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Under the Canopy
On Outdoor Journal Radio's Under the Canopy podcast, former Minister of Natural Resources, Jerry Ouellette takes you along on the journey to see the places and meet the people that will help you find your outdoor passion and help you live a life close to nature and Under The Canopy.
Under the Canopy
Episode 100: Environmental Stewardship Meets Provincial Politics
From protecting vast green spaces to building the Ontario of tomorrow, Environmental Minister Todd McCarthy takes us deep into the world of environmental governance in Canada's most populous province.
Stepping into the role of Ontario's Minister of Environment, Conservation and Parks means balancing competing priorities while safeguarding the natural world we all depend on. "We all breathe the same air, depend on clean drinking water and the integrity of our land," McCarthy explains, as he reveals the surprising scope of his portfolio.
Did you know Ontario's landmass exceeds Spain and France combined, with two-thirds covered in forest? Or that the province has added 430,000 acres of protected green space since 2020? McCarthy paints a picture of a province rich in natural resources yet facing unprecedented growth pressures, with 2 million new residents in just three years. This tension between conservation and development emerges as the conversation's central theme.
McCarthy doesn't shy away from tough topics, addressing everything from invasive species management to bureaucratic delays in environmental permitting. "We need to build faster, but we're not going to trample on environmental protections," he insists, arguing that Ontario must "get out of its own way" to enable critical infrastructure while maintaining robust environmental standards. His perspective offers a window into how modern environmental governance navigates these competing demands.
The conversation turns practical as McCarthy discusses recent initiatives like Uxbridge Urban Park, describes the annual Healthy Parks Healthy People Day, and explains new legislative tools to protect species at risk. He also highlights broader policy shifts, including efforts to eliminate interprovincial trade barriers and reduce bureaucratic duplication across Canada.
Subscribe now to hear more revealing conversations with the decision-makers shaping our relationship with the natural world. Share your thoughts about environmental protection versus development in your community – we'd love to hear your perspective!
How did a small-town sheet metal mechanic come to build one of Canada's most iconic fishing lodges? I'm your host, steve Nitzwicky, and you'll find out about that and a whole lot more on the Outdoor Journal Radio Network's newest podcast, diaries of a Lodge Owner. But this podcast will be more than that. Every week on Diaries of a Lodge Owner, I'm going to introduce you to a ton of great people, share their stories of our trials, tribulations and inspirations, learn and have plenty of laughs along the way.
Speaker 2:Meanwhile we're sitting there bobbing along trying to figure out how to catch a bass and we both decided one day we were going to be on television doing a fishing show.
Speaker 3:My hands get sore a little bit when I'm reeling in all those bass in the summertime, but that's might be for more fishing than it was punching you so confidently you said hey.
Speaker 1:Pat, have you ever eaten a drum? Find Diaries of a Lodge Owner now on Spotify, apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcast.
Speaker 4:As the world gets louder and louder, the lessons of our natural world become harder and harder to hear, but they are still available to those who know where to listen. But they are still available to those who know where to listen. I'm Jerry Ouellette and I was honoured to serve as Ontario's Minister of Natural Resources. However, my journey into the woods didn't come from politics. Rather, it came from my time in the bush and a mushroom. In 2015, I was introduced to the birch-hungry fungus known as chaga, a tree conch with centuries of medicinal applications used by Indigenous peoples all over the globe. After nearly a decade of harvest, use, testimonials and research, my skepticism has faded to obsession and I now spend my life dedicated to improving the lives of others through natural means. But that's not what the show is about. My pursuit of this strange mushroom and my passion for the outdoors has brought me to the places and around the people that are shaped by our natural world. On Outdoor Journal Radio's Under the Canopy podcast, I'm going to take you along with me to see the places, meet the people that will help you find your outdoor passion and help you live a life close to nature and under the canopy. So join me today for another great episode and hopefully we can inspire a few more people to live their lives under the canopy. To live their lives under the canopy. Okay, as always, we thank all our listeners throughout Canada, ontario, the States all around the world, switzerland, ghana, down in Trinidad, tobago and, of course, as always, if you have any questions or want to hear any specific shows, let us know and we'll do what we can to put a show together to give you what you want to hear. Now, this morning was interesting. I was out again, as always, with my chocolate lab gunner and I got to tell you my reishi is coming up very nicely and, for those that don't know, reishi is the number two medicinal mushroom in the world. My wild mint patch and my wild stinging nettles are doing very well, although I'm seeing a lot of probably animals going through and knocking down. The stinging nettles are doing very well, although I'm seeing a lot of probably animals going through and knocking down the stinging nettles because at a young age that they're at, they're kind of small, but the patch is still doing well and the rhizomes are loving the growth in those areas. Take on some new plant life there, which is good to see, and spruce sprigs, as I talked about in last week's show. They're pretty much just about done by now. So it's tough to get those good spruce sprigs to make your spruce honey or just to consume a lot of the spruce sprigs that are out there.
