GTA Construction News staff writer
A Toronto property owner and its demolition contractor have been ordered to pay a total of $330,000 to Birds Canada after being convicted under Ontario’s Endangered Species Act for destroying habitat used by the threatened Chimney Swift.
Bloor Dufferin Development Holding Corp. was convicted of one violation of the act and fined $1. A court order also requires the company to pay $300,000 to Birds Canada to support the protection and recovery of Chimney Swifts.
As part of its sentence, Bloor Dufferin must build a replacement habitat structure to compensate for two demolished chimneys and monitor it, along with two other replacement habitats, for up to 10 years after the third structure is completed, by March 30, 2027.
Lockhart Construction Ltd., the demolition contractor, was also convicted of one violation and fined $1. The company must pay $30,000 to Birds Canada by Feb. 6, 2026.
The offences occurred on June 13, 2022, at a redevelopment site on Bloor Street West in Toronto. The West Block of the property, partially owned by Bloor Dufferin, previously housed an academic building with two large chimneys that had been monitored for Chimney Swift activity since 2012.
Lockhart Construction demolished both chimneys under Bloor Dufferin’s oversight without determining whether they were active Chimney Swift habitats, according to a court report.
Chimney Swifts are migratory birds that spend winters in South America and breed in North America during summer, including in Ontario. They rely on hollow trees and chimneys for nesting and roosting, making such structures critical habitat.
The Ontario Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks’ Environmental Investigations and Enforcement Branch led the investigation that resulted in the convictions, emphasizing the legal responsibility of property owners and contractors to protect endangered species habitats.
