A five-figure fine was issued by the Department of Environment against a Québec contractor for using machinery within the habitat of the rare Western Chorus Frog.According to Blacklock’s Reporter, the protection orders aimed at safeguarding the endangered frog previously put a stop to the development of a $22 million subdivision in La Prairie, QC.“The Emergency Order prohibits the use of any on- or off-road vehicle anywhere other than on a road or path,” the department wrote in a notice. The construction company, Antoine Stabile & Son Inc. of La Prairie, used equipment within a St. Lawrence River marsh protected under the Species at Risk Act.Stabile & Son received a fine of $25,000 for their actions. The maximum penalties allowed under the Act could go up to $50,000. No harm to the frogs was reported in this incident.The Western Chorus Frogs are native to the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River region. The exact population of these tiny frogs is uncertain. Environmental organizations estimate a decline of 37% in Québec and 43% in Ontario over the past decade.“It is a secretive species,” the federal Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife wrote in a 2008 report.The Emergency Order states residents must not “dig, remove, compact or plow the soil,” “remove, prune, mow, destroy or introduce any vegetation such as a tree, shrub or plant,” “alter surface water in any manner,” “install or construct or perform any maintenance on any infrastructure,” use ATVs or bicycles “anywhere other than on a road or paved path” or use fertilizers, herbicides or insecticides.The directive from the then-Environment Minister Catherine McKenna was a response to petitions made by local environmental organizations. This order impacts all areas that host breeding ponds for these frogs.The previous ban prevented the construction of a $22.3 million housing development in La Prairie, QC. This led to several years of legal disputes. In 2020, the Federal Court of Appeal determined federal regulations apply to private properties and property owners do not have an inherent right to compensation.In the La Prairie case, in 2008, the local authorities granted permission to drain a swamp to construct a new housing subdivision. However, this project stopped three years later due to environmental organizations petitioning to protect the frogs' habitat.“Suburban sprawl and changes in farming practices are contributing to the ongoing destruction of Western Chorus Frog habitats and are thereby threatening the species’ survival in Canada,” Federal Court Justice Luc Martineau wrote in 2015.The La Prairie developer Habitations Îlot St-Jacques Inc. was unsuccessful in challenging the Emergency Order.“From 1995 to 2006, population numbers at Ontario sites decreased at an estimated rate of 3.5% per year,” the Department of Environment wrote in a regulatory notice at the time. “In many cases where populations have declined because of land use, the populations have not recovered.”
A five-figure fine was issued by the Department of Environment against a Québec contractor for using machinery within the habitat of the rare Western Chorus Frog.According to Blacklock’s Reporter, the protection orders aimed at safeguarding the endangered frog previously put a stop to the development of a $22 million subdivision in La Prairie, QC.“The Emergency Order prohibits the use of any on- or off-road vehicle anywhere other than on a road or path,” the department wrote in a notice. The construction company, Antoine Stabile & Son Inc. of La Prairie, used equipment within a St. Lawrence River marsh protected under the Species at Risk Act.Stabile & Son received a fine of $25,000 for their actions. The maximum penalties allowed under the Act could go up to $50,000. No harm to the frogs was reported in this incident.The Western Chorus Frogs are native to the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River region. The exact population of these tiny frogs is uncertain. Environmental organizations estimate a decline of 37% in Québec and 43% in Ontario over the past decade.“It is a secretive species,” the federal Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife wrote in a 2008 report.The Emergency Order states residents must not “dig, remove, compact or plow the soil,” “remove, prune, mow, destroy or introduce any vegetation such as a tree, shrub or plant,” “alter surface water in any manner,” “install or construct or perform any maintenance on any infrastructure,” use ATVs or bicycles “anywhere other than on a road or paved path” or use fertilizers, herbicides or insecticides.The directive from the then-Environment Minister Catherine McKenna was a response to petitions made by local environmental organizations. This order impacts all areas that host breeding ponds for these frogs.The previous ban prevented the construction of a $22.3 million housing development in La Prairie, QC. This led to several years of legal disputes. In 2020, the Federal Court of Appeal determined federal regulations apply to private properties and property owners do not have an inherent right to compensation.In the La Prairie case, in 2008, the local authorities granted permission to drain a swamp to construct a new housing subdivision. However, this project stopped three years later due to environmental organizations petitioning to protect the frogs' habitat.“Suburban sprawl and changes in farming practices are contributing to the ongoing destruction of Western Chorus Frog habitats and are thereby threatening the species’ survival in Canada,” Federal Court Justice Luc Martineau wrote in 2015.The La Prairie developer Habitations Îlot St-Jacques Inc. was unsuccessful in challenging the Emergency Order.“From 1995 to 2006, population numbers at Ontario sites decreased at an estimated rate of 3.5% per year,” the Department of Environment wrote in a regulatory notice at the time. “In many cases where populations have declined because of land use, the populations have not recovered.”