Speaker 4:But today we have a very special guest Minister, the Honourable Todd McCarthy. Welcome to the program, minister. Good to be here with you, gerry, absolutely so. Minister, tell us for our international listeners essentially where you're riding. Your electoral district is basically from Toronto, because we have a lot of listeners all around the world.
Speaker 3:Sure. Well, of course, ontario, a province of 16 million people, is the largest and most populous province in Canada of the 10 provinces and a founding province at Confederation 1867. The capital of Ontario is Toronto. Now my riding of Durham is the east end of Durham region and Durham region is the municipal region immediately east of the Toronto border and then I'm on the east end of Durham region. So within Durham region we have Pickering, or Pickering-Uxbridge, then Ajax, as we're going east or west to east, pickering-uxbridge, ajax, whitby, oshawa, then Durham, which is North Oshawa, a little piece of Uxbridge, scugog or Port Perry, and then Clarington or two-thirds of Clarington. So ridings are not necessarily divided on exactly on municipal boundaries, sometimes they're a little bit of several municipalities. In my case that's the reality. And of course Durham, as I like to say, although not far from Toronto, we're 75 kilometers. The western boundary of my riding is about 75 kilometers from the seat of government at Queen's Park, but, and arguably it's in commuting distance. But it really represents the. It's a microcosm of Ontario, because not only do I have suburbia but I have a major industry, darlington, but I have a major industry, darlington, our clean, reliable nuclear energy plant in Darlington and by the lake. Within Clarington we have, of course, where the small modular reactors the first of the four are being built. We have to the north, in Oshawa, ontario Tech University and Durham College, so two great post-secondary institutions that welcomes people from all over the world, students from all over the world, as well as from Durham region and other parts of Ontario and Canada. We have Port Perry or Scugog, which includes a First Nations community, the First Nations of Scugog Island, the Mississauga First Nations of Scugog Island, and Port Perry is a smaller municipality, and then, of course, in between we have farms and rural hamlets, so we really do have a little bit of everything all contained within the riding of Durham. Very much like Ontario is so diverse, with large urban centres, farms, farms and great swaths of land.
Speaker 3:I was just telling the students at our wonderful gathering today at Good Shepherd Catholic School in Curtis we had a special day dedicated to wildlife. It's called the Earth Rangers Assembly and we had visitors in and we had some wildlife there South American reptile or lizard, we had a bald eagle and we had great instructors. But I was reminding them that Ontario is home to four of the five Great Lakes. Ontario obviously is.
Speaker 3:In terms of land size. Ontario obviously is, in terms of land size, actually greater than Spain and France combined. To put it in perspective, we have a million square kilometers in Ontario and two thirds of our province is forested. So we and we, and we've added 30,000 acres of green land to the Greenlands Project, partnership, or the partnership project, greenlands Partnership Project. We've added that since 2020, as a province, as a government, 430,000 additional acres of green land, parks and nature reserves and wildlife reserves and wetlands. That alone is about three times or more the size of the city of Toronto, the province's capital. So, to put that in perspective, Ontario is a big place with lots of diversity in people and lots of biodiversity in terms of plants and animals.
Speaker 4:Yeah, a lot of people have no idea of the size and the vastness Everybody thinks. Well, not everybody. A lot of individuals in southern Ontario think you go to northern Ontario when you hit north of Highway 7, and there's a big difference from there. So, minister, just now I would know how, but give our listeners an understanding of how does one actually become a minister.
