The government's excuse for…

The government's excuse for removing 7,600 acres from the Greenbelt is disingenuous. There are 86,50 acres of land already designated for development within the Golden Horseshoe area alone. We need more density in existing urban areas, not more sprawl.

According to The Greenbelt Plan (2017) the Greenbelt is a broad band of permanently protected land which:
protects against the loss and fragmentation of the agricultural land base and supports agriculture as the predominant land use
gives permanent protection to the natural heritage and water resource systems that sustain ecological and human health and that form the environmental framework around which major urbanization in south-central Ontario will be organized
provides for a diverse range of economic and social activities associated with rural communities, agriculture, tourism, recreation and resource uses
builds resilience to and mitigates climate change

Bill 23 negates all of the above. It will adversely affect:
major wildlife corridors: e.g., Rouge River to Duffins Creek watershed, Holland Marsh to the Oak Ridges Moraine, Oak Ridges Moraine to Rouge National Urban Park, Markham at the headwaters to Robinson Creek),
sensitive wetlands e.g., between Duffins Creek and Rouge River, the entire headwater of Petticoat Creek, the Rouge River Headwater Wetland Complex, the coastal wetlands and woodlands of Lynde Shores, a wetland in Clarington that is part of a sensitive groundwater recharge area, a headwater tributary of Big Creek.
farmland; the province is already losing 316 acres of farmland a day.

The Greenbelt must remain protected.