Editor,
Protection is a broad term. When it includes an exemption from the Environmental Bill of Rights in order to proceed with developments (and more roads, infrastructure, etc.) in areas that are presently wooded, or wetlands in their natural state, with no regard for their importance as natural carbon sinks and the last remaining habitat for endangered species, what or who is the Ford government intending to protect?
The Rebuilding Ontario Place Act, 2023 (from which Bill 5 has been created), resulted in the clearing of all the trees and the development of a luxury privately owned spa on land that was previously accessible to everyone.
Bill 5 proposes to create ‘special economic zones’ where ‘trusted proponents’ could be exempt from provincial and municipal laws. We value the oversight of our municipal governments. These elected officials are directly responsible and accessible to their taxpayers. They have the benefit of local knowledge. Removing municipal oversight in order to force development in our region is a ham-fisted approach. It shows no regard for regional diversity, both in human and natural terms.
When Doug Ford had to step back from taking land from the Greenbelt for development, he apologized to Ontarians. Now he has found another way to do this, in Bill 5.
Bill 5 also includes legislation that would repeal the Endangered Species Act. This would exempt developers and resource companies from the provincial regulations related to building homes and opening mines in sensitive areas. This also puts all Ontarians at risk, of losing access to what’s left of our natural environment and irreversible loss of the remaining wildlife that inhabited it.
More and more, we will come to rely on natural areas and habitats i.e. as ecosystems, for our own health and safety: providing shade, cooling, flood and erosion protection, and enhancing our health, our well-being.
Ontarians can be consulted and worked with. We care about where we live and how. We try to make room for each other as well as for newcomers. We deserve to be heard.
Bill 5, if passed in its current form, will remove the protection of endangered species in Ontario, remove environmental protection measures and the public’s right to be consulted, and threatens to take away the oversight of our elected local governments on land use. This legislation is both disrespectful and highly destructive.
Instead our provincial government should seek positive ways in which communities can work together to solve the crises we all face.
Sincerely,
Danuta Valleau and Michael McLuhan, Georgian Bluffs