Speaker 3:Well, we have responsible government in the province of Ontario, which is modeled on the Westminster model of government inherited from the United Kingdom. So, like the other provinces, we have a legislative assembly, or parliament, and then the federal government. The federal level of government has a parliament. There is an upper house and a lower house, like the House of Commons and the House of Lords. In England we have a House of Commons and a Senate federally, but each province and territory has an assembly. That is what we call a unicameral legislative assembly, meaning there isn't an upper house, senate or House of Lords, it's just the legislative assembly.
Speaker 3:That body is an elected body made up of districts divided across a province or territory. In the case of Ontario, we have 124 electoral districts, durham being one of them, and to become a minister you have to be elected in one of those electoral districts. And, as I think many of our listeners know, we have majority or minority governments. Right now we have a progressive conservative majority government, the third consecutive one that's been elected by the people of Ontario, which means we have not only the most seats but a majority of the seats in the House. In our case, we have 80 seats of the 124. So then there is the front bench or the executive councillor cabinet that is chosen from among the members elected to the government benches, and we have about 37 cabinet ministers of the 80.
Speaker 3:One of our 80 is the speaker, the honourable donna skelly. She's elected by all the members and then the premier, the first minister, who's elected in one of the Etobicoke ridings. He then makes recommendations to the King's representative in Ontario, the lieutenant governor, who then appoints those nominated by the premier to be designated ministers of the crown. But again, we are responsible to the people's house, we must be elected in our own communities and we are in turn accountable or responsible to the elected house. So while we have our ministerial duties and are part of the executive branch of government hence the name executive council or cabinet we also are members of provincial parliament and we take a seat in the house and we would not be able to be a minister, or recommended to be a minister, unless we were elected, unless we are elected and sit on the government benches as part of the majority or largest number of seats for a particular party, as part of the governing party.
Speaker 4:Yeah, a lot of individuals, particularly, I guess, a lot of members that listen to us from the states, wouldn't understand a lot of that process and I think you kind of give us some good insight into what that process would be.
Speaker 3:Now, minister, it's different. The governor of a state, the president of the United States, and her or his cabinet state level or federal level do not sit in the elected body. The president, governor directly elected across the board by the people. But the cabinet does not sit in the House, nor are they elected. So it is a true separation from the legislative process, whereas here, in that sense it's not so much the executive and the legislative are separate branches of government. There's no question about it. But we wear two hats as ministers and we see this. What was progress 150 years ago? The idea that the lieutenant Governor's Council isn't just appointed by the Lieutenant Governor and divorced from the elected House. They are part and parcel of that. They cannot be in the cabinet without being elected. So that's what we call parliamentary democracy and responsible government, different model. I'm not saying one is better than the other, but this is what we've inherited from the UK. So it is different. So we wear two hats, but they are distinct and separate branches of government executive and legislative.
Speaker 4:Right. So, Minister, now you're the Minister of the Environment. Maybe you can kind of give us some, our listeners, some insight of what happens in the Ministry of the Environment, Like what sort of files do you work on or what sort of things do you end up dealing with, so that people can get an understanding, Because a lot of people here are the minister of the environment and of course you know you probably on a regular basis get blamed, because you know, quite frankly, it's probably all your fault that my golf game on Wednesday got cancelled because of the rain, because you're the minister of the environment responsible for that right.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's a, it's a good one. I often lead with that as uh, as a joke, uh, when I'm at events, uh, I did it a few times this week. Whereas minister of the environment, conservation and parks that is the full name environment, conservation parks, minister of the environment or the minister of the environment was created in 1972 by a progressive conservative government under bill Davis, and every party that's ever governed at Queen's Park has continued to have a minister of the environment or a ministry, a minister of the environment, and I do like to take responsibility for the good weather and apologize for the lousy weather. So this cold, wet spring in Ontario I've been apologizing for. But today, as I look outdoors, it's a sunny day and I was outside at a beekeeping and honey farm and it was a beautiful morning and I was there with members of our local council. So that felt good and I said today I take responsibility and credit for the good weather.
