A U.S.-based research lab that monitors the health of the Great Lakes is vital to the safe drinking water consumed by millions of Ontarians. Sweeping funding cuts under the Trump administration have crippled the lab’s ability to track pollution, harmful algal blooms and climate impacts—threatening the freshwater supply shared across the border.
Scientists warn that now is the critical moment for federal and provincial governments to step in and strengthen Canada’s role in protecting this essential resource before gaps in data and monitoring put communities at greater risk.
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A work stoppage among Brampton Transit employees which would have triggered widespread chaos for commuters has been avoided after the signing of a multi-year collective agreement between the union and the City of Brampton.
More than 100 environmental organizations, municipalities and Indigenous groups are drawing a line in the sand. Since Bill 5 was introduced last month—dubbed the Protecting Ontario by Unleashing Our Economy Act—advocates have rejected the profit-first agenda threatening environmental protection, Indigenous rights and municipal governance.
Premier Doug Ford needs to stop his latest powergrab, and listen to the hundreds of experts, advocates and municipal leaders who are telling him Bill 5 will do nothing to solve Ontario’s housing issues and lead to widespread environmental destruction, says the head of the Ontario Headwaters Institute.
As Mississauga and Brampton move forward with ambitious zero-carbon retrofit projects, questions around Peel Region’s governance are casting a growing shadow. With the Region’s future still in limbo and key legislation stalled by the surprise winter election, key environmental initiatives hang in the balance.
Local officials are navigating an uncertain path to secure funding and keep timelines intact, caught between bold climate goals and political upheaval.
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Joshua Creek residents concerned about the risks of potential contamination in their community, where industrial waste had been disposed decades ago, want more answers.
Cancer data provided by Halton Region suggest there is no reason for concern, but numerous stories of illness in the neighbourhood (which might represent typical cancer rates in any area) have been shared on social media.
Instead of listening to them, the mayor responded with a heavy hand, calling on police to investigate the claims as part of an alleged scam.
Nearly a year after two storms a month apart battered neighbourhoods across the GTA, residents in Mississauga wonder how they can be better prepared for the next major flood.
City Hall officials continue to plan for climate change but many residents still recovering from last year’s devastating floods feel not enough is being done.
Doug Ford and the PCs have been promising the city a second hospital for years, even hosting a campaign-style event recently claiming construction has started. A builder has not yet been selected and, once again, the provincial budget does not include any specific funding for the project.
Even if it does eventually get funded, the current plan under Ford to expand Peel Memorial does not include any acute care beds, would not have any of the required medical wards to qualify as a full-service hospital and falls far short of the capacity local officials have demanded to lift Brampton from its hallway-healthcare status.
Toronto has made it clear that without green building standards emission reduction targets can’t be met.
As the Ford government barrels ahead with its latest housing bill — the seventh in just six years — environmental safeguards are once again on the chopping block. Bill 17 promises faster builds, but at what cost?
On Tuesday inside Queen’s Park, all five PC MPPs for Brampton voted against an Opposition motion from NDP leader Marit Stiles requesting funding for critical health infrastructure, including a badly needed second hospital in Brampton.
The move comes after a confusing campaign photo-op outside the site of the Peel Memorial Phase II expansion which claimed to be for a “groundbreaking” even though a contractor to build the expansion has yet to be named.
Prime Minister Mark Carney introduced his new cabinet today, marking a major development for Brampton on the federal political scene as three local representatives now form part of the Prime Minister’s inner circle. They will be responsible for key priorities that could have big impacts on a city in desperate need of financial assistance from upper levels of government.
Barred from delegating before the board, an advocate for Black communities across Ontario is taking the Peel Police Services Board to the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal.
It’s becoming a disturbingly common practice for advocates attempting to force change within rigid institutions with histories of perpetuating systemic racism.
Nestled in the rolling green of Caledon, Peel’s first solar-powered brewery is redefining what it means to raise a glass.
GoodLot Farmstead Brewing’s latest creation, Tree Hug Wilder Sap Ale, is brewed from the sap of Canada’s iconic sugar maple—and infused with a mission to protect the very forests that inspire it.
