Latest news with #Bill5
Hamilton Spectator
3 days ago
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Why Doug Ford's controversial law to fast-track development is focused on the Ring of Fire
The story In the beginning, when it was still called Kawana 'bi 'kag, no one imagined that the 5,000 square kilometres near James Bay might one day save Canada from economic warfare launched by an American president named Donald Trump. There's nothing like an existential crisis, it seems, to focus a country's attention on unearthing billions of dollars worth of critical minerals. Amid First Nations protests and legal challenges, Premier Doug Ford passed Bill 5, creating sweeping new powers to fast-track development and in the north, that means brushing past years of delay on the land now known as the Ring of Fire. It holds what the world craves: nickel, chromite (for chromium), cobalt and more, all needed for global security or green energy. And all often in short supply, threatening economic devastation from supply chain disruption. Ford wants jobs for Ontarians. Prime Minister Mark Carney needs economic prosperity independent of America and its mercurial president. Now, nearly 20 years after the minerals were first discovered, the Ring of Fire may be entering its prime time. Although, as First Nations leaders recently observed, Trump will be out of office long before the mining roads are built, so why the 'unconstitutional' rush? Here is an explainer on the remote north, a place of conundrums. The earth You may ask, what makes these minerals critical? In short, the digital and green economies of the future — including massive new infrastructure needed to support artificial intelligence — will not exist without them. 'There is no energy transition without critical minerals: no batteries, no electric cars, no wind turbines and no solar panels,' a federal minerals strategy once said. Depending on market fluctuations, minerals hold immense value. The Democratic Republic of Congo provides 70 per cent of the world's cobalt. Indonesia supplies 40 per cent of nickel. And China is the largest processor of minerals, a dominance that has, on occasion, led to disruptive trade practices and price swings, according to a recent Public Policy Forum report. Deposits locked under the Ring of Fire include: Nickel: It is used in the production of stainless steel and is increasingly valued in advanced technologies, particularly in batteries for electric vehicles. Cobalt: Considered essential for the production of military equipment, it is used to produce superalloys used to make jet engines, missiles and submarines. Copper: Used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, solar power panels, and battery energy storage systems, it is also considered essential for the creation of data centres that will support artificial intelligence. Chromite: This is the ore from which chromium is extracted. Chromium is essential to the manufacture of stainless steel. Platinum: A metal that plays a vital role in autocatalysts, which reduce greenhouse gas emissions from vehicle tailpipes. Palladium: A 'platinum group element,' it is used in electronics and in vehicle emission reductions. The timeline As modern mining lore has it, speculators in the Hudson Bay lowlands discovered its chromite in 2007. Depending on the loquaciousness of the storyteller, one or several prospectors were Johnny Cash fans and so inspired, quickly named the lands around their discovery the Ring of Fire, launching years of environmental assessments, ownership changes and new mining claims. The Ring of Fire was included in Ontario's 2010 speech from the throne and in the ensuing years, premiers Dalton McGuinty and Kathleen Wynne raved over its potential, although Sudbury already mines critical minerals. And in 2018, along came Doug Ford. Running for the premier's job, he promised to build roads to the untouched minerals, which were in a distant region of the province accessible only by airplanes or (melting) ice highways. 'If I have to hop on a bulldozer myself, we're going to start building roads to the Ring of Fire,' Ford tweeted. This did not impress the First Nations who make Kawana 'bi 'kag their home. Today, seven years and two elections later, with no roads built, Trump's antics inspired new laws rushed through the Ontario legislature and the House of Commons: Ford's Bill 5, the 'Protect Ontario by Unleashing the Economy Act' and Carney's Bill C-5, the 'One Canadian Economy Act.' Before Carney met with First Nations leaders on July 17, he promised 'Indigenous equity and full participation' in Canada's new economy. When the meeting ended, the chiefs' were not convinced. The constitutionality of both laws faces a legal challenge by nine First Nations chiefs, who called Ontario's law a massive overreach that gives the government unlimited development powers across the province. As one said, Ontarians should be worried. The request for an injunction, the chiefs' lawyer said, will likely be heard within a year. The miners In the world of prospecting, ownership is known to change hands. Australia-based Wyloo acquired Noront