Ford government ‘deliberately’ avoided public consultations on environment, auditor concludes

Thestar.com
Nov. 23, 2021
Kristin Rushowy

Minister’s zoning orders should be subject to public scrutiny, Ontario’s auditor general says in a new report that also lambastes the provincial government for not being more transparent with the public on environmental issues.

“Ministries are not notifying and consulting Ontarians about all of the environmentally significant decisions that they should be,” Bonnie Lysyk said in the report released Monday.

“Some ministries have deliberately avoided consulting the public about some proposals,” she wrote, adding that “even when this avoidance is legally valid, such actions to prevent the public from participating are inconsistent with the purpose and spirit” of the Environmental Bill of Rights Act.

And even when ministries do hold public consultations under the act, “they are not always providing Ontarians with clear, accurate and complete information about their proposals and decisions, including the environmental implications, and they are not always providing notice in a timely manner,” the report said. “Both are needed for meaningful consultation and transparency.”

The Star has written extensively on the Ford government’s frequent use of minister’s zoning orders -- which are known as “MZOs” --to expedite developments in a manner that cannot be appealed.

Lysyk also said Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Steve Clark violated the Environmental Bill of Rights Act “when he failed to consult on amendments to the planning act that enhanced powers regarding minister’s zoning orders.”

In response to the report by Lysyk and Tyler Schulz, commissioner of the environment in the auditor general’s office, the municipal affairs ministry said “the minister has publicly stated that he expects that before a municipality requests an MZO they do their due diligence which includes consultation in their communities, connecting with conservation authorities and engaging with potentially affected Indigenous communities.

“The minister has also publicly stated that he expects that municipal requirements for a zoning order include a supporting council resolution. As council meetings are generally open to the public, this expectation is meant to ensure public awareness of a request being made for the minister to consider making a zoning order.”

But Lysyk said that “proposals for minister’s zoning orders under the Planning Act have the potential to have significant effect on the environment. Revoking the exempting for minister’s zoning orders under the (Environmental Bill of Rights Act) would give Ontarians the right to be consulted about environmentally significant proposals.”

The report points to Pickering’s Lower Duffins Creek, a sensitive wetland that the minister later removed from his zoning order, something Lysyk said could have been avoided with proper public consultation.

In 2020, the government issued an MZO for a warehouse and other buildings at the site, which initially included the environmentally sensitive area.

Lysyk also had harsh words for the Ministry of the Environment and its handling of issues such as hazardous spills and policies for endangered species.

“The public would expect a ministry named the Ministry of the Environment to take the lead and be proactive in ensuring that Ontario’s environment is protected for future generations,” she said at Queen’s Park.

However, she added, “our work indicated there are many areas where this is not the case.”

Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner said “the lack of accountability on climate and environment from this government is simply astounding. It puts people at risk.”

Environment, Conservation and Parks Minister David Piccini told reporters at Queen’s Park that the government has “robust oversight for species at risk.” He said criticism that an oversight committee is dominated by non-experts and lobbyists ignores the talent, and that “we embrace diversity of opinion.”

He also noted the government has created Ontario’s first climate change impact assessment.

NDP climate crisis critic Peter Tabuns, however, said the government is “rubber stamping requests for MZOs” and “going ahead with unneeded highways.”

“Instead of making big polluters pay for 78,000 toxic spills they are responsible for, Doug Ford is forcing Ontario families to pay millions in cleanup costs, letting big industry off the hook,” Tabuns said.