<html><body style="overflow-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;"><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><div style="overflow-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space; position: relative;"><div><div dir="auto" style="overflow-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;"><div dir="auto" style="overflow-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;"><div style="overflow-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;"><div style="overflow-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;"><div><div class="row" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-right: -15px; margin-left: -15px; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: "Merriweather Sans", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><div class="tsArticleContainer star true" data-length="39" data-lpos="asset|body" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div id="asset-content" data-asset-uuid="c52a3cc2-40f8-574b-aa14-a38984ed7b5b" class="tsArticle" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; margin-top: 24px;"><div class="asset-body" style="box-sizing: border-box; width: 690px; padding: 0px; max-width: 100%; margin: 0px auto; position: relative !important;"><div id="article-body" data-tier="1" itemprop="articleBody" class="asset-content subscriber-premium" data-lpos="asset|body" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="inline-asset inline-image layout-vertical subscriber-hide tnt-inline-asset tnt-inline-relcontent tnt-inline-image tnt-inline-relation-child tnt-inline-presentation-default tnt-inline-alignment-default tnt-inline-width-default" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 24px; width: 690px; clear: right; margin-right: auto; float: none !important; margin-left: 0px !important;"><figure class="photo layout-vertical hover-expand letterbox-style-default" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; cursor: pointer; position: relative;"><div class="image" data-toggle="modal" data-photo-target=".photo-769b2886-9b73-566b-ae05-1bf2dec31f5f" data-instance="#gallery-items-c52a3cc2-40f8-574b-aa14-a38984ed7b5b-photo-modal" data-target="#photo-carousel-c52a3cc2-40f8-574b-aa14-a38984ed7b5b" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85);"><div itemprop="image" itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/ImageObject" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div></div><figcaption class="caption" style="box-sizing: border-box; cursor: initial; margin-bottom: 0px; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.15); padding-bottom: 16px;"><span class="caption-text" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: var(--font-daily-sans); padding: 10px 0px; display: block;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; line-height: 20px; font-family: var(--font-daily-sans); overflow-wrap: break-word; letter-spacing: 0em;">Ontario alone is home to more than 230 species at risk like this eastern meadowlark. Bill 5 would scrap the Endangered Species Act.</p></span><span class="credit" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: var(--font-daily-sans); font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">Drew Monkman</span><span class="clearfix" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: var(--font-daily-sans);"></span></figcaption></figure></div></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: var(--font-daily-text); line-height: 24px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; font-size: 22px;">4. Weakening of environmental oversight</h2></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 16px; font-size: 20px; line-height: 28px; font-family: var(--font-daily-text); overflow-wrap: break-word;">Bill 5 reduces the role and influence of conservation authorities (CAs). Traditionally, conservation authorities have had the power to review development proposals and provide scientific input on their environmental impact. Bill 5 limits the scope of this oversight by restricting the ability of CAs to review and comment on development applications that do not directly impact flood control. This effectively sidelines their broader environmental mandate.</p></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: var(--font-daily-text); line-height: 24px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; font-size: 22px;">5. Encouraging urban sprawl</h2></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 16px; font-size: 20px; line-height: 28px; font-family: var(--font-daily-text); overflow-wrap: break-word;">Bill 5 facilitates unchecked urban sprawl, which leads to the fragmentation of ecosystems, increased greenhouse gas emissions, and greater strain on infrastructure and public services. It incentivizes development in greenfield areas, many of which include vital natural heritage features such as wetlands, woodlands, and endangered species habitats. This shift undermines the goals of smart growth, which emphasize compact, transit-friendly, and environmentally sustainable communities.</p></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: var(--font-daily-text); line-height: 24px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; font-size: 22px;">6. Conflicts with climate goals</h2></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 16px; font-size: 20px; line-height: 28px; font-family: var(--font-daily-text); overflow-wrap: break-word;">Bill 5 is clearly out of step with Ontario’s climate change commitments. The bill’s promotion of low-density, car-dependent development contradicts the province’s stated goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and promoting climate-resilient infrastructure. Sprawl not only increase emissions from transportation but also contribute to higher energy and water consumption.