Jeff yurek

Ford’s energy minister was also shuffled in a massive changeup. Ford also brought back Rod Phillips, a former finance and environment minister who previously resigned from caucus taking a tropical vacation amid COVID-19.

Should millions of litres of wastewater from the Greater Toronto Area flow into Lake Simcoe or Lake Ontario? The Ontario government is seeking to appoint an expert panel to help it choose from a slate of unpopular options.

Lawyers representing several environmental groups argued Monday that the Ford government failed to meet the requirement to consult the public when it passed the law, which rewrote Ontario’s environmental assessment rules.

The number of new additions to the list is unusually high this year — that’s because of logistical delays, not Ontario’s new endangered species law.

Ontario's years-long battle with Ottawa over the federal carbon tax came to an end on Thursday, March 25, 2021, when the country's top court ruled the national price on pollution was constitutional.

Under fire during question period Tuesday, the Ford government didn’t address criticism about the environmental impact of MZOs, the subject of a Canada's National Observer investigation released last week. But PC MPP Parm Gill said the government “will not apologize.” Later, the government announced renewed funding for the Greenbelt Foundation, which critics said was a distraction.

How well endangered species fare under the 2019 changes will depend on how the Ford government implements the new rules, some of which have “ambiguous” wording, researchers from Simon Fraser and Western universities say.

Amid backlash over a controversial bill that gutted conservation authorities’ powers, the Ontario government is appointing a working group to advise it on how the changes should roll out. The panel will be led by a conservation official, an apparent olive branch to the watershed management agencies.

The Ford government has cancelled green energy programs and tried to halt partially built wind farms. But now it’s announcing plans to reduce emissions through a new “hydrogen economy" as a way to boost the economy amid COVID-19.

Ontario’s auditor general released four reports on the state of the environment in the province Wednesday, finding that the Ford government is failing to follow the rules. While opposition parties slammed the Progressive Conservatives, Environment Minister Jeff Yurek said he was “proud” of his ministry’s work.

Conservation authorities oversee Ontario watersheds. The changes to how they work could allow developers to circumvent checks and balances brought in after hurricane Hazel in 1954, which destroyed houses built on flood-plains.

In a statement Monday, federal Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said Premier Doug Ford’s program “meets the minimum stringency requirements” to replace Ottawa’s version and the government is “required” to sign off. He also said the government intends to make its threshold more stringent after 2022.

The government passed Bill 197 last month without holding public consultations, which are required under Ontario’s Environmental Bill of Rights. Environmental advocates filed a first challenge last month, and a group of First Nations are planning a third.

Though the study is an important step, the government needs to make an effort to reduce carbon emissions, said Sarah Buchanan from Environmental Defence. "This is like watching your house burn down, and instead of calling the firefighters, calling your insurance company," she said.

The government’s failure to consult the public on environmental changes in Bill 197 was against the rules, the auditor general has said. Now, three environmental groups are asking a judge to declare the Ontario government's actions were "unlawful," calling it a "pattern of illegal conduct."