Ontario Nature Blog

Believe it or not, Ontario’s Endangered Species Act (ESA) was passed with all-party support back in 2007. Subsequently, of course, it was undermined through numerous exemptions and approvals for harmful activities, and now, through Bill 5, the Government of Ontario is tossing it aside completely. It is being replaced by the Species Conservation Act, 2025, ...

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Polar bears are icons of the north – powerful, resilient and increasingly at risk. Some of Canada’s polar bear population live in Ontario, and how we protect them matters not only provincially, but globally. In response to the federal government’s draft Management Plan for the Polar Bear in Canada, Ontario Nature is raising serious concerns ...

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During a global climate and biodiversity crisis, Ontario’s 2025 budget, introduced as Bill 24, Plan to Protect Ontario Act, fails to deliver critical investments in nature protection and conservation. Instead, it slashes funding for essential services like emergency preparedness and forest firefighting while passing environmental conservation costs from proponents to taxpayers. Here’s what you need ...

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The Government of Ontario has proposed to replace Ontario’s Endangered Species Act (ESA), which serves to protect species at risk and habitats they require to survive, with Bill 5 entitled “Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, 2025”. This bill proposes to first make significant amendments to the ESA and then replace it altogether with ...

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After years of neglect, endangered species in Ontario are facing their biggest threat in a generation in the form of Bill 5, the Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, 2025. If passed, Bill 5 would scrap the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and create “special economic zones” where developers and resource companies would be exempt ...

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