I am strongly opposed to…

I am strongly opposed to this proposal because it represents a huge government overreach and a complete erosion of species at risk protection in the province.

I am alarmed that Bill 5 proposes to create Special Economic Zones for any reason, in any locations, exempting proponents from any applicable provincial law or municipal by-law. This is completely undemocratic, removing all legislative oversight from government actions, and effectively turning the province into a "Wild West" where governments can decide to ignore laws at their whim and convenience.

I am equally alarmed that the government plans to eliminate the Endangered Species Act, and replace it with the Species Conservation Act, which fails to provide adequate mechanisms to protect and recover species at risk in the province. Under the Species Conservation Act, the government proposes to severely narrow the definition of habitat for protected species to just the dwelling place (or dripline for plants) and the immediate area around it. Species at risk, by definition, are already in decline, usually because of habitat loss. By removing protection of the broader habitat these organisms rely on, the government is almost certainly guaranteeing that these species will be unable to survive, much less thrive (and recover) in the province.

The Species Conservation Act further degrades species at risk policy in Ontario by removing harassment as an offence, allowing political decisions on what species are listed, removing the requirement for recovery strategies, removing protection for federally listed migratory birds and aquatic species, and replacing permitting with a registration process, which will fast-track development without a thorough science-based consideration of project effects on species at risk and their habitat.

I find it highly offensive that the government proposes these catastrophic changes under the guise of strengthening our economic sovereignty in the face of US tariffs. Our economic well-being depends on a rich biodiversity in Ontario, one that provides innumerable ecological goods and services, and which has its own intrinsic value. We ignore the fundamental interconnection of economy with ecology at our peril. It is naive and foolhardy to act as if environmental regulations are simply roadblocks to economic progress, that can be tossed aside when we face economic challenges.

As a professional biologist who has worked for over 25 years on species at risk and climate change issues in Ontario, I know firsthand that now more than ever we need strong environmental legislation and policy to protect our valuable and exceptional natural heritage, both for its own worth and for our own future. I am outraged that your government thinks it can strip away existing protections for species at risk in the name of economic expediency.

This is no way to protect Ontario. I urge you not to create the Special Economic Zones Act, not to repeal the Endangered Species Act, and not to replace it with the Species Conservation Act.