Burnaby's world renowned rivers advocate is expressing concerns over leaked information suggesting the federal government is quietly rewriting the rules on protecting fish habitat.
"The possible rollback in our federal fish protection laws is a great concern to me," said Mark Angelo, chair emeritus of BCIT's Rivers Institute, founder of Rivers Day and an Order of Canada and Order of B.C. recipient. "I say that not only as one who has spent most of his life along rivers - but also as one who, like many Canadians, is a parent and grandparent, who cares deeply about the future -- and while much of the related discussion to date has rightly focused on fish, I think this issue also relates greatly to the quality of life our kids, and theirs, will enjoy."
Angelo was responding to news that the federal government may be changing the section of the Fisheries Act that deals with protecting fish habitat.
According to information leaked to Otto Langer, a retired biologist who worked for the federal government for more than three decades, the Conservatives are considering removing the term "habitat" from the part of the act that says it's illegal to harm, alter, disrupt or destroy fish habitat. Instead, the proposed change would make it illegal to create adverse effects "on a fish of economic, cultural or ecological value." Langer also said the Conservatives would try to make the changes by tacking them on to the omnibus budget bill, something Angelo took issue with.
"The changes being discussed warrant a full public debate," Angelo said. "Also, the Fisheries Act habitat protection provisions currently in place are one of the most frequent triggers of environmental assessments. Without these provisions, many more development projects would proceed with only modest, if any, in-depth environmental analysis. And that would not be in the public's interest."
Angelo said the current language under the Fisheries Act is very clear in that it states that any harmful alteration, disruption or destruction of habitat triggers the application of the legislation.
"However, the proposed new language would be much more subjective - it would require interpretation - it lacks clarity, is more subjective and would be much more difficult to enforce," Angelo said. "Regardless of one's
political affiliation, I believe most Canadians want to see the environment protected, and I think they would oppose any measures that do otherwise. Across our country, the cleanliness and health of our natural surroundings, particularly our waterways, is something we take great pride in as a people, and I think that's evident in the way this issue is resonating with so many. So my hope is that the federal government will recognize that and change course on this issue."
Federal Fisheries Minister John Ashfield released a statement last Friday saying "the government is reviewing fish and fish habitat protection policies to ensure they do not go beyond their intended conservation goals."
"Recent speculation about the current review is inaccurate. No decision has been made," Ashfield said. "The government has been clear that the existing policies do not reflect the priorities of Canadians."
When the NOW tried to clarify what, exactly, the minister was referring to in respect to inaccurate speculation, we did not receive a response by press time.
Nor did we receive answers to more detailed questions regarding the leak.
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