The establishment of …

The establishment of “Special Economic Zones” where provincial laws, regulations, instruments, municipal by-laws, and municipal instruments can be suspended to enable “trusted proponents” to develop projects raises serious concerns about the rule of law.

It is neither democratic nor reasonable to ask the public to trust those who have vested interests in particular economic projects and lack the necessary scientific expertise to make decisions that may or may not destroy water, air quality, soil quality, carbon sinks and other aspects of natural heritage that sustain wildlife and human health.

Thorough and comprehensive environmental assessments of all projects that have the potential to put these life-sustaining assets at risk are necessary in order to uphold charter rights, such as the Citizens' Right to Life, Liberty and Security, and the Aboriginal and Treaty Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Canada. Waiving such assessments is, therefore, unconstitutional.

For the same reasons, it is unconstitutional to:

-curtail public consultation related to such projects.
-waive the need for government accountability to the public with regard to such projects.
-waive the Crown’s Duty to Consult and attain free, prior and informed consent from First Nations, Metis and Inuit peoples, as outlined in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).
-dismantle or undermine key legal protections that safeguard our environment, human health, and Indigenous rights.

The wording, "protect Ontario's economy" is a sardonic jab at those who advocate for the protection of the environment, and implies that economic sustainability is incompatible with environmental sustainability. In fact, the assumption that the economy can only be strengthened at the expense of the environment underpins all of the proposed changes in Bill 5. We don't have to create an economy that decimates the environment. We can sustain the economy and the environment, but not without substantial and ongoing input from third-party, trained scientists and indigenous peoples. Failure to include these voices is deeply unconstitutional, and can only lead to one result: Extensive and irreparable damage to crucial carbon sinks, water sources, air quality, and our province's precious and irreplaceable natural heritage.