Steve Clark

Last spring, Ontario’s auditor general warned the government that changes to environmental assessments in Bill 197 were “not compliant” with the law. Now, First Nations and environmental groups are asking a judge to review the decision.

The developers behind the Pickering, Ont., project received a conditional permit Friday night. But in the meantime, local officials called for it to be paused and the Ontario government signalled it would be willing to backtrack.

Three of the new ministerial zoning orders involve environmental concerns, an Observer analysis shows. “We will never stop issuing MZOs for the people of Ontario,” Premier Doug Ford said Tuesday.

Under fire during question period Tuesday, the Ford government didn’t address criticism about the environmental impact of MZOs, the subject of a Canada's National Observer investigation released last week. But PC MPP Parm Gill said the government “will not apologize.” Later, the government announced renewed funding for the Greenbelt Foundation, which critics said was a distraction.