Submission to the Standing Committee on Heritage, Infrastructure and Cultural Policy of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario

The Canadian Partnership for Children’s Health and Environment (CPCHE) submits that Bill 23 may jeopardize child development by increasing exposure to air pollution and climate risks while eroding municipal capacity to maintain affordable housing and green spaces. The submission highlights that 40% of renters with children in Ontario are in core housing need and that green spaces are critical for mitigating heat waves and floods. CPCHE recommends revising the Bill to prioritize vulnerable renters, protect urban parklands and wetlands, and encourage walkable, low-emission community design to reduce traffic-related air pollution (TRAP), which is causally linked to childhood asthma.

• Bill 23 is argued to increase children's exposure to environmental risks, including air pollution, climate change effects, and housing precarity, which can lead to chronic diseases, impaired brain development, and mental well-being issues.
• While Bill 23 may increase housing density and reduce costs for non-profit providers, it is claimed to erode the ability of municipalities to ensure energy efficiency in new buildings and preserve affordable rental housing and green spaces.
• Housing instability and poor quality disproportionately affect low-income children in Ontario; 40% of renters with children are in core housing need, and 53.6% of all renters live in units that fail one or more housing standards.
• Green spaces are identified as essential public health assets that support child development and provide critical climate mitigation, such as air purification and water retention to alleviate the intensity of heat waves, floods, and wildfire smoke.
• Land-use planning decisions directly influence children's health by determining the level of traffic-related air pollution (TRAP), which Health Canada has causally linked to asthma in children.

APA

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (2022). Submission to the Standing Committee on Heritage, Infrastructure and Cultural Policy of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/CPCHE-submission_ON_Bill-23_FINAL.pdf#new_tab

Chicago

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. Submission to the Standing Committee on Heritage, Infrastructure and Cultural Policy of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. 2022. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/CPCHE-submission_ON_Bill-23_FINAL.pdf#new_tab.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment |title=Submission to the Standing Committee on Heritage, Infrastructure and Cultural Policy of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario |date=November 2022 |url=https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/CPCHE-submission_ON_Bill-23_FINAL.pdf#new_tab |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{canadianassociationofphysiciansfortheenvironment2022submission, author = {{Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}}, title = {{Submission to the Standing Committee on Heritage, Infrastructure and Cultural Policy of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario}}, publisher = {Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}, year = {2022}, month = nov, url = {https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/CPCHE-submission_ON_Bill-23_FINAL.pdf#new_tab}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }