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The government of Ontario, Canada introduced Bill 23 (“More Homes Built Faster Act”) to remove restrictions that they claim are driving up the cost of housing and slowing construction. There are many parts of the act that are causing shock and horror among environmentalists and urbanists in Ontario, but there are some that have a much wider reach than just the province.
One of the major features of the act is to remove the authority of municipalities to develop their own green standards that differ from the provincial standards. When questioned, the office of the Housing Ministry told The Star that “if municipalities create their own standards, this patchwork of energy efficiency and other requirements reduces consistency and erodes affordability.”
One of those municipal standards that are threatened is Toronto’s Bird Friendly Guidelines. Toronto and the land around it are smack in the middle of the Atlantic Flyway, a major migration route running from the Arctic to South America, with many of them flying over New York City.
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