Ontario businesses and government must find new ways to work together to properly capitalize on growing world demand for environmental services, products and technology, according to a recently released study.
Conducted by Deloitte for the Ontario Environment Industry Association (ONEIA), the study used a combination of interviews, focus groups and a survey to engage more than 180 companies across the province.
One significant challenge to growth as highlighted by 58 per cent of respondants includes the province's regulatory system, which fails to keep pace with innovation and requires more flexibility.
Most companies also agreed the governments should emphasize environmental outcomes, rather than championing winning technologies in order to foster the provincial industry.
The study also featured some good news, with 47 per cent of respondants agreed or strongly agreed that the province represents “a great place for environment companies to do business.” Companies highlighted Ontario's wealth of well-trained and motivated employees, growing local markets for products and services, and fair access to markets outside Ontario and Canada.
“Ontario has already started to move in the right direction,” said Alex Gill, executive director of ONEIA, in a release.
“We have great companies and a provincial government that has begun to put the right policies in place. But environment firms know we will have to work much more closely with government – and much more quickly – if Ontario is to become the world leader we know it can be.”
More than 60,000 people are currently employed across 2,700 firms in Ontario's environment industry. The global market for environmental goods, services and technology is set to rise to USD$700 billion annually in the coming years.
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