JULY 17TH, 2008 - AN OPEN LETTER TO PREMIER MCGUINTY

July 17, 2008

Premier Dalton McGuinty
Legislative Building
Queen's Park
Toronto, ON
M7A 1A1

Dear Premier McGuinty,

On behalf of Ontario Nature's 140 member groups and more than 30,000 individual members and supporters, I congratulate and thank you for your precedent-setting announcement to protect at least 50 percent of Ontario's northern Boreal, the biggest protected areas announcement in Ontario's history and one that will triple the protected areas base. This commitment is precedent setting not only in Ontario but across Canada and globally; it demonstrates real leadership and sets a standard that others can and should follow to conserve biodiversity and buffer against climate change. Protecting such a vast and largely intact landscape will benefit local communities, society at large and, critically, wildlife and precious habitats.

Ontario Nature has a wealth of conservation planning experience and knowledge. We would be pleased to contribute our expertise to land-use planning decisions and biodiversity conservation. The emphasis on First Nations consultation in developing community-based land use plans is integral to this process. We hope, too, that planning and consultation will place equivalent value on meeting the needs of wide-ranging species like the woodland caribou, whose populations have declined so dramatically.

Ontario Nature also commends you for undertaking a review of the antiquated Mining Act and is pleased to see the importance you have placed on revising this important piece of legislation by introducing it in the fall. Your announcement paid due attention to Aboriginal rights and free entry, and we anticipate that you will address the equally important need for environmental assessments at each stage of the mining process.

We look forward to witnessing the creation of a fully protected area in the Boreal with firm boundaries in place - a home for rare and vulnerable species such as caribou, wolverines, polar bears and songbirds.

You can count on the continued involvement and support of Ontario Nature and our network of local groups and individual supporters to achieve this ambitious conservation target.

Yours sincerely,

Caroline Schultz
Executive Director