April 8, 2004
For Immediate Release

ENVIRONMENTAL WATCHDOG GROUP APPLAUDS NEW FACE OF NIAGARA ESCARPMENT COMMISSION
Better decisions on Escarpment protection expected from Queen's Park's new NEC appointments

"Our knowledge of the integrity of the individuals whom Cabinet has appointed allows us to breathe a sigh of relief," says Linda Pim, CONE's conservation policy analyst. "CONE's overriding criterion for a good Commissioner is that he or she fully supports the Niagara Escarpment Plan, the first large-scale, environment-first land use plan in Canada, initially approved in 1985. We are confident that the government has chosen 13 pro-Plan members - and we hope these choices are a harbinger of better times for Niagara Escarpment protection overall."

CONE found that several Commissioners appointed by the previous government over the period 1996 to 2003 frequently ignored the policies of the Niagara Escarpment Plan. As a result, during that period, new development crept into the Escarpment countryside in clear contravention of the policies in the Plan. The Niagara Escarpment Plan allows development under certain conditions where it is compatible with protecting the Escarpment's continuous natural environment from Niagara Falls to Tobermory. CONE's research has shown that the Plan has been highly successful in controlling development. The existence and implementation of the Plan were key to the Niagara Escarpment being declared a Biosphere Reserve by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1990.

"CONE now expects a more stable period for the Commission, with a solid majority of Commissioners expected to vote on development permits and Plan amendments in a manner consistent with the Plan and its underlying legislation, the Niagara Escarpment Planning and Development Act," Pim says.

CONE also recognized Cabinet's historic decision to include on the Commission a member of the Chippewas of Nawash First Nation, for whom the Niagara Escarpment has been home for thousands of years.

"Cabinet has chosen people from a diversity of backgrounds, and that will make the NEC much more reflective of the Ontario population," said David McLaren, a member of CONE's board of directors from the Bruce Peninsula. "The appointment of a Commissioner from the Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation, whose home is on the Escarpment at Neyaashiinigamiing (Cape Croker), is a recognition of the unique contribution that indigenous peoples can make to safeguarding the environment. Now the NEC will have a benefit of Native environmental perspective and knowledge, and will be stronger for it."

CONE will continue its practice of sending observers to each NEC meeting to monitor the decisions of the Commission.

The Coalition on the Niagara Escarpment is a coalition of 30 province-wide and local, community-based organizations with the common goals of supporting protection of the Niagara Escarpment from inappropriate development and promoting the many values of the Escarpment to Ontario society. CONE celebrated its 25th. anniversary in 2003. CONE supports the Niagara Escarpment Plan, which regulates development on the 725-kilometre-long section of the Escarpment from Niagara Falls to Tobermory.

Members of the Niagara Escarpment Commission, April 2004

Members Representing Municipalities

County of Bruce: Thomas Boyle*
County of Grey: Deborah Haswell*
County of Simcoe: Ian Lang*
County of Dufferin: David Baldwin* Region of Peel: Richard Paterak*
Region of Halton: Allan Elgar*
City of Hamilton: Brian McHattie*
Region of Niagara: Michael Collins*

Members Representing the Public at Large

Don Alexander* (St. Catharines)
Georgina Beattie (Stoney Creek)
Eric Johnston* (Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation, Cape Croker)
Moreen Miller* (Alton)
Joan Little* (Burlington)
Cecil Louis* (Toronto)
Nicolette Novak (Beamsville)
John Riley (Mono)
Don Scott, Chair (Wiarton)

* newly appointed or newly re-appointment by the Ontario Cabinet, February-April 2004