Give Ontario ‘green’ laws a chance

Ontario NDP should support efforts to pass four environmental bills before a spring election

Toronto Star Editorial 

Partisan antics are threatening innovative “green” laws at Queen’s Park.

And since this procedural silliness is instigated by the supposedly dollar-conscious Progressive Conservatives, it’s worth noting that their legislative deadlock is wasting time and money.

But that’s not the worst of it.

Four environmental bills — ones that would reduce garbage, keep lakes and air clean, and protect community activists from intimidation lawsuits — will hit the rubbish bin if a spring election is called, the odds of which are increasing after the NDP’s recent byelection success.

That’s why NDP Leader Andrea Horwath should put aside her posturing and support Environment Minister Jim Bradley’s request for a “programming motion” that would, at the very least, enable committees to debate changes needed to pass the at-risk bills.

Bradley’s motion would ensure that the four bills get an allocated time for debate without the Tory filibustering that has slowed the process of the worthy Waste Reduction Act and the Great Lakes Protection Act. It would still require support from one opposition party (clearly, the NDP) to get the bills passed into law.

On Wednesday, Bradley asked NDP environment critic Jonah Schein and energy critic Peter Tabuns to support the bills, which include the Ending Coal for Cleaner Air Act (blocking future coal-fired gas plants) and the Protection of Public Participation Act (discouraging lawsuits against environmentalists).

“All four bills seek to protect Ontario’s environment and ensure a dynamic, green economy for future generations,” Bradley wrote. “The bills are stalled because business in the House has been tied up by needlessly extending debate.”

While the Waste Reduction Act will keep garbage out of landfill and provide tough regulations for those wild-west recyclers who ignore the rules, it needs improvements that could be reached — if it could just get to committee. The bill is not perfect but its benefits (including innovation, jobs, recycling) should inspire solutions for those contentious points, such as municipal blue box fees and regulatory oversight.

The NDP should note that even with demands for amendments, including necessary improvements to the Great Lakes Act, the proposed laws have strong support among environmentalists.

While the coal and lawsuit protection bills have not faced lengthy filibustering, they remain at risk. As Gillian McEachern of Environmental Defence says, “We’d like to see co-operation to get these bills passed because protecting the environment is too important to fall prey to the deadlock we’re seeing.” In other words, get to work.

It’s time to take a break from the games — before the real politicking begins — and turn green bills into good law.