in 2022 and with it, the Ring of Fire's 'Eagle's Nest' project. While Juno Corp. appears to have the most mining claims in the region, Wyloo says its development progress is the most advanced, in terms of passing government hurdles. Wyloo's footprint, its corporate documents say, will cover just one square kilometre. Instead of an open pit, Eagle's Nest will be vertical, plunging 1,600 metres into the ground, with below-surface space to store tailings, the leftover materials. The company's current projections say it will annually produce 15,000 tonnes of nickel, 6,000 tonnes of copper, 70,000 ounces of palladium, 22,000 ounces of platinum and 340 tonnes of cobalt. And as for the fragile peatlands across the region? Wyloo's mine, its document says, will mainly be built on 'uplands' and not the low-lying peatlands. But there is a different threat: road construction. The ecosystem The Ring of Fire is rich with watery peatlands, a fragile, living entity of decaying plant matter that traps carbon equal to many decades of greenhouse gas emissions. And yet the earth here also holds minerals needed to build the energy-saving solar panels and electric cars of the future. This is an environmental predicament. If new mining roads disturb the peatlands by as little as three per cent, Wildlands League's Anna Baggio says data shows that the equivalent of 62 million tonnes of carbon dioxide would be released. Climate change is already threatening peatlands, from nearby wildfires to melting permafrost. So it was not surprising to see 'peatland' cited 113 times in a 2025 draft environmental assessment for a proposal by Marten Falls First Nations to build and maintain an all-season access road. Marten Falls chief says the road would connect the remote community to health supports and economic opportunities. A separate proposal would link a series of new roads to the Ring of Fire mines. Last week, Marten Falls First Nation said it held a joint ceremony with Webequie First Nation, (which is has filed a proposal to build another road) and together, took down a ceremonial teepee erected last year. It symbolized, the Marten Falls news release said, the 'joint and mutually respectful process required between the First Nations and development proponents.' First Nation communities on the Treaty 9 land have expressed concern about environmental risk, noting the age-old relationship between peatlands, water systems and wildlife. But much like Marten Falls, many also say they want development — and a seat at the decision-makers' table. Ford's Bill 5, some say, killed the opportunity for government discussions, forcing protests or legal action. Eabametoong Chief Solomon Atlookan leads one of many First Nations communities in the region. In June, Atlookan wrote a letter to Ford and Carney, warning their new laws could leave governments tied up in court challenges or worse, create dangerous confrontations on the land. 'Cranking up the legislative bulldozer,' Atlookan wrote, 'will not yield positive outcomes.'
Hamilton Spectator
6 days ago
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Ontario NDP leader says Doug Ford must respect First Nations' right to refuse development
Ontario NDP leader Marit Stiles doesn't believe the province needs to scrap its regulatory regime to thrive through a trade war with the U.S. In an interview, she told Ricochet it needs to scrap its controversial Bill 5 legislation and 'boldly' reinvest in the social infrastructure a thriving economy needs. While Premier Doug Ford was meeting with his provincial counterparts in Muskoka this week, Stiles was on a tour through northern Ontario. 'I want to see some bold solutions. I want to see this as one of those post-world war moments where we invest, where we see the opportunity that's presented to us,' Stiles said, in an interview during her stop in Thunder Bay on Monday, part of her 'All In For Ontario' tour hitting a number of cities and towns across the province. 'When I talk to industry like forestry, mining – anybody – they will all tell you that they cannot attract people to come and work because there's not enough affordable housing. There aren't enough schools. They can't guarantee they're going to get the health care they need, there won't be a doctor. Those are the huge issues impacting our economy and it's time we stopped thinking of it like it's something we have to spend. This is an investment in our future.' The Financial Accountability Office of Ontario predicts a dip into recession this year, possibly into next year. Stiles is calling for Ontario to prioritize buying local lumber to build more homes, which would hold up an industry whose leaders estimate they stand to lose $2 billion from the loss of cross-border trade. She says the Ontario NDP is also keeping an eye on the upcoming New York City mayoral election, in which Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani is promising bold populist ideas, such as free buses and public grocery stores. Although not quite the same, Styles points to the ONDP's promise of a grocery store rebate . Any social solutions, Stiles says, must rise from local