I have concerns with respect…

I have concerns with respect to the West Lincoln OPA. While I Iaud the overall initiative, we need more land for residential development to curb rising prices. In the West Lincoln OPA, there is a lofty objective of achieving a target 30% of lands that are to be preserved as Natural Heritage Features. This is unprecedented, and there is no technical or science based justification for this target. While indeed there will be features that need to be preserved such as hazard lands, significant Karst features and significant forested areas, let's make sure the science backs that up. There is a danger that this will set precedent and other municipalities will follow suit. How will the province achieve its growth target if 30% of lands coming into a proposed urban boundary expansion is set aside, sterilized, and not be developed? This initiative will make for inefficient planning, expensive servicing will need to go further, further expansion will occur sooner, and will introduce wildlife into the community which already is happening in Burlington. People are afraid of going for a walk for fear of being attacked by coyotes. As well, to achieve the growth targets, high density areas will be the result. These higher density area seldom leave room for trees to be planted to form a tree canopy that will keep the area more temperate and provide a habitat for birds. Land is a valuable commodity, lets use it efficiently. If NHS are to be initiated, let's use lands that are urban, indeed have science backing it up that they should be preserved, and make them available for the citizens to enjoy.