Two professors at the University of Guelph warn that Premier Doug Ford’s controversial Bill 5 will hand unchecked power to the provincial government and cause widespread destruction of vulnerable wildlife and ecosystems.
Through actions reminiscent of U.S. President Donald Trump, Ontario Premier Doug Ford is dismantling the province’s environmental protections behind a smokescreen of economic recovery and trade war rhetoric.
With Bill 5, the PCs are launching an unprecedented attack on environmental protection laws, completely dismantling the Endangered Species Act and giving themselves permission to award new infrastructure and development projects wherever, whenever and to whomever they choose, exempting projects from existing provincial and municipal laws.
For months, police found dead or mutilated puppies in public parks around Mississauga. In April, police arrested one man, charging him with a number of animal cruelty offences.
Animal rights advocates have been warning the government for years that holes in the existing system allow bad actors to commit unthinkable crimes.
Brampton Transit operators, maintenance workers and other critical staff are days away from the picket line after rejecting the latest offer from the City that "significantly" reduced the proposed wages. The same day the offer was rejected, the City of Brampton signed a $10.9 million contract with a private transit firm.
It’s the latest dysfunction in Brampton’s critical transit system that has been consistently neglected by Mayor Patrick Brown and councillors.
It’s been a rocky start to 2025 for the City’s fire service.
Contract negotiations, ongoing for more than a year, are in turmoil as City management and members of the Mississauga Fire Fighters Association need a new deal. The Association’s President says the City has repeatedly delayed the process and failed to come to the table with a reasonable offer.
Amid the uncertainty, City officials suddenly announced at the end of March that Deryn Rizzi, Mississauga’s fire chief hired to transform the department, was gone. Her departure has not been explained.
Thousands of Brampton auto workers remain in limbo. At the end of February, after Donald Trump’s tariff threats, Stellantis announced it was pausing work at the Brampton assembly plant to make way for a major Electric Vehicle overhaul.
There are mounting concerns that the real reason for the protracted closure is tied to Trump’s desire for auto manufacturing to relocate south of the border.
Seven young Ontarians have won a historic legal battle in their fight for climate justice. The Supreme Court of Canada refused to hear Premier Doug Ford’s appeal, effectively upholding a lower court’s ruling that climate targets must comply with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The decision sends the case—originally launched in 2019—back to Ontario’s Superior Court, a big step forward for youth-led climate litigation in Canada.
Despite a harrowing 223 percent increase in people living on the streets of Peel over the last three years, councillors ignored a recent report detailing the disturbing rise in homelessness.
The failure of local elected officials has resulted in $50 million in annual hotel bills, instead of addressing the upstream causes of the housing affordability crisis, while Peel’s emergency shelter system has been chronically underfunded.
In a move that has sparked outrage among Brampton residents and environmental groups, Doug Ford’s PC government has approved the expansion of a controversial waste-to-energy facility in the city, despite widespread concerns over public health and environmental impacts.
While the facility owners claim it offers a clean energy solution, critics point out the lack of meaningful public consultation, the looming health risks posed by toxic emissions and the long-term environmental consequences of turning Brampton into a waste-burning hub.
New data obtained through a Freedom of Information request suggest residents of St. Catharines are feeling the impact of historic tax increases implemented under the current council.
Updated results suggest the Liberals have maintained a grip on five of the six available seats in Brampton. However, a poor showing in Ontario, mirrored in the loss of Brampton West, previously held by now former Liberal incumbent Kamal Khera, was the main slip that cost the party a coveted majority government.
For the fourth consecutive time the Liberals have won all six of Mississauga’s federal ridings.
The Conservatives had hoped candidates such as longtime Mississauga councillor Sue McFadden would turn the tide but anger over the party’s handling of local nomination races might have hurt its chances.
Despite a disappointing night for the Conservatives, the party did pick up a seat in the region, pulling Niagara South from the Liberals while returning two of their regional incumbents to Ottawa.
Chris Bittle was the lone Liberal winner in the region and will return to Ottawa as the St. Catharines MP for another term.
