The Canadian government may still not have an official position on expanding Billy Bishop Airport in Toronto, but it wants to know what you think about the idea.
On Monday, the federal government launched its public consultations on the future of the airport, including whether or not its runway should be expanded to allow larger planes to land there.
“Feedback gathered through this consultation process will guide any future decisions,” the feds wrote.
The consultation comes after the Ford government passed a law to take control of the City of Toronto’s role in running the airport and to give itself expropriation powers over large swathes of Toronto Island.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford has said expanding the airport is vital for Ontario’s economy by allowing more flights into the heart of Toronto.
As recently as Tuesday, he defended the move as an economic driver.
“It’s going to make Pearson more competitive on flights, and it’s just going to be convenient,” Ford told reporters in Washington, D.C.
Prime Minister Mark Carney, however, has the power to kill or severely limit the project because the federal government controls both aviation and the agreement that governs Billy Bishop.
He recently said he had “not personally formed an opinion” about the airport expansion yet.
Advocacy group Environmental Defence said the airport should not be expanded.
“Turning the Island Airport into a much larger jet airport would increase air, noise and water pollution, cancel thousands of new homes already in development in Toronto’s Port Lands, threaten the Toronto Islands and mainland parks, and bring even more debilitating traffic and gridlock to Toronto’s downtown,” they wrote in a statement.