This consultation was open from:
March 26, 2021
to May 10, 2021
Decision summary
MTO has updated its Statement of Environmental Values (SEV) to reflect the ministry’s current vision, mandate and business, and to strengthen the priority of addressing climate change.
Decision details
On October 6, 2021, Ministry of Transportation (MTO) has made the decision to finalize the current update to its Statement of Environmental Values (SEV).
Based on the original proposal and received comments, the ministry is proceeding with the following changes to its SEV:
- Updated ministry’s vision, mandate and priorities – with additional refences to active transportation;
- References to consider mobility, connectivity and access related impacts and measures to better assess alternatives and provide more evidence-based recommendations;
- Commitment to examine the Statement of Environmental Values every five years and/or whenever there is a significant change in mandate;
- A new section acknowledging the priority of addressing climate change;
- Updated Indigenous section to recognize the perspectives and contributions of Indigenous peoples to a healthy environment;
- Updated language to ensure consistency with other OPS SEV documents; and
- Ensured all language and references are up-to-date and current.
Effects of consultation
All comments received were reviewed in detail and taken into consideration when making the final decision to update MTO’s SEV.
Generally, the comments were supportive of MTO’s update to the SEV. Acknowledgments were made for the inclusion of the new climate change section, as well commitments to the reduction of air pollution and recognition of specific MTO green initiatives such as the green vehicle licence plates.
In response to the comments received, additional references to active transportation and minor editorial changes were incorporated.
The SEV provides guidance when considering decisions for policies and Act. As such, the document must apply broadly across MTO initiatives. For this reason, several comments were not included in the final draft as the language was too specific (e.g. agricultural impacts, or specific organizations for collaboration). However, MTO would consider these under broader commitments (e.g. environmental impacts, research and development, etc.).
A number of comments related to expanding the climate change section were submitted. In response, additional commitments were included to reduce the impact of Ontario’s transportation sector on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and harness sustainable technologies and innovations to support climate resilient infrastructure.
Supporting materials
View materials in person
Some supporting materials may not be available online. If this is the case, you can request to view the materials in person.
Get in touch with the office listed below to find out if materials are available.
College Park 30th Floor Suite 3000, 777 Bay St,
Toronto,
ON
M7A 2J8
Canada
Connect with us
Contact
Katerina Downard
777 Bay Street
Suite 700
Toronto,
ON
M7A 2J8
Canada
Original proposal
Proposal details
The Ministry of Transportation is proposing an update to its Statement of Environmental Values (SEV) in order to reflect its current vision, mandate and business, to acknowledge the priority of addressing climate change, and ensure up-to-date references.
The Environmental Bill of Rights,1993 (EBR) is a tool in environmental protection. It establishes mechanisms to ensure the public is informed, engaged and consulted on matters of environmental significance, as well as to provide for government accountability in environmental decision-making.
The EBR requires that each ministry prescribed under the act develop and publish a SEV specific to the work of that ministry. A SEV is a ministry’s statement of environmental principles and a guidance document directing the minister and ministry staff as they make decisions regarding policies, acts, regulations and instruments that might affect the environment.
The EBR requires that the ministry’s SEV explains:
- how the purposes of the act are to be applied when decisions that might significantly affect the environment are made in the ministry; and,
- how consideration of the purposes of the act should be integrated with other considerations, including social, economic and scientific considerations, that are part of decision-making in the ministry.
The ministry is proposing the following changes to its SEV:
- update the ministry’s vision, mandate and priorities;
- including reference to consider mobility, connectivity and access related impacts and measures to better assess alternatives and provide more evidence-based recommendations;
- reference that states the ministry will examine the Statement of Environmental Values every five years and/or whenever there is a significant change in mandate;
- a section to acknowledge the priority of addressing climate change;
- updated Indigenous section to recognize the perspectives and contributions of Indigenous peoples to a healthy environment;
- update language to ensure consistency with other OPS SEV documents; and,
- ensure all language and references are up-to-date and current.
Supporting materials
View materials in person
Some supporting materials may not be available online. If this is the case, you can request to view the materials in person.
Get in touch with the office listed below to find out if materials are available.
College Park 30th Floor Suite 3000, 777 Bay St,
Toronto,
ON
M7A 2J8
Canada
Comment
Commenting is now closed.
This consultation was open from March 26, 2021
to May 10, 2021
Connect with us
Contact
Cheryl Davis
777 Bay Street
Suite 700
Toronto,
ON
M7A 2J8
Canada
Comments received
Through the registry
3By email
1By mail
0