Protecting Canada's Environmental Laws and Safeguards (Bill C-39)

E-petition

Petition to the House of Commons - e-7877 (Environment)

Whereas:

Nature is essential to the health and well-being of Canadians;
Canada’s environmental laws ensure that development minimizes its impacts on nature and people;
Bill C-39 weakens Canada’s environmental laws and enables environmentally harmful activities;
For example, Bill C-39 allows construction to start before environmental risks are fully assessed, allows companies to pay to “offset” environmental damage rather than avoid or repair it, despite research showing that such offsets rarely counterbalance harms, and allows the cost of environmental measures to influence whether a project must implement them; and
Bill C-39 gives Ministers – whose responsibilities do not include environmental protection – the ability to remove or change environmental safeguards.

We, the undersigned, citizens and residents of Canada, call upon the House of Commons to:

Ensure Bill C-39’s accelerated environmental assessments, consultation, and permitting do not reduce the protection of nature;
Remove from Bill C-39 the ability for construction to start before environmental assessments are complete;
Remove from Bill C-39 changes that allow companies to pay fees to offset harm to fish and fish habitat;
Remove from Bill C-39 the rule allowing the “technical, economic and practical feasibility” of protection measures to affect permit conditions;
Remove from Bill C-39 the changes that would give greater power to bypass current federal environmental laws, including making the Building Canada Act permanent and allowing for ‘pre-approved regions’ of development; and
Reject the proposal to allow ministers to “adjust” environmental conditions for projects.

Open for signature:

Closed for signature:

Member of Parliament:

Action Alerts