Speaker 3:But at Environment it's a very large ministry and I'm well supported by thousands of ministry officials and my staff as well at the ministry Environment, conservation and Parks is the name of it and it's a very important mandate. Of course, we all breathe the same air, depend on clean drinking water and the integrity of our land. The main function is to keep our environment, land, air and water quality strong, protected, clean. That's the main mandate of the ministry, and so that includes a permitting process whenever you build anything of any kind water systems of any kind, developments, housing developments of any kind. The ministry environment is very much part and parcel of making sure it's done right, done responsibly.
Speaker 4:And so you deal with a lot of the provincial parks, then as well, correct? Well, that's right.
Speaker 3:On the park side. I touched on it earlier, but I administer all of the parks. So, whether it's Algonquin Park or Darlington Waterfront Park in my riding, for example, or the new Monarch Point Park that was just opened a few years ago under my predecessor's watch, minister Puccini Some parks that are simply for camping, other parks are for day visiting. There's a whole wide range of them, and then, of course, wildlife reserves are part of it as well, and forested parks and anything you can think of. That is all about the great outdoors, wetlands, private and public agencies and partners who are devoted to preserving and protecting green space. Ducks Unlimited is one such organization. I work with other ministries, your former ministry, the Ministry of Natural Resources. We have a lot of cross pollination there, protecting the integrity of our waterfronts, and obviously conservation authorities are coming to my ministry. That was publicly announced. So I'll be working with those 36 agencies. We work closely with municipalities, both regional and local, to make sure that we protect the integrity of our water systems, maintain good air quality Wastewater management is a very important part of what we manage as well and responsible soil removal, working with things like brownfields.
Speaker 3:Where does it just sit idle? Is there some responsible use and development that can be made of brownfields. What I mean by brownfields would be areas where there used to be industrial or other types of commercial activity. There's ways that that land can be redeployed responsibly towards some other type of development. So it's really about balance, jerry. That's the key. I often say. Being the Minister of the Environment, conservation Parks means strong environmental stewardship, strong environmental oversight while building the Ontario of tomorrow.
Speaker 4:Yeah, there's a lot of various agencies who would be part of the deal with you on a regular basis from your portfolio, whether it's the Invasive Species Program here in Ontario, the centre that and I just had a we just did a recording with the invasive species center on phragmites and the impact there but there's a lot of those agencies that effectively deal with a lot of your ministry that we kind of attract to our podcast. But now, minister, you've got some new event or something taking place in regards to parks up in Uxbridge. Maybe you can enlighten us what's happening at the new Uxbridge. Yes, I will.
Speaker 3:I should have mentioned Mayor Dave Barton is going to be disappointed in me now but with the help of Minister Bethan Falvey my colleague for the great riding of Minister of Finance and also the MPP for Pickering Uxbridge we opened recently the Uxbridge Urban Park, which is not only great news for Uxbridge, it's great news for all of Durham region and areas around it. It's a wonderful outdoor expanse where one can go to hike or to cycle. It's beautiful for all seasons of the year and it's accessible from urban areas nearby. So it's a really wonderful model going forward and it's part of what we've been able to do in terms of adding, you know, hundreds of thousands of acres of green space for different purposes and for very, very important purposes, both now and for future generations to enjoy. So we're really proud of that.
Speaker 3:But I was going to come back to something you mentioned the invasive species. Part of my mandate is dealing with species and of course there's invasive species like Phragmitis, which down at Second Marsh in Oshawa the south part of Oshawa that's technically outside by riding but very important to me as part of Durham region and within my ministry where we made sure there was a grant for the second marsh agency that runs that area to responsibly rid itself of that invasive species called phragmitis, which is is this grassy type plant that could really and was getting out of control and was consuming everything around it. It was bad for other plant life and bad for wildlife in the area. So you do have to take steps to control what we call invasive species in a responsible way through the Ministry of the Environment. But also then there's the species at risk, and I work with the Committee on the Status of Species at Risk of Ontario with respect to an extensive list of plant and animal species that are at risk and need special protection.
Speaker 3:Not only conservation and protection, but also species recovery Very important part of my mandate because it's all about balance, as I told the children today at the Earth Rangers Assembly.
