Candidates Q and A: Protecting the environment

EloraFergusToday asked the candidates running for the four major parties in the Wellington-Halton Hills riding a series of questions about the upcoming election. Responses were limited to 250 words. 

Tonight's question: 'Can you tell us if you would support further environmental protection legislation and what types of legislation you would support to ensure we can mitigate the detrimental impact on our environment as we move towards a zero carbon and sustainable future?'

Ted Arnott, Progressive Conservative

Of necessity, the COVID-19 pandemic consumed much of the Provincial Government’s attention over the past two years.  Many important issues were put on hold as we sought to contain the virus, save lives and prevent the health care system from being overwhelmed. 

The climate crisis is real, and cannot be scientifically disputed. It absolutely must be addressed, and we in Ontario need to do our part to help reduce carbon emissions and reduce our individual carbon footprints. New technologies, some of which have yet to be invented, will help. All orders of government can take the lead, using tax, regulatory and policy initiatives, while balancing economic and social considerations. Working with countries around the world, we will seek to meet our emission reduction targets.

The Government of Ontario is working with our automotive industry to make our Province the North American leader in the production of hybrid and electric vehicles. In recent months there have been announcements of multi-billion-dollar investments in Hamilton, Alliston, Ingersoll, Oshawa and Windsor for clean steel, electric vehicles, batteries and components, securing thousands of jobs for today and tomorrow. 

Diane Ballantyne, NDP

The reality of climate change is already here. Ontarians need to know that our children and grandchildren will be able to enjoy the clean air, drinking water, and beautiful natural spaces of previous generations. All Ontarians deserve a prosperous, healthy future.

The Ontario NDP has a bold and practical plan to address the urgency of the climate crisis while at the same time revitalising our economy, protecting workers, and creating millions of good, well-paying jobs for Ontarians. Our Green New Democratic Deal will fix what previous governments broke while leaving no one in Ontario behind.

Specifically we will:

• Create an ambitious building retrofit program with the goal of retrofitting at least five per cent of Ontario buildings per year to meet international energy efficiency standards.
• Plan to reach net-zero emissions by 2050:We’ll reduce Ontario’s GHG emissions by at least 50 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030 and achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, targets consistent with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the most ambitious aspects of the Paris Agreement.
• Create a new cap-and-trade system that makes big corporate polluters pay for their emissions, ensuring hard-working Ontarians in rural areas and in the trades and industrial sectors are not unfairly penalized.
• Plant one billion trees by 2030 to help Ontario achieve our net-zero targets.

Ryan Karho, Green Party

Transparency in government is paramount to good governance and building trust with citizens.  Ontario was once unique in Canada to have an environmental ‘watchdog’ in the form of The Environmental Commissioner (ECO) who was charged with critiquing government policy and action.  One of Doug Ford’s first acts was to eliminate the ECO putting the ‘fox in charge of the hens’ as he began to gut environmental legislation and without an independent auditor to report on it, the harm will not be measured for a long-term.

The Green party of Ontario is proud to have former (and the last Environmental Commissioner)  Dianne Saxe as deputy leader and candidate in University-Rosedale.  The Green Party of Ontario would reinstate the ECO and opposes its dismantling.

Tom Takacs, Liberal

We will cut greenhouse gases by 50% below 2005 levels by 2030. We will implement legislation to expand the greenbelt and assist businesses with the transition to a carbon-neutral Ontario. We will repeal the Conservatives harmful changes to conservation and environmental legislation.