WWF-Canada calls for nation-building projects that 'heal nature, not harm it'

TORONTO, June 27, 2025 /CNW/ - Canada's Parliament has voted to give Cabinet sweeping new powers to accelerate "nation-building" projects under Bill C-5, potentially bypassing environmental safeguards such as the Species at Risk Act (SARA), the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, the Fisheries Act and the Migratory Birds Convention Act. In our country's efforts to build the economy, World Wildlife Fund Canada believes any shovels in the ground must not be at the expense of endangered species and the habitats they rely on.

Bill C-5 will allow Cabinet to override key environmental protections for projects that it deems to be in the national interest. While unstable geopolitics demand that Canada shore up its economy, nearly half of Canadians (49%) recognize that environmental regulations should not be bypassed to "speed things up," according to new data from the Angus Reid Institute.

"Prosperity is possible without sacrificing wetlands, forests, marine ecosystems or wildlife," Megan Leslie, president and CEO of WWF-Canada says. "Canadians want growth that strengthens our economy and our ecosystems. Bill C-5 can still deliver that future, but only if the government insists on projects that protect and restore, not harm, the nature that sustains us."

Canada's ecosystems sustain wildlife, store carbon, filter water and provide many other essential services helping our communities adapt to a changing climate. Gutting safeguards around their protection risks repeating the mistakes of the past — mistakes that have harmed Indigenous communities, damaged wildlife habitats and burdened generations of people across the country. The way forward is to make the protection of nature a prerequisite for development. That means complying with the intent of environmental laws such as SARA and the Fisheries Act and pursuing a balanced path to prosperity.

The government should invest in large-scale, complex ecosystem restoration, Indigenous Guardians programs and renewable energy projects that have ecological integrity and durability at their core. Now is the time to fund nature-based solutions, develop conservation economies that strengthen communities, create jobs and help safeguard us from the impacts of climate change.

"The 'Building Canada' era should be remembered for landscapes restored, Indigenous rights respected and renewable energy delivered, not for nature pushed closer to the brink," Leslie says. "We stand ready to help government, industry and communities get this right."

About World Wildlife Fund Canada

WWF-Canada is committed to equitable and effective conservation actions that restore nature, reverse wildlife loss and fight climate change. We draw on scientific analysis and Indigenous guidance to ensure all our efforts connect to a single goal: a future where wildlife, nature and people thrive. For more information visit wwf.ca.

SOURCE World Wildlife Fund Canada

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