I am concerned about…

I am concerned about Provincially Significant Wetlands losing their designation and protection, as they are integral to our flood management, water quality, and biodiversity concerns. If the justification for streamlining this overhaul is to enable more land to be allocated to housing projects, this does not seem supported by data about our current housing land that is available - we should be building mixed density residential areas, not expanding urban sprawl into new areas. I am also concerned that responsibility for evaluating Ontario's wetlands will be downloaded to municipalities and proponents of housing projects should the MNRF remove itself from this process. Cities do not have the expertise to do this in a robust way (especially if they cannot work alongside conservation authorities) and it doesn't enable a watershed-scale perspective on the role of connected wetland complexes that span jurisdictions. Wetlands serve a critical ecological function, and I think this overhaul damages the safety and sustainability of our water resources for future generations.