Ontario has a rich history…

Ontario has a rich history of occupation that dates back more than 12,000 years. The archaeological assessments completed each year in advance of development help fill in the gaps in the story of our Province, Indigenous Peoples and more recent settlers.

Bill 66 threatens to allow municipalities to opt out of provisions within the Planning Act, including the Provincial Policy Statement (2014) which require many of the archaeological assessments that are completed. Under Bill 66, a municipality will be able to circumvent Subsection 3(5) and Section 24 of the Planning Act which give authority to the Provincial Policy Statement (2014) and Official Plan requirements respectively. The protection of heritage is a mandatory provincial interest under the Ontario Heritage Act, not a decision of convenience at a municipal level. Bill 66 needs to be amended to restore the requirements that protect our heritage for the generations to come.

Archaeology is significant in protecting and understanding Ontario's rich cultural history, particularly Indigenous cultural heritage. In 2019 and moving forward, engagement and inclusion of Indigenous communities is vital to creating a successful Province. Allowing municipalities to circumvent required archaeological assessments will destroy and directly impact Indigenous cultural heritage. This will negatively affect Indigenous relationships with developers, municipalities, and the Province, and in turn, will eventually end up stagnating future development.

Additionally, if Bill 66 is meant to restore Ontario's "competitiveness", allowing municipalities to circumvent these assessments will have a direct impact on working tax payers within the Province. Archaeologists are a hidden but surprisingly large workforce in Ontario, with many small and large consulting companies supporting environmental and archaeological assessments for development projects. Eliminating potential work for archaeologists and their respective companies will directly effect their ability to operate and this policy will wind up being the exact opposite of "open-for-business".