Mike Schreiner released the following statement after environmental groups filed a lawsuit against the Ford government over its forestry plan for Temagami:

“Once again, this government shows contempt for laws that defend the places we love, creating an endless line of lawsuits from groups trying to hold them accountable.

The Premier is unleashing a systematic attack on Ontario’s forests, tearing down environmental protections in service of a rip-and-ship agenda.

Instead of protecting a region that contains 50% of all remaining old-growth pine forests, Ford is clearing the way for their removal.

Forests and climate change go hand-in-hand, and we must make every effort to ensure old-growth forests remain intact so that they store carbon instead of releasing it.

It is shameful that the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry is failing to do their job by approving forestry plans that completely ignore the climate crisis.

The government’s sweeping changes to deregulate forestry in Ontario – including a plan to double the rate of logging – will open the door to more deforestation and put us at greater risk of climate impacts such as flooding and wildfires.”