The Province of Ontario’s…

The Province of Ontario’s proposed Bill 66 threatens our province's water quality and supply, agricultural and rural communities, natural ecosystems, and the continued smart growth of its urban cores. The bill would permit municipalities to allow business developments that don't follow laws that protect our water, agriculture, and community development plans.

As the bill allows developers to bypass agricultural protections, it threatens our local economy and our provincial food supply.

Of particular concern is Schedule 10 which adds section 34.1 to the Planning Act. If approved, this would allow particular types of development to be unilaterally approved by a municipality without regard for environmental impacts or impacts to a neighbouring municipality. This is a tool that creates division and reduces transparency of governance and allows for an erosion of protections. It removes a set of tools we have at a municipal level to ensure that we leave keep the long term health of our environment ahead of corporate interest.

With respect to more local concerns in the Waterloo Region where I reside, in 1989, toxic chemicals were found in the groundwater underneath the Uniroyal Chemical site in Elmira. Experts say it will be decades before Elmira's water is safe to drink again. Bill 66 would allow the Province to override the Region of Waterloo’s Official Plan policies that were established to prevent similar toxic destruction of our drinking water. Limiting sprawl is of particular importance in Waterloo Region, where 75% of drinking water comes from aquifers located just beyond the Countryside Line. The Proposed Amendments to the Planning Act as set out in Bill 66 fail to adequately protect human health and safety and in particular the safety of the Region of Waterloo’s drinking water resources.

I am particularly alarmed that Bill 66 removes the requirement for public notice and public meetings with opportunity for community input, as well as the opportunity to appeal the decision. This is not good governance.

I reject Bill 66’s implicit suggestion that to grow the economy and add jobs we must accept environmental degradation, pave over farms, and risk the health of our families. While growth is important for a thriving economy, it can happen in ways that encourage good governance, prioritize environmental protections and respect the importance of agricultural land use.

I strongly urge the Ontario Government to reconsider these portions of Bill 66.