Context 5 pages Government
Documents 7 pages
Resources 10 pages
Impacts 9 pages
Who to Contact
Reach decision-makers at every level of government. The more voices they hear, the harder it is to ignore.
Write in your own words. State your name, your municipality, and whether you own land or property in the affected area. Be specific about your concerns — expropriation risk, the UNESCO Frontenac Arch Biosphere, the Rideau Canal World Heritage Site, the need for environmental studies before route selection, or the lack of accessible rural consultation.
Local & Adjacent MPs
On record opposing ALTO. Kramp-Neuman has formally announced her opposition to the proposed Alto HSR project as it affects both corridor options through her region. Mail by Canada Post may be sent postage-free to any MP at the Parliament Hill address above.
On record opposing ALTO. Reid is a founding member of the Ontario Landowners Association and has consistently advocated for property rights. Well positioned to raise concerns about Bill C-15 expropriation powers and lack of rural consultation.
Gerretsen has publicly advocated for the southern route and a Kingston stop. His office is a useful pressure point to ensure any southern route commitment comes with community protections and environmental safeguards.
On record opposing ALTO. Barrett’s riding includes Rideau Lakes Township — directly in the proposed southern corridor. Can raise accountability concerns about the adequacy of ALTO’s environmental assessments and expropriation framework.
Cabinet Ministers
Key ask: Demand that environmental and heritage impact studies be completed before route selection, not after. Request confirmation that Bill C-15 expropriation powers will be expressly constrained for this project.
Key ask: Request confirmation that a federal impact assessment will be triggered before route selection, and ask whether UNESCO has been formally notified of the potential impact on the Rideau Canal buffer zone.
Key ask: Request that Agriculture Canada conduct a formal agricultural land impact assessment for the southern corridor before route selection.
Key ask: Request a heritage impact assessment under the Historic Sites and Monuments Act and ask that the Historic Sites and Monuments Board formally review the route’s potential impacts on nationally designated heritage places.
Belanger’s mandate is rural community development and economic wellbeing. Displacement of rural residents, disruption of agricultural operations, and fragmentation of rural land falls squarely within his brief.
The southern route would disrupt tourism infrastructure in the Rideau Lakes corridor, Frontenac Arch region, and 1000 Islands gateway — one of Canada’s most significant heritage tourism destinations.
Opposition Critics
Key ask: Demand that the government commit to route transparency and prohibit use of Bill C-15 expropriation provisions without a full environmental and heritage impact review.
Key ask: Can call for a committee study into ALTO’s route selection process, expropriation powers, and public consultation failures.
Key ask: Formally ask whether a federal impact assessment has been triggered under the Impact Assessment Act and whether UNESCO has been notified of risks to the Rideau Canal corridor.
Key ask: Push for a formal agricultural land impact study and raise the risk to food security and farm viability posed by the route’s land requirements.
Key ask: Press the government on whether Historic Sites and Monuments Act protections apply to buffer zones along the southern route, and demand a heritage impact assessment before route selection.
Key ask: The Frontenac Arch Biosphere is one of Canada’s most ecologically significant conservation corridors. Push for a Fisheries Act and Species at Risk Act review of the southern route’s impacts.
Key ask: Call publicly on the government to halt route selection until a full public consultation, environmental assessment, and agricultural impact study are completed — and commit to no forced expropriation of family farms.
Key ask: Push for committee review of the route selection process, specifically asking whether the Impact Assessment Act applies and whether community consultation requirements have been properly met.
Key ask: Formally ask the government whether Rideau Canal buffer zones and Class 1 farmland have been factored into the southern route’s evaluation, and call for a community liaison process before route decisions are finalised.
Key ask: As a longstanding champion of environmental protection and UNESCO heritage designations, May is well-placed to formally call for a federal impact assessment before route selection and to raise the risks to the Frontenac Arch Biosphere and Rideau Canal World Heritage buffer zone on the floor of the House.
Local MPPs
Jordan represents a large rural riding with direct exposure to the southern route. Well-placed to push back on inadequate federal consultation and demand that provincial heritage and environmental frameworks are respected.
Clark covers the southern portion of Rideau Lakes township and has a long history in municipal and provincial advocacy.
Particularly important: As Parliamentary Assistant to the provincial Minister of Transportation, Bresee has a direct line to the Minister’s office and has publicly acknowledged following ALTO consultations closely.
Ontario Cabinet Ministers
Ford’s Intergovernmental Affairs mandate gives him standing to directly engage PM Carney and ALTO on behalf of Ontario. Ask him to formally request that Ontario’s environmental and heritage assessment laws apply in full before any federal route is approved.
Key ask: Request that the Ministry formally assert Ontario’s jurisdiction under its own Environmental Assessment Act and demand that no provincial land rights or designations be overridden without full provincial review.
Key ask: Ask McCarthy to direct the Rideau Valley and Cataraqui Region Conservation Authorities to formally assess and report on any southern route impacts before ALTO finalises its corridor.
Key ask: Under the Farming and Food Production Protection Act, the Ministry should assess and formally oppose any expropriation of prime agricultural land without demonstrated necessity and a robust alternatives review.
Key ask: Request that she formally assess the rural economic impact and advocate for meaningful rural consultation before route confirmation.
Key ask: Ask Cho to conduct a tourism economic impact assessment and advocate for protection of the Rideau Canal, Frontenac Arch Biosphere, and 1000 Islands gateway.