</p></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 16px; font-size: 20px; line-height: 28px; font-family: var(--font-daily-text); overflow-wrap: break-word;">Furthermore, natural features like forests and wetlands are crucial carbon sinks. By facilitating their destruction, Bill 5 undermines the province’s ability to mitigate climate change impacts. </p></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: var(--font-daily-text); line-height: 24px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; font-size: 22px;">7. Impacts on Indigenous rights</h2></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 16px; font-size: 20px; line-height: 28px; font-family: var(--font-daily-text); overflow-wrap: break-word;">Bill 5 has serious implications for Indigenous rights, particularly around land, sovereignty, consultation, and environmental stewardship. It fast-tracks development, potentially bypassing full consultation with First Nations communities and pushing Ontario further away from reconciliation.</p></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 16px; font-size: 20px; line-height: 28px; font-family: var(--font-daily-text); overflow-wrap: break-word;">The Anishinabek Nation, representing 39 First Nations, has called for an immediate halt to the Bill. They assert that the legislation “continues to ignore, violate, and threaten the inherent rights of Anishinabek people and the foundational principles of their treaty relationship with the Crown.”</p><div class="article-pe-boxad-wrapper subscriber-hide" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 24px; margin-bottom: 24px;"></div></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: var(--font-daily-text); line-height: 24px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; font-size: 22px;">8. Reducing municipal and public input</h2></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 16px; font-size: 20px; line-height: 28px; font-family: var(--font-daily-text); overflow-wrap: break-word;">Bill 5 also alters the planning approval process in ways that reduce the influence of municipalities and the public. By centralizing more decision-making power in the hands of the provincial government allowing developers to bypass certain municipal regulations, the Bill diminishes local control over land use planning. This is particularly concerning for conservation groups that work closely with local governments to protect ecologically sensitive areas.</p></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 16px; font-size: 20px; line-height: 28px; font-family: var(--font-daily-text); overflow-wrap: break-word;">Bill 5 also shortens timelines for public consultation and limits appeals through the Ontario Land Tribunal, making it harder for residents and environmental groups to challenge controversial developments.</p></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="inline-asset inline-image layout-horizontal subscriber-hide tnt-inline-asset tnt-inline-relcontent tnt-inline-image tnt-inline-relation-child tnt-inline-presentation-default tnt-inline-alignment-default tnt-inline-width-default" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 24px; width: 690px; float: right; clear: right; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><figure class="photo layout-horizontal hover-expand letterbox-style-default" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; cursor: pointer; position: relative;"><span class="expand hidden-print" data-toggle="modal" data-photo-target=".photo-5e282882-3036-58e1-87f3-8e45de8a2306" data-instance="#gallery-items-c52a3cc2-40f8-574b-aa14-a38984ed7b5b-photo-modal" data-target="#photo-carousel-c52a3cc2-40f8-574b-aa14-a38984ed7b5b" style="box-sizing: border-box; transition: 0.25s ease-out; opacity: 0; z-index: 99; position: absolute; top: 10px; left: 10px; background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5); color: rgb(255, 255, 255); padding: 5px 10px; border-radius: 5px; font-size: 18px !important;"><svg class="tnt-svg tnt-expand tnt-w-14" aria-hidden="true" data-prefix="fas" data-icon="expand" role="presentation" xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 448 512" data-fa-i2svg=""><path fill="currentColor" d="M0 180V56c0-13.3 10.7-24 24-24h124c6.6 0 12 5.4 12 12v40c0 6.6-5.4 12-12 12H64v84c0 6.6-5.4 12-12 12H12c-6.6 0-12-5.4-12-12zM288 44v40c0 6.6 5.4 12 12 12h84v84c0 6.6 5.4 12 12 12h40c6.6 0 12-5.4 12-12V56c0-13.3-10.7-24-24-24H300c-6.6 0-12 5.4-12 12zm148 276h-40c-6.6 0-12 5.4-12 12v84h-84c-6.6 0-12 5.4-12 12v40c0 6.6 5.4 12 12 12h124c13.3 0 24-10.7 24-24V332c0-6.6-5.4-12-12-12zM160 468v-40c0-6.6-5.4-12-12-12H64v-84c0-6.6-5.4-12-12-12H12c-6.6 0-12 5.4-12 12v124c0 13.3 10.7 24 24 24h124c6.6 0 12-5.4 12-12z"></path></svg></span><div class="image" data-toggle="modal" data-photo-target=".photo-5e282882-3036-58e1-87f3-8e45de8a2306" data-instance="#gallery-items-c52a3cc2-40f8-574b-aa14-a38984ed7b5b-photo-modal" data-target="#photo-carousel-c52a3cc2-40f8-574b-aa14-a38984ed7b5b" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div itemprop="image" itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/ImageObject" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div></div></figure></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></body></html>