As Canadians decide on a new government Monday, the country’s clean energy future hangs in the balance. While Ottawa finalizes landmark climate regulations and municipalities including Mississauga break ground on cutting-edge low-carbon infrastructure, the Conservatives' newly unveiled platform promises deep cuts to cornerstone environmental initiatives.
Increased investments to effectively address gender-based violence and human trafficking have been needed for decades. Rising rates of these crimes are devastating communities across Canada, and advocates have demanded responsible commitments during the 2025 federal election campaign.
Leaders of the main parties have acknowledged the issue but the most progressive solutions outlined by those working on the front lines continue to be ignored.
A traumatic home invasion stunned the Grimsby community last week. Conservative politicians in the area were quick to pounce on it as more evidence of a “crime wave” that is plaguing communities across Canada, copying language used by their leader Pierre Poilievre.
In Niagara, the data doesn’t support the claim.
Brampton’s childcare woes continue to challenge families. Ten-dollar-a-day daycare has not been the solution the Liberals said it would be, at least not in places where take up of the program has lagged behind, for a range of complex reasons.
Facing long wait times, a lack of spaces and excessive costs, many families are forced to make sacrifices in the absence of more equitable policies.
The doctor shortage across Ontario is felt acutely in Peel, especially in Brampton where underfunding of the city’s local healthcare system led to an emergency declaration years ago.
Voters are being asked to choose the next federal government with few details about how each party would fix the badly broken frontline healthcare system in Brampton and other parts of Ontario.
The next federal government will have to address the lack of affordability facing millions of Canadians—roughly 8.6 percent of Peel’s population is living in poverty.
Statistics Canada reported two years ago that 22.9% of residents in the country’s 10 provinces were living in a food-insecure household—8.7 million people, including 2.1 million children.
Food Banks Canada has proposed a potential solution to lift people out of poverty; are federal leaders listening?
Shootings in parts of Brampton and Mississauga continue to shake communities. But Peel Police routinely present misleading information which goes unchecked by media.
Conservatives led by Pierre Poilievre are once again campaigning on a crime platform that fails to mention the decreasing rates of gun seizures in places like Peel.
For more than a year, Palestinians in Niagara have felt the sting from local politicians refusing to address their concerns.
Many with family at risk in Gaza are demanding federal leaders take action and advocate for an end to the war. Yet during one of the most significant federal elections in decades, the topic has received little attention.
Before dissolving his government, Liberals under Justin Trudeau reconfigured immigration levels and policies for the next two years, recognizing that poorly managed programs such as the international student strategy had outpaced capacity across the country.
In a region where immigrants are the lifeblood for almost every facet of Peel’s future, residents are being asked to vote for a new prime minister with few details about how one of the central features of Canadian identity will be approached.
A federal election is officially underway after Mark Carney won the race to replace former Liberal prime minister Justin Trudeau earlier this month. Already enjoying success in the polls, Carney hopes to beat key rival Pierre Poilievre when voters choose a new prime minister April 28th.
The Pointer will be gathering information about the candidates seeking election in Brampton and Mississauga with details about their experience as they vie for a seat in the House of Commons.
As cities swell and wild spaces shrink, the clash between urban growth and environmental protection is at a critical point—Peel is at the heart of this tension.
Rapid development and underfunded climate commitments are pushing local ecosystems to the brink. Experts say the federal government has to take action— the cost of delay is no longer theoretical.
With the federal election campaign officially underway candidate slates are starting to fill up in the four ridings across Niagara Region.
The Pointer provides a look at the political landscape in Niagara and who is seeking to represent constituents in Ottawa.
Protecting communities from climate change, funding for millions of new homes and a long list of social service needs are among the many costs Canada’s next government will have to prioritize.
With less than a week before the election, and many ballots already cast in early voting, electors across Peel remain in the dark. The Liberals just released their fully costed budget, while the Conservatives continue to postpone theirs, forcing voters to make a decision about who would best manage critical issues such as climate adaptation, healthcare funding and the collapse of social housing with little information in front of them.
As Muslim communities across Canada have grown, so has the awareness among politicians of the vote-rich potential to exploit these blocs of electors.