Speaker 3:You know Ontario has 60 million people, but we live with wildlife as well and we have to be responsible when it comes to protecting the habitats of wildlife, protecting the habitats of all species and especially those at risk. So we have a new piece of legislation on that front called the Species Conservation Act, which will, in my judgment, increase investigative powers like we've never seen before, to give my environmental compliance officers more authority than ever to inspect any site on a hunch, on the basis of a negative track record of a particular proponent, or on a tip, or on a hunch on the basis of a negative track record of a particular proponent, or on a tip, or on a spot audit to make sure that species at risk are protected from harms and anyone who's attempting, either intentionally or negligently, to harm species is stopped and prosecuted. So that's an important part of my mandate as well as Minister of Environment, conservation and Parks.
Speaker 4:So whereabouts is this Uxbridge Urban Provincial Park?
Speaker 3:Because I know they have a big pond up. So Uxbridge, if you want to, as I said, the northwest area of my riding of Durham is where the Uxbridge Urban Park actually begins and it's a big, big swath of land, forested and field-like, with beautiful trails, and it was the result of a combination of a true public-private partnership, whether it was donors of private land and working with government toward, first of all, creating this large green space for the enjoyment of the entire community now and in future generations.
Speaker 4:So I suppose it's north and east of Uxbridge proper as a town roughly Okay, I just wondered because I know, when I had the privilege to serve as Minister of Natural Resources, one of the things that I was able to do is work with at that time the Minister of Finance was Minister Ecker and Uxbridge was in her riding and so we ran a kids fishing day. That took place at Heberdown's Conservation Area and I know the last year we had it we had over 5,000 in attendance. But I wanted to do something. In the Minister of Finance's writing and I remember something that I always said that if I ever get the chance to do something, I'm going to do that.
Speaker 4:And when I was just a I wasn't even a teenager, I was preteen there was a friend of my father's who was on the police force His name was Norm Treen who took us up to the Uxbridge Pond where they had actually stocked the pond and you could go fishing at the Uxbridge Pond and I said you know something? We went up and fished it a couple times but never caught a fish. But just having the great opportunity to do that was very important. So I always said that if I ever get the chance, I'm going to do the same for others. So we started a kids fishing day at that Uxbridge Pond and it went for years and I worked with a group At that time.
Speaker 4:It was Pickering Rod and Gun Club. They had over 200 rods and reels available on loan for kids to go out. They stocked the pond in conjunction with, at that time, the Ministry of Natural Resources to make sure everything was done, and I think Canadian Tire up there got actively involved and it ended up being they called it a Huck Finn Day in Uxbridge and people came from all over and I just packed the place and it was great to see. But when you start to get those, those activities and those areas and people start to come to them and it attracts them, and so I'm sure this Uxbridge Urban Provincial Park is going to do the same thing in attracting people to come up and, like you mentioned about hiking and things along those lines.
Speaker 3:Well, I think it certainly will. It already has and it's gaining attention. So many are coming, not only within Durham region, outside Durham region, but all over southern Ontario are coming out and we need these green spaces because they're to be enjoyed for all. They're a trust for all Ontarians and visitors to Ontario to enjoy.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and you know, jerry, you recall a time in the past, but these outdoor gatherings, the enjoyment of green space and the great outdoors is such an important part of life, and for children in particular, and it informs the memories of childhood and I think it motivates everyone to preserve it for future generations.
Speaker 4:Oh, absolutely Very, very important.
Speaker 2:Hi everybody. I'm Angelo Viola and I'm Pete Bowman. Now you might know us as the hosts of Canada's favorite fishing show, but now we're hosting a podcast. That's right. Every Thursday, Ang and I will be right here in your ears bringing you a brand new episode of Outdoor Journal Radio. Hmm, Now, what are we going to talk about for two hours every week? Well, you know there's going to be a lot of fishing.
Speaker 5:I knew exactly where those fish were going to be and how to catch them, and they were easy to catch.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but it's not just a fishing show.
Speaker 3:We're going to be talking to people, facets of the outdoors, from athletes. All the other guys would go golfing Me and Garton Turk and all the Russians would go fishing To scientists.
Speaker 1:Now that we're reforesting and letting things breathe, it's the perfect transmission environment for line fishing.
Speaker 7:To chefs If any game isn't cooked properly, marinated, you will taste it.
