Clubhouse Developments Inc. - Permit for activities to achieve an overall benefit to a species

On October 2, 2024 the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks issued an overall benefit permit to Clubhouse Developments Inc. for Little Brown Myotis, allowing for the development of a residential subdivision within the Toronto Board of Trade Golf Course Lands, located in the Regional Municipality of York, Woodbridge, Ontario.

The permit was issued under the Endangered Species Act, 2007 (ESA) and authorizes Clubhouse Developments Inc. to:

• damage or destroy up to 0.63 hectares of Little Brown Myotis habitat

Protecting species under the Endangered Species Act

Our government is committed to protecting species at risk and providing strong environmental oversight, while working to support development opportunities in the province.

Businesses, municipalities, and other proponents are expected to take steps to ensure their projects avoid any adverse impacts on species at risk or their habitats. However, where avoidance is not possible, the ESA gives the Minister the discretion to authorize activities if certain conditions can be met.

The permit includes conditions that require Clubhouse Developments Inc. to undertake measures that will:

• minimize adverse effects to Little Brown Myotis
• achieve an overall benefit for Little Brown Myotis within a reasonable timeframe

Actions to minimize adverse effects to species

The permit requires Clubhouse Developments Inc. to undertake actions to minimize adverse effects on Little Brown Myotis, including:

• ensuring that anyone involved in activities authorized or required by the permit receives education and awareness training from a Qualified Professional;
• implementing a series of erosion and sediment control measures;
• adhering to a spill response plan;
• preventing the spread of invasive species;
• undertaking tree removal and site preparation outside of the active season for Little Brown Myotis (i.e., outside April 1 – September 30) to avoid killing, harming or harassing individuals of the species;
• retaining 14.39 hectare of habitat for Little Brown Myotis on the subject property; and
• undertaking corrective actions and adaptive management measures to ensure that intended outcomes are achieved on an ongoing basis from the start of Project Activities.

Actions to achieve an overall benefit to species

The permit requires Clubhouse Developments Inc. to undertake the following actions to achieve an overall benefit for the species within a reasonable timeframe:

• install a minimum of four (4) four-chambered nursery style roosting boxes and three (3) multi-chamber rocket style roosting structures as replacement Little Brown Myotis habitat structures on the subject property;
• plant a minimum of 478 deciduous trees, 70 coniferous trees and 525 shrubs to provide habitat replacement and monitor the replacement habitat structures and plantings and take any necessary corrective actions to ensure the overall benefit actions are successful.

The overall benefit activities are intended to result in:

• increasing the total amount of Little Brown Myotis habitat in the area; and
• improving the quality of habitat for Little Brown Myotis in the area

Government response statement for Little Brown Myotis

Ontario has published a government response statement (GRS) under section 12.1 of the Endangered Species Act, 2007 with respect to Little Brown Myotis. You can access this statement through the ministry’s website: Little Brown Myotis, Northern Myotis and Tri-colored Bat government response statement | ontario.ca

Consideration was given to the GRS and proposed permit conditions align with the objectives in the GRS, including:

• maintaining or improving habitat for Little Brown Myotis

Other information

In addition to not proceeding with the Project, which would avoid adverse effects the species but also not achieve the Project's purpose, the following alternatives were considered:

• Alternative 1: Development plan including retention of the 0.63 hectare woodland proposed to be removed, resulting in the retention of a total of 15.02 ha of suitable habitat for the species on the subject property. If the 0.63 hectare woodland were to be retained within the development plan, its presence and function on the landscape are anticipated to be compromised through stressors such as edge effects and anthropogenic influences. It is possible that these stressors would jeopardize its quality and function as Little Brown Myotis habitat.
• Alternative 2: Development plan involving tree removals outside of the bat active season. This alternative includes the avoidance measure of conducting tree removals outside of the active bat season to minimize harm to the species. It also involves retaining 14.39 hectare of suitable habitat for the species on the subject property.
• Alternative 3: Development plan including tree removal during the bat active season. Included in this alternative is the risk that individuals of the species could be killed, harmed or harassed. However, 14.39 hectare of suitable habitat for the species would be retained on the subject property.

The best alternative, which has been adopted, is Alternative 2 as described above. This option effectively balances the objectives of land development with the need to minimize harm to the species. It achieves this by implementing a timing restriction to avoid the active bad roosting period (April 1 - September 30) and includes the retention of 14.29 hectare of suitable roosting habitat for the Little Brown Myotis on the subject property.