Please ask the Minister to restore the integrity of the Endangered Species Act | Endangered Species

Please ask the Minister to restore the integrity of the Endangered Species Act

2,499 emails sent

Minister Andrea Khanjin, Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks
Minister of Natural Resources, Graydon Smith
Associate Minister of Forestry and Forest Products, Kevin Holland
Chief of Staff to Minister Khanjin, Brock Hamley
Your local MPP

Find your local rep

Subject:

Dear Minister Khanjin and Minister Smith,

Re: Restore the Integrity of the Endangered Species Act

I urge you to reverse changes made to the Endangered Species Act (the Act) and its regulations since 2019 and restore an effective, science-based regulatory regime that protects and promotes recovery of Ontario’s species at risk.

With over 230 threatened or endangered species, Ontario is currently losing more biodiversity than we are conserving, according to the Ontario Biodiversity Council. The preamble to the Act recognizes that “biological diversity is among the great treasures of our planet”. Yet, changes to the Act have undermined its stated purposes.

Specifically, I ask you to:

• Restore the assessment and listing process to ensure consistency with other provinces and remove the ability to delay listing for 12 months and suspension of protections for up to three years based on social and economic considerations

• Ensure provisions of the Endangered Species Act apply to forestry operations in a Crown forest, in collaboration with the Minister of Natural Resources

• Revoke the provisions of the Species at Risk Conservation Fund (s. 20.1 – 20.18 of the Act), and associated regulations and restore the overall benefit standard

• Revoke O.Reg 6/24: Limitations on Section 9 Prohibitions and ensure effective habitat protection of black ash through Section 9 of the Act, recognizing its cultural significance

• Implement recommendation 8 from the Auditor General’s Value for Money Audit: Protecting and Recovering Species at Risk (2021) regarding the effectiveness of conditional exemptions

• Restore the independence and science focus of the Committee on the Status of Species at Risk in Ontario

• Increase Ministerial oversight and enforcement capabilities as recommended by the Auditor General’s 2021 report

• Increase funding to the Species at Risk Stewardship Program in line with the number of regulated species at risk
 
• Maintain existing habitat protections for redside dace and the ability for Conservation Authorities to comment on matters pertaining to the Endangered Species Act

It is imperative that Ontario show leadership in protecting and restoring species at risk in the midst of the biodiversity crisis. The long-term health and well-being of province’s ecosystems and people depend on it.

Please restore the integrity of the Endangered Species Act and ensure its effective implementation.

How we use the data you enter on this form

Do Gooder (the advocacy platform powering this online action) processes personal information from you that you enter on this form so that we can provide the functions and related services to you and The Campaigner (the organisation responsible for this online action) for their legitimate purposes, including possibly exporting it to other systems, and to effectively respond to enquiries and communications related to those services.

Specifically when you enter:

Your location data (residential address or postcode) it is used to locate your elected representative, to pre-populate your email signature and to provide The Campaigner with a visualisation of the location of the support for this campaign.
All other data you may enter, including your email address, name, telephone number, commentary and so on is used by The Campaigner to advocate for the campaign’s goals and where required may be sent to the target of the campaign.

The data collected by Do Gooder is also used by us in aggregate form to improve the service and may be held on your behalf outside your country of residence by our third party service providers. These providers are bound by contract to only use personal information on our behalf, in accordance with agreed terms. While the privacy laws of the country in which personal information is stored or transferred may be different from those in your country, we will always have safeguards in place when storing or transferring personal information. We will never sell, rent, loan or in any other way pass your information on to other parties other than to provide this service to you and The Campaigner.

The personal information collected by Do Gooder is held subject to a Data Processing Agreement between Do Gooder and The Campaigner in compliance with the EU's GDPR and Australian law.

Learn more about our privacy policy here

How is my data used?