Bill 5 is an awful and…

Bill 5 is an awful and destructive bill that will seriously hinder conservation of Ontario's ecosystems. It violates indigenous treaty rights. It reduces the ability of government to enforce the Endangered Species Act and be held accountable. It removes essential protections for species at risk and their habitats. This bill is entirely out of step with the essential task of protecting our ecosystems and is antithetical to all recommendations by conservation orgs and scientists. Redefining habitat as the immediate area around a dwelling is a ludicrous idea with no scientific basis. There is a well established link between biodiversity and maintenance of many ecosystem functions, many of which are essential to our way of life. This bill nakedly favours the short-term interests of your friends and donors rather than the long-term interests of your constituents. If you support the passage of this bill, you will be shirking your responsibility to the citizens of Ontario, Canada, and the world. You will be doing a disservice to your descendants as well as everyone else's. If the worst outcome comes to pass and the Earth's few remaining truly wild spaces on earth are sacrificed for profit, I hope that you will remember your role in making that happen. For those of you that are too old, morally deficient, or too rich to care and feel the consequences of your actions, I cannot express my opinions of you in this space. I hope that you will come to the correct decision and not pass Bill 5 and in fact increase protections of Ontario's ecosystems.