Speaker 2:And whoever else will pick up the phone Wherever you are. Outdoor Journal Radio seeks to answer the questions and tell the stories of all those who enjoy being outside. Find us on Spotify, apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 4:And now it's time for another testimonial for Chaga Health and Wellness. And now it's time for another testimonial for Chaga Health and Wellness. Okay, we're here in Lindsay, ontario, with Rusty, who's up from California and visits us every year, and Rusty has been a faithful Chaga user for a long time. Rusty, maybe you can just tell us about your experience with Chaga.
Speaker 6:Well, I feel that it has a significant impact on my health and well-being. I believe in what I'm doing. I think that Jerry is very knowledgeable on it. If he says something, I take that very seriously.
Speaker 6:He has spent most of his life in the health care field and certainly knows what he's talking about, and I like to be around people like that because that's what keeps me healthy. I'm 80 now and I'm going to try to enjoy what I've created with the motorcycle and one thing or another, which will require that I live for at least another 10 years to get back what I've invested in my health and wellness.
Speaker 4:So you're seeing a big benefit from it an overall healthy environment and when you go back to California next month, you actually take quite a bit with you back to California, don't you?
Speaker 6:Oh yes, we're going to be there for eight months and we don't want to run out, so we take it back and we take it every day and you know, like I say, it's not a problem for me.
Speaker 4:Right, so how do you take it, rusty?
Speaker 6:I put a teaspoon in my coffee each morning. Okay, when I brew the coffee, yeah, and I put it in as the coffee's brewing. I put that in with it.
Speaker 4:Oh, very good.
Speaker 6:And I put a little bit of cinnamon in with it too, right. And then I sweeten my coffee because, take the bitterness, a little bit of bitterness. I use the chaga and maple mix that you make up for those that want to be well and stay well. Okay.
Speaker 4:Well, thanks very much. We appreciate you taking the time and sharing your chaga experience with you, and we'll make sure you have a safe trip back to California.
Speaker 6:Sure enough, all right Okay. Thank you, jerry. Yeah, thanks, Rusty. Thanks, sir, my pleasure.
Speaker 4:We interrupt this program to bring you a special offer from Chaga Health Wellness. If you've listened this far and you're still wondering about this strange mushroom that I keep talking about and whether you would benefit from it or not, I may have something of interest to you. To thank you for listening to the show, I'm going to make trying Chaga that much easier by giving you a dollar off all our Chaga products at checkout. All you have to do is head over to our website, chagahealthandwellnesscom, place a few items in the cart and check out with the code CANOPY C-A-N-O-P-Y. If you're new to Chaga, I'd highly recommend the regular Chaga tea. This comes with 15 tea bags per package and each bag gives you around five or six cups of tea. Hey, thanks for listening Back to the episode. Now you've got a big event coming up in July, I believe Healthy Parks, healthy People Day. Maybe you can kind of enlighten us on a bit more about what that is and how people can get involved with it.
Speaker 3:Well, because my ministry is, as I said, aptly named Environment, conservation and Parks. All of that involves the great outdoors and being in the great outdoors, whether you're hiking, cycling or just walking with family, or walking your dog, or being with family or just a little solitude. It's all about physical fitness and anyone will tell you that you want to get off the couch and out of your house and it's great to be able to walk your neighborhood. But it's even more fantastic to be near a park, either walking distance or a short drive away, to be able to truly enjoy the great outdoors. Shortly after I became acting environment minister, I know my wife Kathy and I took our youngest son, jake, up to Awenda Park for the day for a beautiful outdoor walk.
Speaker 3:The fall colours were fantastic. As I indicated, all of our parks are beautiful all four seasons of the year. They all have their charms. I'm particularly fond of fall in Ontario because of the beautiful fall colours and the crisp air, but there's nothing like getting out for exercise, a walk, a jog, cycling with family or friends or on your own, and really enjoying so many of our parks in all seasons of the year. We have cross-country skiing, for example, in some of our parks and in the summertime, even when it's hot, if you're riding your bike, it's great to get that wind in your face and your hair to cool off, and you can always take shelter under some beautiful trees if you're just resting or just taking a short walk.
