Ford government fast-tracking Highway 413 following potential federal intervention

Environmental advocates are sounding the alarm over new legislation proposed by the Ford government that “fast-tracks” highway construction, arguing it is an attempt to rush construction of Highway 413 before a federal environmental assessment could halt the project.

The Building Highways Faster Act, introduced on Thursday, streamlines the highway construction process by designating “priority projects,” such as Highway 413, the Bradford Bypass, and the Garden City Skyway bridge, for accelerated development. The government says the legislation, if passed, would speed up utility relocations and property acquisitions, and permit around-the-clock, 24/7 construction on these projects. It would also impose penalties for obstructing access to field investigations or damaging equipment.

However, experts suggest Highway 413 would cut through critical environmentally-protected areas, harm endangered species, degrade water quality, and damage sensitive ecosystems like the Greenbelt.

In a statement, Ontario's Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkari justified the new legislation by pointing toward Ontario’s significant population growth, with an additional two million residents expected by 2031.  

“If we don’t accelerate an increase in capacity beyond our existing highway and rapid transit projects, all 400-series highways in the GTHA, including Highway 407, will be at or exceed capacity within the next decade.”

Documents released this week by Environmental Defence, obtained through Access to Information legislation, unveiled serious concerns from federal impact assessment staff regarding the Ontario government's handling of environmental protections related to the proposed Highway 413. The findings indicate that the highway’s planned route overlaps with the last significant habitat for the critically endangered Western Chorus Frog in the province.

The 68-page report outlines several critical issues under federal jurisdiction, including potential violations of the Species at Risk Act, the Fisheries Act, and the Migratory Birds Convention Act. The federal government expressed alarm over Ontario's data collection practices, inadequate species protection measures, and questionable plans for relocating at-risk species.

The Ontario government is also proposing legislation that would create an accelerated environmental assessment process for Highway 413, allowing early work on the project to begin, while maintaining what it calls Ontario’s “stringent” oversight of environmental protections.

But Phil Pothen, program manager at Environmental Defence, says the Ford government’s proposed legislation is an attempt to evade federal oversight and transparency about the project's environmental impacts. He argues these actions leave the federal government no choice but to quickly reinstate its independent impact assessment for the highway. 

“This situation shows that the provincial government is desperate to avoid scrutiny of its actions,” Pothen said. 

He cautions that starting early construction before federal environmental assessments could undermine protections for endangered fish species, as the provincial government might claim these works change the baseline for evaluating harm. 

“The only lawful way to assess the effects of Highway 413 on endangered species is to compare it with alternatives that don’t involve building a highway at all,” Pothen said. “If construction has already started, the province may pressure the federal government to limit itself by comparing the relative impact of different ways to build Highway 413 without evaluating the option of not building the highway at all.”

Early construction activities, such as cutting down trees and bulldozing soil, can lead to significant environmental harm, with damage occurring even before any concrete is poured, he said. 

Earlier this year, the Ford government received the green light to proceed with the controversial Highway 413 project after a lengthy battle with the federal government, which culminated in Ottawa's decision to drop its environmental impact assessment. The federal and Ontario governments have signed a memorandum of understanding to establish a joint federal-provincial working group. This group will assess the effects of Highway 413 on federally-listed species at risk, including the redside dace, and work to identify measures to avoid, lessen, or mitigate these impacts.

Another report also recently warned of severe habitat destruction, biodiversity loss, water contamination and other serious impacts if the highway proceeds across three key watersheds.

Experts suggest there is still a strong case for the federal government to reinstate the environmental impact assessment since a recent federal recovery strategy for the redside dace indicates that building Highway 413 would be illegal.

Pothen said that environmental assessments, when conducted properly, prevent the government from falsely claiming that a project is safe.

“If Highway 413 impact assessment were to proceed, it would mean full public knowledge of the environmental harms,” Pothen said. “The government's reluctance to allow a proper environmental impact assessment suggests it isn’t confident that such a review would allow Highway 413 to proceed.”