Endangered Species Need Transparency, Not Secrecy

Recent reporting byThe Narwhal, based on internal government emails obtained through freedom of information legislation, reveals that theOntario government has chosen not to publicly release several endangered species recovery strategies that were already underway when Bill 5 was passed. Among them is the long-awaited recovery strategy for the eastern wolf, a species whose future in Ontario depends on informed, coordinated, and transparent action.

Ontario’s decision to withhold the eastern wolf recovery strategy from the public is deeply troubling and raises serious concerns about transparency, accountability, and the future of endangered species protection in this province.

This is not a minor administrative matter. Recovery strategies are essential public documents. They compile years of scientific research to identify the threats facing species at risk and outline the actions needed to support recovery. They guide decision-makers, inform conservation efforts, support public education, and help communities, researchers, and First Nations understand what is needed to protect species before populations collapse.

For the eastern wolf, the need for openness is especially urgent.

The eastern wolf is an ecologically significant species, with a unique genetic ancestry notfound anywhere else in the world. It is one of Ontario’s most iconic wild animals, yet it continues to face several threats including  habitat fragmentation, automobile collisions, genetic hybridization with coyotes, and most significantly hunting and trapping. For years, scientists and conservationists have emphasized the importance of stronger, landscape-level protections to support the species’ recovery. Something which is meant to be articulated, evaluated, and advocated by provincial authorities in a recovery strategy. A draft recovery strategy for the eastern wolf was first posted for public consultation in 2018. It represented decades of scientific work and pointed toward meaningful solutions, including the need for a recovery zone that would create safer dispersal opportunities for individual wolves between protected and other core habitat areas. That kind of science-based planning matters for a mobile and wide-ranging species like eastern wolves, who do not recognize park boundaries, and for whom patchwork and ecologically-ignorant protection is not enough to secure their future.

Yet instead of moving forward openly with this work, the province appears to be keeping the strategy behind closed doors, in the shadows – where individual and party interests are easily championed over the interests of public welfare.

According to The Narwhal, internal emails from within the Ministry of Environment,Conservation and Parks show that provincial staff intended to continue work onseveral recovery strategies up to an advanced stage, while explicitly withholding them from public posting. In the case of the eastern wolf, this means a document shaped by years of research, review, and expert input may be retained for internal use only, hidden from the very people and communities who should be able to see, understand, and respond to it.

This is unacceptable.

Recovery planning should not be treated as optional internal guidance. If Ontario is serious about conserving species at risk, it should not be reducing transparency at the exact moment when strong public confidence and collaboration are needed most. These documents serve a vital public purpose.They help ensure that conservation is grounded in science, that all those with a stake in a species’ future, including Indigenous communities, researchers, stewardship groups, and the public, can participate in conservation strategy, and that decision-makers can be scrutinized when they deviate from evidence and public interest.

The government has argued that changes introduced through Bill 5 give it greater “flexibility” in how it develops conservation guidance. But flexibility without transparency is not a strength. It creates uncertainty, weakens accountability, and leaves the public in the dark about how endangered species will be protected under Ontario’s changing legal framework.

This is particularly alarming given the broader dismantling of safeguards under Bill 5. The legislation removed long-standing requirements under Ontario’s Endangered Species Act to develop recovery strategies and government response statements. It also paved the way for the future Species Conservation Act, which has yet to be fully implemented. In the meantime, key questions remainun answered: What will replace recovery strategies? What standards will guide protection and recovery? Who will have access to that information? And how will the public know whether endangered species are being meaningfully protected atall?

For the Eastern Wolf, these questions are not abstract. Delay and secrecy come at a cost.

There is already a strong foundation of knowledge on what must happen next. Ontario should publicly release the eastern wolf recovery strategy without further delay. It should also commit to acting on its recommendations, including stronger habitat protection and expanded safeguards for wolves moving beyond the boundaries of a few provincial parks. A recovery zone, one that reflects the ecological reality of how wolves live and move across the landscape, remains a practical and necessary step.

Protecting the eastern wolf requires more than quiet internal discussions. It requires public leadership, public accountability, and a willingness to act on science.

At Earthroots, we believe Ontarians deserve transparency about the future of endangered species in this province. The eastern wolf recovery strategy belongs in the public domain. The science belongs in the public domain. The path forward must be visible, credible, and open to scrutiny.

The Eastern Wolf cannot recover in secrecy.

Ontario must release the recovery strategy and move forward with real protections for this iconic species, before another opportunity for recovery is lost.

Join Earthroots in demanding that the Ontario Government release all endangered species recovery strategies. Email Doug Ford now!

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