fix this, or there are going to be far more angry people at your door than you can count.

Support nature, keep it secure. I can't imagine to live here if we lose any more.

Thank you.