Timothy Hunt of McDougall has been ordered to pay $48,000 to the Georgian Bay Biosphere organization after pleading guilty to damaging the habitat of Blanding’s Turtles.
The species is listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.
According to officials with the provincial government, between May 2016 and June 2017, Hunt was doing road work within the Shebeshekong Wetland Conservation Reserve without a permit and, in the process, damaged Blanding’s Turtle habitat.
His case was heard in Parry Sound on Oct. 25, 2023.
Officials ask anyone who suspects someone is negatively impacting a species-at-risk or protected habitat to report it by calling 1-866-663-8477 or online.