I implore the government to…

I implore the government to stop Bill 66. This bill stands to eliminate environmental protections which keep our drinking water safe, harmful pollutants out of lakes and limits industrial sprawl in the Greenbelt. The Greenbelt is home for farmland, forests, watersheds and wetlands. It is a beautiful green space that sustains life and is one of the largest greenbelts in the world. The Greenbelt is also economically viable to the region. Services like recreational activities, flood protection as well as groundwater recharge for drinking water. We are now plunging head first into the inevitability of climate change, and without the Greenbelt we would lose the capacity to store as much carbon dioxide as would be emitted by 33 million cars a year! Interference in this process annihilates our chance to reduce our emissions and meet climate targets. Bill 66 would let corporations ignore protections like the Clean Water Act, which was put in place after the tragedy in Walkerton. The land that we grow our food on, and provide habitat for endangered species, would be opened up for major industrial development and urban sprawl. Already an eye sore in other areas of Ontario. As an outdoor educator, we are trying to reintroduce children, of this technological age, to nature and the outdoors in order to help reduce the obesity rates and the myriad of problems that are the result of not being exposed to fresh air, limited physical education in schools and greenspaces. Please stop Bill 66. It is an outrage, and would leave an undeniable blight on our beautiful land in Ontario.