“Another attack on the environment,” Tabuns rips Ford’s decision to gut conservation authorities

QUEEN’S PARK — Ontario NDP Shadow Minister for Environment, Conservation, and Parks Peter Tabuns (Toronto—Danforth) says the Ford government going ahead with plans to shrink the province’s conservation authorities paves the way for destructive sprawl and environmental disasters.

“Conservation authorities were created to safeguard Ontarians and their homes from environmental disasters,” said Tabuns. “Doug Ford and Minister McCarthy see them as an unnecessary hurdle for their developer friends looking to make a profit.

“This is yet another attack on our environment by the Ford government. Our watersheds are unique, and each one has varying needs that will fall by the wayside when haphazardly lumped together. Drawing these arbitrary lines on a map undermines local control and the ability to respond to local problems.

“The Ford Conservatives say this is all about cutting red tape. What they mean are the regulations that keep Ontario and its ecosystems safe from contaminated water, flooding, and species loss. They need to scrap this destructive plan and leave our conservation authorities in the hands of experts.”