Many are frustrated with politicians who come around during election season, often offering favours to key community members who give them access, only to see candidates turn into ghosts once the election is over.
Entering the last full week of the federal election campaign, Canadians have received only vague information about the protection of our natural heritage. Donald Trump would like nothing more than to get his hands on our pristine fresh water.
Sadly, the federal leaders have failed to outline a clear path forward to ensure the preservation of our critical water, which is central to Canada’s environmental and economic well being.
The threat of a recession triggered by ongoing economic uncertainty south of the border has rippled through Ontario’s home building industry. While federal leaders flail over plans to boost construction, one Niagara business wants local municipalities to step in with innovative initiatives to increase desperately needed housing supply.
As impacts of climate change on municipalities intensify, local officials in Peel are grappling with floods, extreme weather and rising health risks.
They are calling for immediate federal action to bridge the gap in climate adaptation funding for stormwater upgrades and a range of other projects to make municipalities more resilient. They need long-term, sustainable investments to keep communities and their residents safe.
A longtime Brampton resident laments the current state of our democracy, as she struggles to make a decision before the April 28 federal election.
Candidates won’t answer simple questions and party leaders avoid explaining how they will pay for all the shiny promises being dangled in front of frustrated voters.
In an election defined by economic uncertainty, the impacts of the worsening climate crisis should be front and centre, advocates have highlighted. The cost of wildfires, biodiversity collapse and our rising oceans have suddenly been pushed aside, as party leaders fixate on the chaos created south of the border.
A sweeping report by more than a dozen environmental organizations breaks down each party’s stance on the environment—from fossil fuel subsidies and plastic exports to Indigenous-led conservation and clean energy policy—with the aim of pushing climate action back to centre stage.
Despite a long list of issues facing residents in the Mississauga Centre riding, don’t expect much engagement from the candidates on those growing concerns.
This federal election is the latest example of how parties and their leaders run campaigns, with little respect for voters who are once again being asked to cast a ballot without any detailed platforms to choose between. Local Conservative candidates have been AWOL for the last few weeks, making it hard for constituents to form an opinion about them before the big decision on April 28.
The city’s intoxicating lakefront is being opened up for the people, redefining the way residents and visitors interact with the shoreline; a goal decades in the making. As a mix of luxury mid-rises and more affordable townhomes and other units begin to shape Mississauga’s future, questions swirl about the grand plans to rethink the waterfront.
Tens of thousands of residents will soon call Lakeview Village, Brightwater and the redeveloping Port Credit marina area home, but one thing remains unclear—who will fund billions of dollars for public infrastructure, from transit and community centres to other local amenities?
On April 12, the Region of Peel voted unanimously, despite the absence of all three mayors, to send a letter to Ontario’s Ministers of Environment and Health, outlining urgent concerns over the proposed expansion of the Emerald Energy From Waste incinerator.
The motion reflects growing anxiety that the facility—slated to become the largest of its kind in Canada—could worsen air quality, increase health risks and deepen environmental inequities in a community already facing significant pollution pressures.
As Mark Carney and Pierre Poilievre promise voters they will get tougher on crime, a narrative being spread by the Peel Regional Police department aims to influence public opinion, but claims that the bail system is a major cause of violent crime and sweeping life sentences will eradicate illicit activities are misleading.
Instead of focusing on real solutions, the two political leaders are using police talking points to score points with those convinced that crime should be a major issue this election.
After a year that saw clashes between diaspora communities in Brampton, driven by India’s alleged targeting of Canadian Sikhs, and the city’s mayor admit to succumbing to foreign interference, the latest news of China’s efforts to sway voters has a particularly chilling effect here.
Dividing communities is a consequence of foreign interference, something many residents of Brampton know all too well.
The next government will have to address a housing crisis now more than a decade old. In Mississauga, a city facing immense growth pressure, status quo planning to create large single-family homes will no longer cut it.
Missing middle housing, density and complete communities are what younger generations are asking for, with a reasonable price tag that won’t leave them house poor for the rest of their life. But the three major parties have failed to offer a detailed plan, and realistic ideas to deliver what voters in Canada’s seventh largest city desperately need.