ingenuity. For example, a non-profit personal support worker program on St. Joseph's Island near Sault Ste. Marie has served 170 people since it launched in 2020, revitalizing home care services that hadn't existed in the rural area for over a decade. However instead of building on social solutions, Ontario has passed what Stiles calls 'ridiculous power-grab legislation' in Bill 5 . The law allows the government to identify 'trusted proponents' and designate 'special economic zones' in which environmental, labour, and municipal bylaws don't apply. First Nations leaders have been at the front of critical demonstrations, arguing the law violates their right to consultation and early July, Stiles rallied with farmers and residents of Dresden, a small town where the province has used Bill 5 — what the government has called 'mining legislation' — to allow proponents of a proposed landfill to dodge an environmental assessment. 'What I said to those people is, 'you are the canary in the coal mine… if it can happen in Dresden – which is basically Conservative country – it can happen anywhere, anytime, to anyone.' And I fear that's the message we have to get out to people: it's your rights that are at risk,' she said. 'What's obviously getting a lot of attention right now is the steamrolling of treaty rights, which is terrible and is going to set us back generations, and is frankly going to hold up projects. It's going to hold up northern development. But I think we also have to recognize that it's everybody that can be impacted by this, because it does mean the suspension of any right, anywhere, anytime.' In her view, the legislation interferes with the ability for First Nations to independently strike their own partnerships with commercial and industrial proponents. While she expects resistance to Bill 5 'in the courts or on the land,' she says the setback to those relationships ultimately compromises Ontario's investment climate. She says First Nations have the right to walk away from the table and say no to development, and that an NDP government would lean into that right for stability.'I'm not going to impose anything on First Nations. I want First Nations' leadership to tell me, what's the best way you want to proceed with this?'In February, Ford was elected to his third consecutive majority government. Northern Ontario First Nation leaders have repeatedly asked to meet with him on infrastructure projects but he has refused, going back long before the introduction of Bill 5. Stiles says First Nation communities should have the right to refuse any development. 'They do currently and they should be able to [say no]. But I also think that for the most part, First Nations in Ontario want to be able to see good development happen, but they also don't want to have no say in what happens in their territories where they have treaties, and where they, frankly, know the land much better than anybody else.' Some northern communities, such as Neskantaga and Attiwapiskat First Nations, which have been waiting for years for clean drinking water and living under long-term boil-water advisories, are now being told that their territories are located in the so-called Ring of Fire region, a massive area north of Thunder Bar that contains mineral deposits suspected to hold more than $60-billion worth of critical minerals. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Hamilton Spectator
7 days ago
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Ford government's changes to recycling will hasten landfill crisis, municipalities warn
Ontario's shrinking landfill space could run out faster than expected if the Ford government retreats from long-held plans to add two new blue box programs, warns the Association of Municipalities of Ontario. In a letter to Environment Minister Todd McCarthy, AMO president Robin Jones said the suggested changes — including the cancellation of new blue box programs in apartments and condos — would 'exacerbate Ontario's projected landfill capacity crisis, which is expected to reach its limit in less than 10 years.' Landfill controversy is already exploding in Dresden, a southwestern Ontario community where the Premier Doug Ford's controversial new Bill 5 could be used to fast-track the reopening of an inactive landfill site against community wishes — and potentially without a traditional environmental assessment. Posted on the Environmental Registry of Ontario in early June, the proposals, if passed, would 'undoubtedly impact waste diversion rates,' Jones said in her letter. Ontario has a previously stated goal of 50 per cent diversion by 2030, which means the province would need to divert an additional 2.5 to 3.8 million tonnes of material, based on 2022 numbers from an AMO report. The Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks suggested three significant changes, citing 'unanticipated' costs affecting producers: To reduce the materials going to landfill, the ministry proposed a percentage could go to 'energy from waste' — also known as incineration or, burning materials to create electricity. A spokesperson for McCarthy said the government 