As a local resident, I am…

As a local resident, I am wholly opposed to the proposal to transfer administration and control of Nancy Island from MECP to MTCG by removing Nancy Island from the PPCRA and including it under the HPA, and to remove portions of Wasaga Beach Provincial Park from the PPCRA.

Nancy Island is not only important from a historical context, but as it sits within the mouth of the Nottawasaga River, its use and development should remain under control and restrictions of the Ministry of the Environment.

Removing portions of Wasaga Beach from the PPCRA is a short-sighted and careless proposal. Wasaga is the largest freshwater beach in the world, including rare and endangered sand dunes and habitat for the endangered piping plover. Removing portions of the Provincial Park, even if retaining ownership of the crown-owned lake and riverbed portions, puts the entire ecosystem at risk. This ecosystem is the reason 1.6 million visitors flock to Wasaga Beach every year (https://www.wasagabeach.com/en/business-and-development/start-a-business).

Eliminating protections afforded by the Provincial Parks Act will reduce the environmental, cultural, and economic viability of this crucial area, resulting in lost revenue, not improved tourism.

I urge the government not to move forward with this proposal.