The Ontario Farmland Trust …

The Ontario Farmland Trust (OFT) recommends that the proposed changes allowing for wetlands within a complex to be re-evaluated individually are removed, and that the term wetland complex is reinstated in the evaluation documents.

It is important that wetland complexes are maintained, and that they are reviewed and assessed as a whole. Wetlands within a specific complex are highly interconnected, hence why the term “wetland complex” was created and implemented in provincial land use planning policy in the first place. If one wetland in a complex is altered, it may affect the hydrology of other wetlands within the complex, and as such evaluating wetlands individually rather than as part of a complex may not provide accurate valuation of the ecosystem. For instance, if a wetland that is part of a previously determined complex is developed, due to allowances permitted by re-evaluation, this may alter the hydrology of the complex which could result in flooding of surrounding areas, such as farmland. Preventing flooding in agricultural areas is key to preventing erosion, and wetland complexes play a key role in this.

PLEASE SEE ATTACHED LETTER FOR FULL COMMENTS FROM OFT.