On behalf of Biodiversity…

On behalf of Biodiversity and Climate Action Collective Niagara (BCAN), a collective of 22 nature clubs, environmental advocacy groups and community groups from across Niagara Region, I am writing to support returning removed land to the Greenbelt as proposed in Bill 136 (Greenbelt Statute Law Amendment Act, 2023); however, we believe some amendments are needed to strengthen the bill. The Bill must ensure the Greenbelt remains permanently protected so it can continue to support agricultural lands and natural resources for generations to come.

That was the promise, permanent protection, for the Greenbelt lands.

The establishment of the Greenbelt was built on years of increasing knowledge and understanding of the importance of protecting Ontario’s limited prime agricultural lands and the natural resources of the province’s fastest growing area precisely to support our expanding population with food, clean water, recreational space, flood protection, erosion control and all the other benefits that have been outlined in numerous studies.

The Greenbelt may have been put in place after significant study and consultation by a Liberal government, but it built on the work of Progressive Conservative governments in protecting the Niagara Escarpment in 1973 and in enacting the Oak Ridges Moraine Act in 2001.

BCAN’s members were horrified when lands were summarily removed from the Greenbelt in the fall of 2022 and we did everything in our power, advocating at all levels of government, spreading information and spurring people to action through social media, meeting with politicians and staging large-scale protests, to encourage the provincial government to change course.

We are glad you did. Now, hold fast to that and please include the following amendments to strengthen the Greenbelt Act and ensure the corrupt process that resulted in the resignations of a Minister and Ministerial staff, scathing Auditor General and Integrity Commissioner Reports and an ongoing RCMP investigation, can never happen again.

Proposed amendments:

1.) During 10-year reviews, legislate that boundary amendments will only be considered if they add land to the Greenbelt.
2.) Legislate that there can be no “land swaps”, with land in the Greenbelt being removed and adding land outside the Greenbelt.
3.) Prime agricultural lands in the Greenbelt should be permanently protected through conservation easements to ensure they are protected for the use of farmers, so farmland remains affordable for farmers, and to discourage land speculators from purchasing these lands.
4.) Amend the legislation to compel the government to meaningfully consult with First Nations/Indigenous communities, and with the public, as governments are obligated to do.
5.) Prohibit the licensing of new aggregate extraction applications in the Greenbelt.
6.) Protect Species At Risk (SAR) in the Greenbelt by eliminating provisions for “Overall Benefits Permits” better known to the public as “Pay To Slay”. SARS species and their habitats must be fully protected.
7.) End grandfathering of previous zoning for future planning applications that is detrimental to the Greenbelt’s intent to permanently protect its environmental, human health and agricultural functions.

What occurred following the announcement that Greenbelt land was being removed from protection in the fall of 2022 should be a lesson to governments and citizens alike. It awakened in citizens a renewed responsibility to pay attention to what our government is doing and to take action when it is clearly making decisions that are against the peoples’ best interests.

For governments, it was a wakeup call that citizens not only care about the Greenbelt and the environment in general, but they want the government to make decisions and enact legislation in an open and transparent fashion.

The amendments we have suggested will help the government to achieve the results that your citizens expect — permanent protection of the Greenbelt for generations to come.