Ontario's top court has agreed to hear an appeal from a town that was fined 100-thousand dollars for harming the habitat of the piping plover on Sauble Beach.
The Town of South Bruce Peninsula received the fine for its beach-grooming activities in 2017.
The Ontario Court of Appeal says the case will be its first chance to clarify part of the Environmental Species Act that makes it an offence to damage or destroy the habitat of more than 175 endangered species of plants and animals.
The town argues the interpretation of what constitutes ``damage'' to a species' habitat was too broad, and would capture habitat changes with little or no real impact on a species.
With files from the Canadian Press.