Conservation Authorities and our Environment under Attack
In light of this background, it is a matter of great concern that the Conservative Government of Doug Ford used legislation supposedly related to the COVID crisis (Bill 229, Protect, Support and Recover from COVID-19 Act) to undermine significantly the role of conservation authorities and the protection of our environment. This Act enhances the increasing use of Minister Zoning Orders by requiring conservation authorities to issue permits even if these go against their responsibility to protect the environment. It also provides new powers for the Minister to by-pass conservation authorities and issue permits and it curtails the ability of conservation authorities to appeal to the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal (the body that replaced the longstanding Ontario Municipal Board).
The Canadian Environmental Law Association described this legislation as but the most recent example of the use of omnibus bills to weaken environmental laws and claimed that it would set back watershed planning and an ecosystem-based approach by decades. The Chair of the Ontario Greenbelt Council (David Crombie) and then nine of its fourteen members resigned in response, with Crombie bluntly stating “this is not policy and institutional reform. This is high-level bombing and needs to be resisted.”
Must We Keep Repeating the Same Mistakes?
As discussed in earlier blogs, many of our public health problems arise from the fact that over 90% of health care expenditures are actually devoted to sickness care, with far too little allocated to the prevention of illness and maintenance of good health. This shortsighted approach was evident again recently when the Ford Government announced cuts to provincial funding of public health programs – not long before the COVID crisis burst upon the scene.
The current COVID crisis will dissipate but our long term prospects for survival are not promising unless we accept the reality of climate change and take the steps needed to protect our environment. The dramatic and deadly example provided by Hurricane Hazel highlighted the importance of conservation authorities and they must be protected from the irresponsible actions of Destructive Doug.