As an Ontarian who has lived…

As an Ontarian who has lived abroad in a country where poor environmental regulation has virtually obliterated its natural heritage, I find myself very concerned with the weakened environmental protections proposed in the Species Conservation Act—particularly the lack of regulatory oversight over exempt projects of natural interest.

I’m commenting to ask that the Endangered Species Act be reinstated and that it replace the weaker Species Conservation Act.

We cannot sacrifice the protection of irreplaceable natural habitat and vulnerable species in the face of economic uncertainty. Ontario’s economy will recover—the ecosystems that provide tens of billions of dollars worth of ecosystem services to the province and that provide enrichment for its citizens will not if we do not ground its protections in the recommendations of scientists.

The greater our biodiversity, the stronger our resilience to the inevitable environmental disasters that will come with a changing climate.