Environmental Commissioner Recommends Changes to Ontario’s Environmental Bill of Rights
Toronto, March 1, 2005 - Gord Miller, Environmental Commissioner of Ontario (ECO), released a Special Report to the Legislature today containing several recommendations for strengthening Ontario’s Environmental Bill of Rights (EBR). The report is the result of a wide-ranging review of the EBR, evaluating whether the Act had fully achieved the purposes intended for it by the original Task Force that designed the legislation 10 years ago.
“There’s no question the EBR has been an extremely important legal tool for protecting the environment in this province,” said Gord Miller. “But the tenth anniversary of the EBR seemed a good milestone for evaluating the effectiveness of the Act during the past 10 years, and also a chance to look forward to ways in which it might be improved.”
The strongest suggestion coming from review participants, said Commissioner Miller, was that provincial ministries update and reinforce the importance of their Statements of Environmental Values (SEVs), which describe how each ministry applies the EBR when making decisions that affect the environment. As a model, participants pointed to the practices of responsible corporations that develop specific environmental goals, measure them against set benchmarks, and then report on their progress to shareholders. Similarly, these reviewers said, ministry SEVs should also contain clear goals and measurable targets, and senior government officials should reinforce their importance to ministry staff. Miller also recommended that the purposes of the EBR be reviewed to give consideration to the inclusion of new environmental concepts that have evolved in the past decade, citing as examples the precautionary principle, the polluter-pays principle, and the principle of intergenerational equity.
Participants in the ECO review also suggested that legislative changes be made to ensure the public is informed of all significant government decisions affecting the environment, and that the Legislature establish a standing committee on the environment so that MPPs can engage fully in the complex nature of environmental decision-making.
In his arms-length review of the EBR, the Environmental Commissioner heard from more than 70 stakeholders and individuals, as well as hosting a law reform workshop where leading experts on environmental law gave presentations and made suggestions on those aspects of the EBR they believed were working – and those that were not.
“I truly hope this whole exercise will inspire positive changes to the EBR and the procedures used to implement it,” Miller concluded. “More effective use of the EBR by the public can only result in better environmental decision-making, and in the end, a better environment in Ontario for generations to come.”
For further information, contact:
Liz Guccione, Communications
Tel: (416) 325-3371
Toll-free public inquiry line: 1-800-701-6454
E-mail:
media@eco.on.ca