Environment ministry failing to maintain Environmental Bill of Rights postings, says Huron-Bruce MPP

The Environmental Bill of Rights Report Card, released by Ontario's Environmental Commissioner, Tuesday, shows an abysmal track record by the Ontario Ministry of Environment and Climate Change to update postings and provide relevant supporting documentation, says Huron-Bruce MPP Lisa Thompson, Progressive Conservative (PC) environment and cap-and-trade critic.

 

In the report, the environment ministry received a failing grade in the timeliness category, a result of its failure to inform the public of a decision or update in more than two years on 686 outdated notices.   

 

"Ontarians have a right to know what is going on in their own backyards," says Thompson. "Many people rely on the bill of rights to follow a local issue, or to monitor how their properties will be impacted by certain initiatives. It is irresponsible to keep people in the dark for years waiting for relevant information."

 

The environmental commissioner also identified the handling of applications - for the ministry to review concerns relating to an environmentally-significant law, policy or regulation - as an area that the ministry is failing in, with six applications overdue by several years or more. One application dates back to 2009.   

 

"The minister (Glen Murray) has provided no timeline and no guarantees that any of the six outdated applications will be concluded in a reasonable timeframe," says Thompson. "Communities and businesses need more than vague promises, and the minister has a responsibility to make these postings a priority."

 

The Environmental Commissioner's Environmental Bill of Rights Performance Check-up can be found at the following link: http://docs.assets.eco.on.ca/reports/special-reports/2016/EBR-Performance-Checkup_EN.pdf