The Ontario government can move forward with construction of a controversial highway after Ottawa abandoned its long-running battle over a federal environmental assessment on Monday.
in a joint declarationThe federal and provincial governments announced an agreement that will allow the Ford government to begin work on Highway 413, which would connect Milton and Vaughan.
However, the new memorandum of understanding signed between the Ontario Ministry of Transportation and the Canadian Impact Assessment Agency establishes a joint working group of provincial and federal officials who will recommend “appropriate measures” to minimize environmental impacts in areas under federal environmental jurisdiction.
“This agreement shows the ability of Canada and Ontario to work together while recognizing their shared jurisdiction on matters related to the environment,” Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault said in a shared joint statement. with the Canadian National Observer. “It also ensures that federal interests in species protection will be upheld while providing Ontario, in light of the recent Supreme Court decision, with a greater level of clarity around the Bill’s review process.” Highway 413″.
Reacting to the agreement, advocacy group Environmental Defense urged the federal government to prioritize environmental protection and quickly redesignate Highway 413 for evaluation under the updated Impact Assessment Act as soon as it takes effect.
“Problems with the current Impact Assessment Act always meant that Highway 413’s current assessment designation would eventually have to be discontinued and reinstated under an updated version of the law,” the group’s statement said. “The expectation of the Ontario public is that Highway 413 be redesignated quickly enough to ensure that the provincial government does not have time to destroy key habitats or waterways during an unprotected period.”
In 2021, former federal Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson ordered an evaluation for Highway 413 due to possible impacts on three endangered species. Ontario could not proceed with construction until the federal government was satisfied that measures were in place to mitigate potential harm to local protected species.
The proposed 60 kilometers The expressway, also known as the GTA West Corridor, aims to relieve congestion in the fast-growing Toronto metropolitan area. However, it would traverse 2,000 acres of farmland, cross 85 waterways, pave nearly 400 acres of protected Green Belt land, disturb 220 wetlands, and impact the habitats of 10 at-risk species.
Last October, a ruling by the Supreme Court of Canada determined that the Ottawa government Impact Assessment Act (IAA), which regulates large development projects, is largely unconstitutional because it encroached on areas under provincial jurisdiction. The AIA, initially known as Bill C-69 and enacted in 2019, allows federal regulators to evaluate the potential environmental and social impacts of various infrastructure and resource projects.
In a joint statement, the federal and provincial governments announced an agreement that will allow the Ford government to begin work on Highway 413, which would connect Milton and Vaughan. #Highway413 #ImpactAssessment
Following the Supreme Court’s decision, the Ford government filed a judicial review to block the federal government from ordering evaluations of crucial infrastructure projects, including Highway 413.
“The agreement announced today gives Ontario the certainty we need to move forward with Highway 413,” said Prabmeet Sarkaria, Ontario’s Minister of Transportation. “I want to thank the federal government for meeting us at the table and collaborating on the environmental protections necessary to begin the project. “In the coming months, we will move forward with procurement to begin work on the project’s key trade-offs, bringing us one step closer to completion.”
It has never been more important to build roads, bridges and highways that drivers depend on, Sarkaria added.
Environmental advocates have long expressed concern about the environmental impact of the proposed Highway 413 for southern Ontario. They argue that road construction generates carbon emissions and that 413 will accelerate the destruction of species’ habitats and disrupt sensitive ecosystems, including wetlands, forests and prime agricultural lands, while emitting tons of CO2 into the atmosphere.
The Environmental Defense statement said not redesignating Highway 413 for a future impact assessment would be “a willful and reckless betrayal of all Ontarians who are experiencing unprecedented attacks on their communities by the provincial government and have trusted the federal parliamentarians to do their job and protect.” the environment instead of colluding with the province in its destruction.”
Research commissioned by Environmental Defense suggests that Highway 413 would contribute more than 17 million tonnes of additional CO2 emissions by 2050, matching Canada’s net-zero emissions target.
The estimated cost of construction of the highway exceeds $6 billion and would significantly impact historic Indigenous sites, while destroying rare habitats of at-risk and endangered species, according to the group.