Speaker 4:I think, if I remember correctly, it's July the 18th. There's a day coming up when you're going to have access to the parks in Ontario so that the public at large can enjoy it for the day.
Speaker 3:That's right. We really promote a park access day and even on the days where there's a fee, it's a very modest fee. We've never really raised these to the point where it's inaccessible and the fees really just go to basic maintenance and staffing of the park, which you need. But you know another, another important thing I mentioned one of my predecessors, minister Dave Pacini. But Minister Andrea Kanjan, another one of my predecessors, established through a private members bill when she was parliamentary assistant, the the annual litter collection day. And this year, to mark I think it was the sixth anniversary, we encouraged everyone across Ontario, with their family and friends and schools and community groups, to go out and just get the litter out of our parks. You know, when spring comes and the snow melts, it's beautiful to see everything greening up, but you do see some litter and trash left behind. So if everybody does their part, it's amazing how much we can clean up litter from our parks and keep Ontario beautiful.
Speaker 4:Very good. Well, Minister, what other sort of files do you're working on or what are the big hot issues now? I know in Western Canada all the fires, forest fires and things like that, but I don't know. That would be more M&R sort of an issue with the forest fires. But certainly, if you're taking credit for the weather, the weather in the northwest part of Ontario, the rain helping out there, makes a big difference.
Speaker 3:Well, yes, look, I mean, we all have to do our part to prevent forest fires and obviously come on board to help with fighting forest fires and keeping them under control. Manitoba is going through a difficult time right now and we're offering to lend a hand. And you're right, it is an MNR Ministry of Natural Resources issue our forest fires, but we also have an associate minister of forestry. That's Kevin Holland, mike Harris Jr, as your successor and his dad's successor at MNR. We also have an emergency management minister, jill Dunlop, because forest fires and preventing them and dealing with them are part of emergency management. So it's all hands on deck when it comes to that. But in terms of another issue and this is a very interesting challenge is I touched on that balance of strong environmental oversight, good environmental stewardship and building the Ontario of tomorrow? I don't think we have to make a choice, but we're in a real interesting historic time right now and I think what you're seeing is parties of all stripes who form government in this country the NDP in British Columbia and in Manitoba, the Liberal government in Ottawa, just elected under Prime Minister Mark Carney, and our progressive Conservative government here in Ontario. We all have identified the need to strike that important balance because we've got to get out of our own way. We're not going to be able to build mines, extract critical minerals, build attainable housing for all, unless we find that balance when it comes to making sure that we have timely, reliable and transparent permitting processes on the environmental side. Because if we don't get that right, it shouldn't take years to build a mine, it shouldn't. You know, the ministry environment should not be a ministry of. I'll get back to you in three years about a particular permit process. We just cannot do that.
Speaker 3:And you'll see, even the speech from the throne on May the 27th, delivered from the Senate in Ottawa by His Majesty the King, talks about some very ambitious targets of the new Liberal government under Prime Minister Carney to build faster. And that's exactly what we're saying as a progressive conservative government in Ontario. We need to build faster, we need to make sure that speed is a priority, but we're not going to trample on environmental protections and we're not going to trample on Indigenous duty to consult under the constitution. We're going to do all of it, but we can't do it when there's endless delays, endless duplication, endless red tape and costs for no good reason. That just cannot stand.
Speaker 3:In fact, the Globe and Mail in February, in their lead editorial, talked about how does Canada win the race for capital? And we have to win the race for capital and encourage investment within Canada, have to win the race for capital and encourage investment within Canada and for those who want to believe in Canada and Ontario by investing here. We've got to find the right energy mix. We've got to make sure that we build the ring of fire and the roads to the ring of fire in partnership with our Indigenous communities and having regard to strong environmental oversight, but not needless, endless delays. Not, I'll get back to you in three years or five years or 10 years. We won't be able to do anything if we paralyze ourselves, if we don't get out of our own way.
