The federal government recently released “Getting Major Projects Built in Canada,” a discussion paper proposing to fast-track major infrastructure developments.

The paper comes less than two months after A Force of Nature, the government’s new $3.8-billion strategy committing to protect 30 per cent of Canada’s lands and waters by 2030.

The dissonance between the two is striking.

A Force of Nature aims to protect ecosystems and wildlife for the betterment of Canada. In contrast, the reforms proposed in “Getting Major Projects Built” could threaten natural environments, species-at-risk and human health for generations.

One proposal in the discussion paper is the creation of “federal economic zones,” in which environmental impact assessments would not be required. For others outside these zones, construction could begin before assessments are complete.

But impact assessments are not red tape. Their entire purpose is to prevent irreversible harm. Circumventing the process, or allowing shovels in the ground before the risks are understood, is misguided and a gamble with our collective future.

As leaders of the Canadian Society for Ecology and Evolution — a non-partisan society of nearly 1,000 ecologists and evolutionary biologists — we believe Canadians need to understand what is at stake.

Gambling with Canada’s endangered species

Canada’s Species at Risk Act (SARA) contains a legal requirement known as the jeopardy test. Before a major project can proceed, it must be demonstrated that the project will not push a listed species closer to extinction or prevent its recovery.

Under the government’s new........

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