Unfortunately, Doug Ford is at it again with two big announcements over the past two weeks about policy changes that will seriously compromise protections for wetlands, farmland and natural heritage features around the Greater Golden Horseshoe. First it was tabling Bill 23, the More Homes Built Faster Act, 2022 and then it was carving holes in the Greenbelt he previously promised to never touch.
Bill 23
This omnibus bill proposes sweeping changes to the province’s natural heritage and land use planning legislation. The bill is framed as solving the housing crisis but obscures the fact that it is really just about serving the interests of developers.
Here are some of the key changes they are proposing:
- Remove the requirement to notify members of the public about development plans.
- Give the Minister the power to override municipal planning decisions and impose development.
- Strip the power of Conservation Authorities to manage watershed level planning and protect watercourses and wetlands for flood/erosion control and natural heritage protection.
- Remove planning powers of several regional municipalities around the Greater Golden Horseshoe to protect farmland and natural areas.
- Completely overhaul the Ontario Wetland Evaluation System for Provincially Significant Wetlands (PSW), making it easier to remove PSW designation for existing wetlands, and ensuring that very few would be deemed PSW in the future.
- Destructive revisions to the Provincial Policy Statement which requires natural heritage systems planning and provides strong protections for Ontario’s farmland and natural heritage systems.
- Introduction of “offsetting” which could allow developers to destroy wetlands and recreate or restore them elsewhere.
As you can imagine, these changes would have serious consequences for the protections we count on to ensure ecological integrity for wetland complexes and wildlife habitats, as well as the vital role Conservation Authorities play to manage watersheds and protect communities from flooding. These changes will undermine environmental protection across the province and will severely constrain our collective ability to engage in municipal planning decisions.
This bill will soon be going through third reading so urgent action to reach your MPP, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, and local municipal leaders is important!
Greenbelt
As if Bill 23 wasn’t bad enough, the provincial government is now proposing to open protected lands in the Greenbelt for development!
Late Friday afternoon, November 4, the Ontario Government announced its intention to remove 7,400 acres of precious farmland and natural areas from Greenbelt protection as a purported “solution” to the housing crisis and to add new land to the Greenbelt to make up for the loss.
The trouble is, some of the land they are proposing to swap (e.g., urban river valleys) are already protected from development through other mechanisms, so it’s really just another smoke screen to slip gifts to Ford’s campaign supporters while pretending to do something about the housing crisis. In reality, no affordable housing will come out of this, just more urban sprawl and profits for a few. (Who are the developers set to benefit from the Ford government’s Greenbelt land swap?)
Most frustratingly, the Greenbelt lands aren’t even needed to meet regional growth targets. Earlier this year, the Ontario government’s own Housing Affordability Task Force delivered a report that said: “A shortage of land isn’t the cause of the problem […] Land is available, both inside the existing built-up areas and on undeveloped land outside greenbelts.” Analysts agree there is enough available land within existing urban boundaries to meet housing needs for the next 50 years, without touching the Greenbelt.
Undermining the ecological integrity of the watersheds and natural systems that are in and around the Greenbelt is a recipe for disaster. If passed, this policy change could set a destructive precedent that Greenbelt protected lands will be sacrificed when land speculators want to develop them.
Actions You Can Take
ACTION 1 – November 16, 9:00 am
Pop-up rally at Wellington/Halton MPP Ted Arnott’s office, 181 St. Andrew St. E., Fergus
ACTION 2 – November 17 Deadline
Submit your comments on Bill 23 before it goes to third reading.
ACTION 3
Send notice to your MPP that you don’t support the changes in Bill 23 with this easy tool from Wellington Water Watchers.
ACTION 4 – December 4 Deadline
Submit your comments on the Greenbelt plans to the Environmental Registry Ontario.
ACTION 5
Talk to your MPP, Housing Minister Steve Clark, and local mayor and councillors to ask them to speak out against this. Check out this link for some talking points.
Links For More Information
Ontario Nature Backgrounder on Bill 23
Who are the developers set to benefit from the Ford government’s Greenbelt land swap?
Everything you need to know about Doug Ford’s plan to cut into Ontario’s Greenbelt