Speaker 3:So I'm very happy to see that Premier Ford as the chair of the Council of the Federation this year, along with governments of all parties, stripes, federal and provincial, we are together, united, one Canadian economy, all pulling in the same direction. But I won't stand for needless bureaucratic duplication or bureaucratic delay. I won't stand for it and I'll be meeting with my counterparts, the other ministers of the environment across the federal, provincial and territorial governments in early July in the Northwest Territories, and I'm very much looking forward to that. We're meeting in Yellowknife Very good and it'll be a very productive series of meetings over several days. We've got to be together on this. We've got to be together on this. We've got to put partisanship aside and we've got to put bureaucracy in its proper context, because I mean, for example, interprovincial trade barriers. Who knew that we didn't have true free trade across Canada? We didn't. That's got to stop and the goal is to have it end by July 1st. We've got to build better, build faster, but build responsibly.
Speaker 4:Yeah, when you go to the meeting, I'm sure that it'll be like when I had the opportunity to serve as minister, when I attended a number of the provincial natural resources ministers and meetings in a number of locations, and it sort of ends up that they all kind of sit there and then they look what's Ontario doing? Because we're the lead we seem to be the lead in most things because we've got the experience and the staff out there who've experienced it themselves and individuals who can lead those ministries, like yourself and all the other ministries or the other provinces and jurisdictions, look up and say what's Ontario doing and how are they doing it? You're right, I know that it was always very important.
Speaker 3:That's been the case more often than not that Ontario is the leader of confederation. As Ontario goes, so goes Canada, but even more so the last year, the last few months, the Premier of Ontario, the Honourable Doug Ford, our great leader, has really been Captain Canada and, as Chair of the Council of Federation this year, he has been leading the other provinces and territories and the federal government toward this new approach, which is a united approach, ending interprovincial trade barriers, ending duplication, making sure that we, as I said, build faster, build better, but build responsibly. We all breathe the same air and depend on clean drinking water and the integrity of our lands. That is not in doubt. But there's no reason why we can't have a healthy energy mix that includes natural gas and a pipeline and clean, reliable nuclear energy, with our small modular reactor being built as a first of four in a fleet at Darlington.
Speaker 3:All of that has to be done responsibly, but it's got to be done. We've got to build homes more than ever now. We have a population that is 2 million more. In the last three years, since I was first elected in 2022, ontario has added 2 million citizens and residents. So we need to build the homes. We need to build the transportation corridors, we need to build public transit. We're doing it all and we need to do it with speed and, as I said, I'm against the environment.
Speaker 3:It's going to be done with strong environmental oversight, but I will not tolerate needless delay or duplication.
Speaker 4:Yes, and absolutely ending the provincial trade barriers, because a lot of people don't realize that what happens in Ontario you can't send it over to Quebec or Manitoba and vice versa. So we bring down those walls. It'll open up our own markets, like it should be. Free trade within Canada with our own provinces will be a good thing.
Speaker 3:It sure will be, jerry, it sure will be, and it's so essential. And yeah, we have a different trading relationship right now, currently with the United States, but I'm confident that it will remain strong and we will have great trading relationships with other nations. But, boy, we better have a good trading relationship among our provinces and territories. And that's the first order of business in the next few weeks.
Speaker 4:Yep, Take care of the home before you move on. Well, that's great, Minister. I really appreciate you taking the time to be on our podcast. Now, how can people find out more aspects about your ministry and yourself, or where can they get in touch with you? Mind you, I know it's difficult because, like you said, you've got more events to take place and it's not as if you're off on the weekend. You're out doing events on the weekend and the riding, as always.
Speaker 4:Well, that's right so how can they get in touch with you or find out more details about the ministry?
Speaker 3:Well, of course, if you go to the website, Ontario's Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks will tell you about all that my ministry does.
Speaker 4:Well, thanks very much for taking the time out of your busy schedule to be on the podcast. I very much appreciate it and I think you've enlightened a lot of our listeners out there of what it takes to be first of all elected and find your areas and what a minister does. I mean, there's so many things that people just assume because of what they read in the media is the way it is, and it doesn't really work like that at all. People are out there like yourself leadership, hard work, making a difference in the province and making changes out there under the canopy. Thanks for all you do, minister, and thanks out there under the canopy.
Speaker 3:Thanks for all you do, minister, and thanks for being on the podcast. Honored to be on here with you, Jerry, I'm happy to come back anytime, but thank you for the chat today. I very much enjoyed it.
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