I'm personally not in favour…

I'm personally not in favour of re-designating the Greenbelt for developmental purposes. From what I understand, the government is suggesting that the Greenbelt be developed to accommodate for population growth in the Golden Horseshoe area. Many people that are currently seeking living accommodations are those with lower socioeconomic status - will the new homes being built in the Greenbelt be affordable or accessible for everyone who is currently in need of housing? Doubtful. This housing program truly seems flawed - it is supposed to be designed to help people find housing, but it'll likely be a program that continues to benefit those higher than the middle working-class.

Redeveloping the Greenbelt for economic gain also raises so many ethical issues. Those pieces of land have been protected for so long and have allowed endangered or at-risk species to flourish. If the Greenbelt were to be developed, these species will likely die off, completely throwing the food-web out of shape. This would have drastic implications for biodiversity but also on the environment. These decreases in biodiversity would not only have negative implications for the environment, but it could also cost the government more money long-term if they have to resolve issues that these organisms used to control.

Since this land is also used for a lot of agriculture, it would cause our currently unaffordable province to become even more unaffordable. If the prices of healthy foods continue to skyrocket, those of low socioeconomic status will continue to be affected the most. If our province becomes more food insecure, there will be higher burden on our healthcare system. We'll see higher rates of chronic disease (obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, etc.) and an inability to manage infectious disease. This may force a push towards the privatization of healthcare, which will only continue to negatively impact the health of our population - but maybe that's the goal?

Re-designating the Greenbelt for a housing project ultimately seems like a short-term or downstream approach to dealing with the province's housing crisis without tackling the core issue from a systems-perspective. Implementing a band-aid program will only create more problems down the line, which will only cost the province more money. For a conservative government that is so concerned about economic gains, it doesn't seem like a smart financial decision.

I truly hope that this project is further investigated at a federal level because something truly seems off from multiple ethical perspectives.