'heard concerns, particularly from small businesses, about unanticipated and unexplained cost increases to meet their obligations under Ontario's producer-run blue box system.' The changes 'will improve transparency' for all producers, said Alexandru Cioban, McCarthy's press secretary. But Jones said the government's proposed retreat undermines the goals of 'extended producer responsibility,' which basically means, 'If you make it, you take it.' Ontario's transition to extended producer responsibility is nearly complete, with producers taking on the cost of programs that collect and recycle the products and packaging they sell. These programs, administered by the not-for-profit 'producer responsibility organization' Circular Materials, take in hazardous waste and electronics as well as traditional blue box materials. In 2022, Ontario generated up to 15.5 million tonnes of non-hazardous waste, which is equivalent to 1.127 tonnes per person, according to AMO's Ontario Baseline Waste and Recycling Report. In Jones's July 7 letter, she said elimination of the planned blue box program in multi-residential buildings will create a 'fragmented 'two-tiered' system' where some Ontarians have access to recycling while others do not. 'Residents rightly expect robust recycling programs and environmental protection, creating an urgent imperative for municipalities to fill these public spaces service gaps,' she wrote. Large cities, she said, are adding thousands of new housing units and those residents 'will be left without access to the common recycling collection system.' Industry insiders say many municipalities stopped buying new trucks or upgrading recycling infrastructure because of the expansion plans. Now that those plans face the prospect of delays or elimination, municipalities are scrambling and will likely be forced to pick up the costs. 'This amendment,' said Jones, 'pulls the rug out from under existing plans.'
Cision Canada
7 days ago
- Politics
- Cision Canada
Canada Can't Water Down Ontario's Wetland Loss in Global Treaty Talks
TORONTO, July 23, 2025 /CNW/ - We acknowledge that there are 46 treaties and other agreements that cover the territory now called Ontario and our roles and responsibilities as Treaty partners. We recognize the inherent rights and responsibilities of Indigenous Nations, who have cared for and governed Turtle Island since time immemorial - As talks begin in Zimbabwe at the 15th meeting of the parties to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, Ontario Nature is myth busting the Government of Ontario's contributions as described in Canada's national report. Southern Ontario has lost over 70% of its original wetlands and ongoing losses remove a vital defense against flooding and pollution for communities across the province. However, Canada's National Report to Ramsar COP15 paints a rosy picture of a Government of Ontario that recognizes the importance of wetlands and is acting to conserve them: Myth #1: "Ontario's Biodiversity Strategy contributes to national efforts and recognizes the importance of wetlands on the landscape." Reality: The Government of Ontario has systematically weakened protections for wetlands over the past five years. It also hid a report by its own working group on how the province can contribute to the national protected areas target of 30% by 2030. Currently, less than 11% of lands and waters across Ontario are protected, lagging far behind many other provinces. The recent passage of Bill 5 further threatens wetlands and other vital habitats. Myth #2: "Conservation Authorities are empowered by Ontario's Conservation Authorities Act to regulate development" in and around wetlands. Reality: The Government of Ontario made a series of changes that eroded the ability of Conservation Authorities to regulate development and conserve wetlands. This left communities across Ontario at an elevated risk of flooding, pollution and unsustainable development. According to Ontario Nature Conservation Campaigns Coordinator Sarah Hasenack: "From reducing flood risk, to maintaining clean water, to sustaining beloved wildlife, we all have a stake in conserving Ontario's wetlands. With enough political will, the Government of Ontario can step up to effectively protect people, wetlands and wildlife." About Ontario Nature protects wild species and wild spaces through conservation, education and public engagement. A charitable organization, Ontario Nature represents more than 30,000 members and supporters, and 150 member groups across Ontario. For more information, visit Background
Hamilton Spectator
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Indigenous participation crucial amid concerns over Bill C-5, Carney says
In his closing press scrum after the first ministers' meeting, Prime Minister Mark Carney tells reporters that Indigenous participation is crucial for the projects of national interest. Carney's Bill C-5, like Premier Doug Ford's Bill 5, are sparked concern among some First Nations about their long-held treaty rights and the potential for environmental damage caused by pipelines, mines, rail links and roads.
