As someone who values…

As someone who values wetlands for the incredible services they provide (water storage, water filtration) which taxpayers would otherwise have to pay for infrastructure to deal with, I have to say the proposed changes to OWES are absolutely terrible. Getting rid of provincial oversight, wetland complexes and consideration for species at risk would lead to many of our wetlands being unprotected and therefore developed. We need wetland complexes to help mitigate the increased record breaking storm and flood events caused by climate change. I urge you to consult with organizations who are experts at mitigating floods like conservation authorities, reinstate provincial oversight through the MNRF and do not remove wetland complexes from the OWES.

I am not against building more housing, but getting rid of wetlands to do it is completely unnecessary and short-sighted.