The Council of Canadians has been calling on MPPs in Ontario to support Bill 32, an Act to prevent the disposal of waste at Site 41 in the Township of Tiny.
This evening, we heard that Bill 32 passed second reading in the Ontario Legislature in a 40 to 11 vote.
Bill 32 is critical because it proposes revocation of the Certificate of Approval needed for a landfill on the site to proceed.
To assist in the broad-based effort to pass Bill 32, Council of Canadians chairperson Maude Barlow wrote an open letter to MPPs, we issued a media release, and we put out an action alert directing people to a petition site that has generated thousands of signatures.
The Orillia Packet and Times reports that, “In a move that surprised many observers, a number of Liberals voted for the bill, along with (MPP Garfield) Dunlop’s Conservative colleagues and the NDP.”
“Dunlop (who has championed the bill) said he was approached by a number of Liberal MPPs who said their constituents wanted them to support the bill.”
Dunlop said, “I felt positive about things this past week because other members — including Liberals — kept coming up to me saying they couldn’t believe the number of emails and phone calls they were getting. I told them we’re never going to stop.”
“Dunlop said afterward that the next step is for people to put pressure on the government to move the bill to committee.”
“Asked how soon the bill might go to committee, he replied it is not an easy task, ‘but I will be working on that. It’s a private member’s bill, but it’s a very good private member’s bill.'”
Congratulations to Garfield Dunlop and to everyone who worked so hard to get the bill passed.
We will keep you posted on efforts to move the bill to committee and the date for the third and final reading of Bill 32.
The Orillia Packet and Times article is at http://www.orilliapacket.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2185219.
