Wasaga Beach is one of the…

Wasaga Beach is one of the most significant habitats in Ontario for the Piping Plover, an endangered species in Ontario. This unique bird was extirpated from the province for 30-year before returning in 2007. However, numbers remain very low, so any habitat used for nesting by the species is vitally important for its preservation. Wasaga Beach has hosted 57 nests since 2007 and added half of the province's fledglings in this period, making it an even more important site for the species.

Currently, the only protection afforded to Wasaga Beach as piping plover habitat is by virtue of the Provincial Parks and Conservation Reserves Act, 2006. If the land is transferred to the town, this protection will disappear, leaving the habitat vulnerable to destruction and degradation. Piping Plovers are especially susceptible to disturbance by human activity, which is likely to occur if Wasaga Beach becomes a tourist attraction rather than a protected provincial park.

I urge the province of Ontario to reconsider their decision to remove land from the provincial park and to enact measures to protect this critically important habitat for an endangered bird species.