During the recent Ontario provincial election, Premier Doug Ford boasted that, if elected, he would stand up to the U.S. president, stating, “I’ll fight tooth and nail against Donald Trump. I’ll promise you that,” and sporting a hat declaring “Canada is Not for Sale.”
However, since being elected, Ford’s actions are showing that his agenda bears some uncanny resemblances to Donald Trump’s, specifically when it comes to prioritizing the economy at the expense of environmental and endangered species protections.
Recently, the Ford government introduced Bill 5, the Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, which is rapidly moving through the provincial legislature. The bill claims to protect Ontario from global economic uncertainty by streamlining the approval processes for mining and infrastructure projects. But at what cost? The bill would repeal Ontario’s Endangered Species Act (ESA) and replace it with a weaker Species Conservation Act (SCA), which narrows the definition of “habitat” to an animal’s immediate dwelling place, as well as fast-track mining and other development projects.
Recent executive orders by President Trump also seek to expedite natural resource production by deregulating and circumventing endangered species protections. Trump has directed the use of emergency provisions in endangered species regulations to fast-track logging and mining projects and proposed reducing habitat protections by removing a key regulatory definition.
As stated by NDP MPP Teresa J. Armstrong, “We’re all outraged about what’s happening in the U.S., where the president is stripping laws and taking away rights, but yet here we are doing something very similar."
Building on Ms. Armstrong’s observations, we have observed similarities with several of Trump's recent executive orders. Most notably, the title of Bill 5 mirrors that of Executive Order 14154: “Unleashing American Energy.” Both frame regulations, such as endangered species protections, as economic obstacles and propose “unleashing” their respective jurisdictions from regulatory constraints to allow economic growth to take precedence over scientifically supported protections. The bill claws back on Ontario’s long-established ESA, whereas the Executive Order directs agency heads to remove “unduly burdensome” regulations, prompting U.S. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum to instruct the suspension, revision, or rescission of three significant U.S. ESA regulations finalized by the Biden Administration.
Bill 5’s changing the definition of “habitat” to a “dwelling-place” such as a den or nest and “the area immediately around it” would remove protections from essential seasonal habitats and migratory corridors. This proposal is very similar to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s proposal to rescind its regulatory definition of “harm” under the U.S. ESA, which would remove long-standing habitat modification protections.
Bill 5 also mimics Trump’s Executive Order 14225: “Immediate Expansion of American Timber Production." In this order, Trump directs the use of the Endangered Species Committee, also known as the “God Squad,” and U.S. ESA emergency regulations to expedite review of logging projects. Executive Order 14156: “Declaring a National Energy Emergency” seeks to use the U.S. ESA’s emergency regulations to facilitate the nation’s energy supply. Similarly, Bill 5 would grant the minister power to override or ignore the Committee on the Status of Species at Risk in Ontario’s science-based classifications. Both mechanisms manipulate the use of committees established to protect species, to instead use them for economic development.
In addition, both Ford and Trump’s plans seek to expedite mining. Bill 5 proposes changes to Ontario’s Mining Act, which would allow mining activities to bypass the usual environmental impact assessment requirements. This is not far off from Executive Order 14241: “Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production,” which directs “immediate action to facilitate domestic mineral production to the maximum possible extent.”
Overall, Ford's approach with Bill 5 shows the same disregard for years of environmentally protective legislation and policies as Trump’s executive orders. By sidelining environmental protections, endangering vulnerable species and ignoring the duty to consult Indigenous communities, Ford is threatening the lands, waters, biodiversity and rights that should be protected for future generations. The question now is whether Ontarians will accept it. The 30-day public consultation process through the Environmental Registry of Ontario concluded on May 17, 2025, but those who wish to express their opinions on the bill should contact their MPPs before it reaches third reading.
Angela Fernandez teaches animal law at the Faculty of Law, University of Toronto. Kira Berkeley and Krystal-Anne Roussel are Animal Law Research Associates at the Faculty of Law, University of Toronto. Kelley McGill is the Legislative Policy Fellow at Harvard Law School.
