8 August 2025 025-0694 -…

8 August 2025

025-0694 - Proposed legislative amendments to the Provincial Parks and Conservation Reserves Act, 2006, and Historical Parks Act to support the Town of Wasaga Beach’s Tourism Enhancement Proposal

These comments are submitted on behalf of Birds Canada.

Birds Canada is a national charitable organization dedicated to bird conservation with its head office in Port Rowan, Ontario. Every day our thousands of caring donors, passionate staff, and more than 74,000 volunteers are taking action to help conserve wild birds and their habitats in Canada and beyond. In 2018, Birds Canada became the provincial lead at the encouragement and expressed need at the time from the Government of Ontario, for the conservation of Piping Plover - a small endangered shorebird that nests on beaches in the Great Lakes.

Outlining the risk to Piping Plover

The Great Lakes Piping Plover was extirpated from Ontario for 30 years, returning to Sauble Beach in 2007 and Wasaga Beach in 2008. Since then, Wasaga Beach Provincial Park has hosted 57 nests and fledged half of the total chicks for the entire province (87), making it the most productive nest site in Ontario. We are deeply concerned about the significant risk to Piping Plover habitat, and thus the survival of the species, that this land transfer poses.

Lack of Legal Protection

The proposed amendments to the Provincial Parks and Conservation Reserves Act, 2006 (PPCRA) to allow for the sale of a portion of Wasaga Beach Provincial Park shoreline to the Town of Wasaga Beach, as outlined in the environmental registry (ERO 025-0694), will end the role of Ontario Parks and the PPCRA in protecting critical habitat for Piping Plover. No federal or provincial laws apply to the protection of critical habitat for Piping Plover at Wasaga Beach.

Wasaga Beach Provincial Park Beach Area 1 and New Wasaga have been identified as Critical Habitat under the federal Species at Risk Act (2002). However, no critical habitat order was issued. In 2013, when the Action Plan for the Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus circumcinctus) in Ontario was published, the Federal Government deemed provincial protections under the Endangered Species Act (2007) to be effective, placing habitat protections under the jurisdiction of the province. Following the legislative changes made by the passing of Bill 5 (the repeal of the Endangered Species Act, 2007 and the creation of the Species Conservation Act, 2025), the only remaining provincial protections for Piping Plover habitat falls under the Provincial Parks and Conservation Reserve Act (2006). Removing Beach Areas 1, 2, New Wasaga and Allenwood, would eliminate the existing legal protections provided through the Provincial Parks and Conservation Reserve Act (2006).

Elimination of Capacity to Manage and Conserve Piping Plover Habitat

Wasaga Beach Provincial Park staff have been closely involved in the conservation of Piping Plovers at this site since 2008. Staff and local volunteers have provided their experience, expertise, time, resources, and financial support to support Piping Plover monitoring and conservation efforts over the last 18 years. The proposed land transfer will end existing conservation efforts and staff capacity that Ontario Parks has been successfully implementing to protect Piping Plover and their necessary habitat without putting any alternative capacity and conservation program in place.

The removal of legal protections and absence of dedicated and experienced staff at the proposed land transfer beaches where Piping Plover nest, poses a significant risk to the important habitat this endangered species needs for survival and recovery.

Ontario must include actions required to protect Piping Plover in the proposed land transfer

If amendments are made to the Provincial Parks and Conservation Reserve Act (2006) and the land is sold to the Town of Wasaga Beach, the Government of Ontario must include specific conditions or commitments to protect Piping Plovers and their habitats.

The Ontario Government must ensure that Piping Plover are conserved and protected by a science-based Beach Management Plan, with sufficient resources to implement this plan. Absolutely no new management activity on the beachfronts and dunes should happen prior to the creation of this plan, as guided by the precautionary principle.

Birds Canada is motivated to work with the Town of Wasaga Beach on a science-based management plan focused on Piping Plover and their habitat protection for the long-term recovery of this species at risk. This management plan, guided by the Recovery Strategy for Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus) in Ontario (2013), and avian ecology experts from the Ontario Piping Plover Conservation Program and other Great Lakes programs, should include the following:

- Maintain The Point (a designated Area of Natural and Scientific Interest) in Beach Area 1 as a restricted access area, as this is one of the two primary locations where Piping Plovers nest consistently at Wasaga Beach.

- Manage the coastal beach and dune habitat in Beach Area 1 with the purpose of long-term protection and conservation of these habitats and habitat features, including prohibition of the alteration of natural dunes or vegetation and the requirement for manual systematic and guided debris removal only, within Piping Plover habitat - year-round and not just during the Piping Plover nesting season.

- Manage human threats to birds and habitat on the beach, such as off-leash dogs, direct human disturbance of habitat and nests (i.e. fireworks, nest trampling, littering), etc. through appropriate regulation, monitoring, and enforcement measures.

- Manage natural threats to the habitat and species at risk, including investment in predator deterrent research and action through appropriate regulation, monitoring, and enforcement measures.

- Continued Piping Plover monitoring and threat mitigation, education and awareness efforts, community engagement, and long-term conservation efforts - using existing standardized protocols and in close collaboration with the Ontario Piping Plover Conservation Program.

If the minimum recommendations listed above are not included in a Beach Management Plan for Wasaga Beach, there is a very high risk that Piping Plover will not return to these beaches, which may contribute to an overall population decline and hindrance to population recovery in Ontario and across the Great Lakes. In the worst case scenario, without adequate habitat, resources, and protection, Piping Plover may be extirpated from Ontario yet again.

Birds Canada and Ontario Parks have been collaborating on monitoring, research, outreach and other conservation activities for 18 years with demonstrated success. Birds Canada is well-equipped and open to working with the Town on these activities as a part of the province-wide efforts to conserve this species and its required habitat. However, given the significant amount of regular investment by Ontario Parks for these mitigation and monitoring requirements at Wasaga Beach Provincial Park to date, this will require equal or realistically increased resourcing to ensure that the Town and Birds Canada can continue to support these efforts.

We strongly urge the Minister to consider the potential impacts of ERO 025-0694 on Piping Plovers and their habitat. If this sale is approved, we urge the Ontario Government to ensure the needed protections are mandated as a condition of the sale or other means.

Thank you for the opportunity to provide feedback on ERO 025-0694.

Birds Canada

References:

Kirk, D. A. 2013. Recovery Strategy for the Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus) in Ontario. Ontario Recovery Strategy Series. Prepared for the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, Peterborough, Ontario. vi + 61 pp