The purpose of Ontario's…

The purpose of Ontario's Endangered Species Act, 2007 (ESA) is to protect and support the recovery of at-risk species and their habitats. If the government's review of this act finds that it is 'ineffective' then the ESA should be strengthened. It should not be weakened. Thorough administrative process and comprehensive applicant submissions are required for an effective and robust ESA. These aspects of the act should not be analyzed as 'administratively burdensome, time-consuming and costly for applicants'. It is important to have a well defined regulatory framework so businesses know what is expected of them. Weakening the framework would only serve to further threaten our at-risk species.

In Ontario there are already 243 species at risk. The very densely populated Carolinian region of southern Ontario is home to the highest concentration of endangered species in Canada. It is not surprising that habitat loss and degradation is the main reason for the decline of many of these plants and animals. Protecting these fragile species and what remains of their habitats cannot be viewed as 'barriers to economic development'. The endangered species cannot relocate. Their options have been removed by us. Fortunately, the planed economic projects do have options.

With thoughtful and responsible leadership we do not have to compromise our protections of the endangered species to have a healthy economy. Do not weaken the ESA by making the regressive changes implied by the 'Discussion Paper'.