The effort to turn a section of west Windsor woodland into a protected area is now before Parliament.
Windsor West MP Brian Masse has announced the introduction of his private members' bill (PMB) to establish the Ojibway National Urban Park, an area not far from the construction site of the Gordie Howe International Bridge. The bill's introduction comes after over two years of lobbying and public consultation.
"It is a real privilege and honour to be the one to finally present the legislation in the House of Commons that so many people locally, nationally, and internationally want to see become law and have this environmental gem be protected forever," said Masse.
The bill, C-248, would place several greenspaces under the guise of the urban park, including Ojibway Park, Spring Garden Natural Area, Black Oak Heritage Park, the Tallgrass Prairie Park, Ojibway Prairie Provincial Nature Reserve, and Ojibway Shores, which is the last remaining natural undeveloped piece of land on either side of the Detroit River.
If the bill passes as is, the entire area would encompass over 900 acres of woodlands, home to many endangered species of birds and animals.
"Establishing Ojibway National Urban Park not only preserves the last remaining shoreline and protects remnants of a rare ecosystem, but underscores also how important it is to have a natural presence that has been unchanged by humans within a city. This is what makes it even more unique," said Chief Mary Duckworth of Caldwell First Nation.
Masse commented on how the effort to move this bill through compared with his last pet project, single-game sports betting.
"Drawing number seven on PMB order guarantees a vote in this session of parliament so the expectations are high for this happen," said Masse. "All those years of work by so many people across this city and country. Maybe luck too since in the last parliament my former sports betting bill was number seven as well and it became the law of the land."
C-248 got first reading in the House of Commons Wednesday.
