The push to build faster must not fast-track endangered species closer to extinction

TORONTO, Sept. 22, 2026 – Canada needs a project approval system that delivers both economic growth and healthy ecosystems. Any effort to expedite project approvals must come with equally strong safeguards for nature and wildlife. WWF-Canada is concerned that Bill C-39, the Building Canada Strong Act, falls short of that standard.

Economic and ecological resilience go hand in hand. As Canada plans development at the scale of regions, trade corridors, landscapes, watersheds and marine ecosystems, then it must also plan for nature at the same pace and scale.

“Environmental protections are not red tape. They are essential to the survival and recovery of species and cannot simply be traded away in the interest of expediency,” said Megan Leslie, President and CEO of WWF-Canada.

“Canada can build faster and more responsibly. Bill C-39 should be judged not only by whether it accelerates project approvals, but by whether it helps deliver the infrastructure Canada needs while leaving nature stronger, not weaker. National interest must include nature.”

Bill C-39 builds on extraordinary powers already established under the Building Canada Act, passed in 2025, to advance projects deemed of national interest, including a pathway to potentially side-step approvals normally required under laws such as the Species at Risk Act (SARA), Migratory Birds Act, the Impact Assessment Act and Fisheries Act, weakening protections for species at risk and their habitats.

WWF-Canada is concerned that the proposed creation of “regions of national interest” would give the federal government a second path to exempt projects from these environmental safeguards that would otherwise apply. The bill would also allow some pre-approved projects to begin activities before their impacts are fully assessed and mitigation conditions are applied.

The legislation would also give the government new powers to change or remove conditions attached to projects already approved. For projects such as Robert Banks Terminal 2, located at the mouth of the Fraser River in B.C., those conditions are critical safeguards designed to reduce environmental impacts and protect critically endangered Southern Resident killer whales.

It would also bring changes to SARA and the Fisheries Act by introducing considerations for what conditions are “feasible,” while no criteria have been shared, we have concerns that some conditions may not be required if they are perceived as too costly to implement. These protections under SARA and the Fisheries Act should not simply be traded away in the interest of expediency or cost.

The bill would also enable third-party habitat banking to offset destruction of fish and fish habitat. Under the mitigation hierarchy, offsetting is a last resort, after efforts to avoid and minimize harm. If the government is serious about applying that principle, the legislation should require impacts on ecologically sensitive areas to be avoided whenever possible.

Canada’s Nature Strategy committed the federal government to integrating its economic and nature agendas and encouraging nature-positive outcomes. That ambition needs to be reflected in Bill C-39.

About WWF-Canada

WWF-Canada is committed to equitable and effective conservation actions that restore nature, reverse wildlife loss and fight climate change. We draw on scientific analysis and Indigenous guidance to ensure all our efforts connect to a single goal: a future where wildlife, nature and people thrive. For more information, visit wwf.ca

For further information:

Emily Vandermeer, Senior Specialist Media Relations
[email protected] | [email protected]