Action Alert - Bill 5 Would Harm Environmental Safeguards and Create “Law-Free” Zones

ACTION ALERT:

Bill 5 Would Harm Environmental Safeguards and Create “Law-Free” Zones

If enacted, Bill 5 would weaken key environmental laws and create “law-free” special economic zones exempt from legal protections and public oversight in order to expedite resource extraction

The Protect Ontario by Unleashing Our Economy Act, 2025 (Bill 5) would:

Exempt key projects from Environmental Assessment Act reviews (e.g., Dresden landfill, Eagle’s Nest Mine).
Weaken oversight of mining activities under the Mining Act.
Repeal the Endangered Species Act, 2007, replacing it with a weaker Species Conservation Act, 2025.
Empower the province to declare “special economic zones” under the Special Economic Zones Act, 2025, where provincial laws and municipal by-laws—including environmental and public-participation rules—would be inoperative.

Why this matters

Erodes the rule of law: “Trusted proponents” could bypass statutory protections, risking environmental and human-health harms.
Threatens Indigenous rights: Fast-tracking extraction in remote areas (e.g., the Ring of Fire) without proper assessment or consultation.
Spreads a false “jobs vs. environment” narrative: Ignores how strong environmental laws underpin sustainable, long-term economic prosperity.

CELA has provided a detailed submission to the government asking it to withdraw Bill 5. Click here to access the full submission.

Bill 5, Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, 2025 received Royal Assent on June 5, 2025.

TAKE ACTION

Submit a Comment

The government is accepting public comments on Bill 5 until May 17th.

You can submit a comment to the postings on the Environmental Registry of Ontario.

There are seven schedules of Bill 5 posted on the Environmental Registry of Ontario for comment.

To submit a comment on any of the schedules of Bill 5, first click on the ERO posting you’d like to respond to (see links below), and then submit your comments by clicking on the “submit a comment” button. You can choose to sign-in, register for an account, or submit a comment without registering.

Please refer to the section below titled “Potential Impacts” for ideas on what to include in your comments.

There are seven notices on the Environmental Registry of Ontario. All have deadlines of May 17, 2025

Protect Ontario by Unleashing Our Economy Act, 2025. (ERO number 25-0416)

Proposed interim changes to the Endangered Species Act, 2007 and a proposal for the Species Conservation Act, 2025 (ERO number 025-0380)

Proposed amendments to the Mining Act 1990, Electricity Act 1998, and Ontario Energy Board Act 1998, to protect Ontario’s Economy and Build a More Prosperous Ontario. (ERO number 025-0409)

Proposed Amendments to the Ontario Heritage Act, Schedule 7 of the Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, 2025 (ERO number 25-041)

Special Economic Zones Act, 2025 (ERO number 25-0391)

Addressing Changes to the Eagle’s Nest Mine Project (ERO number 025-0396)

Removing Environmental Assessment Requirements for the York1 Waste Disposal Site Project (ERO number 25-0389)

Potential Impacts

Following are some of the potential environmental impacts from the proposed changes. Please feel free to reference this content when creating your own submission.

Potential Impacts

Bill 5 would dismantle or undermine many key legal protections that safeguard our environment, human health, and Indigenous rights. CELA recommends that Bill 5 be withdrawn.

In particular, Bill 5 would:

Create Special Economic Zones where it is unclear what laws, regulations or instruments will apply. It empowers the government to create Special Economic Zones where any provincial laws and municipal by-laws can be suspended.
Exempt projects from environmental reviews. The environmental assessments of the Dresden landfill and Eagle’s Nest Mine would be unjustifiably terminated, eliminating comprehensive analysis of risks to water, wildlife, and human health.
Erode mining safeguards. It weakens the Mining Act by modifying the purposes of the act and curtailing public consultation.
Weakens species protection. It amends and replaces the Endangered Species Act (ESA) with a narrower Species Conservation Act, which focuses on economic development, undermines habitat definitions, removes automatic listing of species at risk, and weakens governmental powers to protect species.

Special Economic Zones

Bill 5 includes a “Special Economic Zones Act”. It would empower the government to:

Establish “Special Economic Zones” where provincial laws, regulations, instruments, municipal by-laws, and municipal instruments can be suspended to enable “trusted proponents” to develop projects. This raises serious concerns about the rule of law.
Avoid public accountability by seeking to shield government decisions from civil liability.

Removal of Environmental Assessments

Without credible justification, if passed Bill 5 would:

Exempt two significant projects from environmental assessment requirements. This include the Dresden landfill and the Eagle’s Nest Mine, which is located in the Ring of Fire.
Erode core functions of an environmental assessment by removing requirements to review the alleged need for and alternatives to a project.

Erosion of Mining Oversight

Related to the oversight of mining projects, Bill 5 would:

Amend the purposes of the Mining Act to emphasize “protection of Ontario’s economy” without a commitment to preventing harm to public health and the environment.
Expedite the permitting process at the expense of ensuring a thorough and comprehensive review of review mine permit applications.

Weakening Species at Risk Protection

Bill 5 would significantly weaken the government’s capacity to safeguard species that are endangered, threatened or of special concern. It would:

Change the purpose of the ESA to require “sustainable economic growth” be factored into decisions related to the safeguarding of endangered species.
Narrow the definition of an endangered specie’s “habitat,” to dwellings and its immediate surroundings, excluding areas critical to full life cycle needs.
Empower cabinet to ignore – without criteria – science-based proposals to list a species at risk under the Act. Non-listed species will receive no protection under the Act.
Abolish obligations for the government to create recovery strategies and report on species recovery efforts.

Omitting Mention of Indigenous Rights

Bill 5 repeatedly fails to acknowledge indigenous rights, including the Crown’s Duty to Consult and the principle of free, prior and informed consent outlined in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).