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Submitted by Anita Jacobsen, a Zoologist and Educator, who worked as a biologist, teacher, and then as head gardener for many years at the Stratford Festival. She has a lifelong interest in birds and the natural world and currently is involved with volunteers in Stratford to limit invasive species and promote biodiversity in the park system.<\/p>\n
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The nest was huge! In the top of the tallest tree in the woodlot, close to the edge, complete with an eagle perched within, its white head shining in the sunlight. It was the first Bald Eagle I had ever seen. It was also one of only 3 Bald Eagle pairs left in Southern Ontario in the early 1980\u2019s.<\/p>\n
Historically Bald Eagles were common in southern Ontario, until the advance of land-clearing for agriculture in the late 1880\u2019s which virtually wiped them out. Legislation allowed numbers to recover to about 100 breeding pairs in the 1950s, but then came the widespread agricultural use of DDT, an insecticide, and the numbers of eagles crashed again. Eagles eat fish, not insects, but DDT ran off fields and into waterways, where it was absorbed by fish and other aquatic organisms. In every step up the food chain, the chemical\u2019s concentration increased, causing eagle eggshells to thin so drastically they could no longer successfully incubate them.<\/p>\n
The Bald Eagle was one of the first species to be listed in Ontario\u2019s original Endangered Species act in 1973. With this protection, and a continent-wide ban on DDT, Bald Eagles started to make a slow recovery, and by 2008 there were about 45 breeding pairs in Ontario. In 2022, over 2600 Bald Eagle nests were identified in Ontario, and after 50 years, its recovery was so successful that it was removed from the Endangered Species list. Currently in Stratford, I can regularly see eagles soaring overhead, and can visit several nests throughout Perth County.<\/p>\n
This is a remarkable success story, but not one I\u2019m convinced could happen today. Though Bald Eagles are no longer considered endangered, they remain a species of concern, and humans continue to pose the largest threat to their existence. Expanding human populations and associated disturbance can impact the availability and suitability of Bald Eagle habitats, and their breeding and overwintering habitats are particularly vulnerable to urban expansion and shoreline development.<\/p>\n
When Bald Eagles were protected by the Endangered Species Act, not only was it an offence to wilfully kill, injure, or interfere with the birds or their nests, it also prohibited damaging or destroying critical nesting or feeding habitat. The Act provided a legal framework for conservation efforts, with penalties for violations, and established an independent committee (COSSARO) to assess the status of species.<\/p>\n
However, with the passing of Bill 5 (Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy) the Endangered Species Act is no more. It is being replaced by the Species Conservation Act, which has much weaker protections for vulnerable species. For example, the definition for \u201chabitat\u201d would only apply to an Eagle\u2019s nest, not the area it needs for hunting, and only while the nest is occupied, leaving much of their habitat unprotected. For Eagles, who reuse their nests for years, the limited protections offered by the Act leave migratory pairs at risk of having nowhere to come back to nest. And if biologists determine that Eagles or any other species are under threat of extinction, the species will no longer be put automatically on the List of Species at Risk. Instead, it will be up to the discretion of politicians behind closed doors, many of whom have little science background to determine whether a species is deserving of protection.<\/p>\n
Disturbingly, Bill 5 also allows for the creation of Special Economic Zones, areas and companies that members of the Cabinet can exempt from applicable laws, with the aim of speeding up major resource and infrastructure projects. Any laws pertaining to protecting vulnerable species or impacts on the environment can be set aside if the project is deemed economically Important.<\/p>\n
So why should we be concerned about the changes to the Endangered Species Act or what happens Bald Eagles or other vulnerable species. The reason is that we are all part of a limited ecosystem. The Earth and its resources are not infinite, and every person on Earth depends on a healthy functioning ecosystem for their continued existence. We all have a responsibility to be good stewards of our resources and to ensure the viability of all other organisms. If we ignore this, we are on the road to ecological collapse, and humanity will be the ones to suffer.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, Bill 5 ignores this reality and turns its back on our collective responsibility to care for the environment we share with a myriad of lifeforms and on which we depend for our own survival.<\/p>\n
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