To whom it may concern, I am…

To whom it may concern,

I am writing to express my concern regarding the recently proposed changes to the Endangered Species Act. According to published notice, this upcoming proposal seeks to move towards a "registration-first" approach. I think this approach can bring severe negative impacts to our environment. As Ontarians, we put our trust in our public institutions, including relevant agencies under the provincial government, to uphold our regulations. A registration-first approach would costitute trusting private corporations to accurately represent the environmental impacts of projects without passing scrutiny from a public entitity. I believe that many Ontarians rightfully share the same concern. We cannot fully trust private corporations to have our best interest when it comes to environmental impact. Private entities may have to cater to corporate interests, maximizing profit at the expense of Ontarians and our beautiful environment. They may simply put forth inaccurate assessments and proposals in order to start the project. The review process, although time consuming, is crucial to verifying the accuracy of the proposed impacts and project actions. While the proposed changes outline that government will review the proposals, doing so after the start of a project enables the possibility of missed violations. Even if violations are caught, the registration-first approach would mean that (perhaps irreparable) damage has already been caused to the environment. Combined with the proposed "winding down" of the Species Conservation Action Agency, advisory commitees, and elimination of "harass" from the Endangered Species Act, I firmly believe that our environment will be significantly less protected than before. We are living in a time where wildfires and other extreme climate events cause more damage than ever before. At this critical time, we should be doing more to conserve and protect endangered species. We must not speed run all development at the expense of our environment as doing so will inevitably damage our future. Young Ontarians want Ontario to build and unlease our economy, but we should be doing so responsibly. I strongly believe that building slightly slower, but getting it correct the first time, is much better than rushing and causing irreparable damage. Young Ontarians deserve a future with a beautiful Ontario. Young Ontarians deserve a future without collapsing ecosystems. Young Ontarians, and all Ontarians, deserve a future where their collective interests are prioritized above the neccessity for rushed development from private entitites. We want a government that advocates for our wellbeing and the wellbeing of Ontario. I therefore strongly oppose the proposed changes to the Endagered Species Act.