Re: ER0-019-6216 First of…

Re: ER0-019-6216

First of all, this government should have at least waited for the commenting period to end on various ER0's before passing Bill 23. Also there are so many different related ER0's that make it very easy for the public to miss some of them and it makes it very difficult for the public to comment on.
This government's plans to start carving up the Greenbelt is a mistake for all Ontarians except for the developers it is meant to help out. If this government does this now, it won't be long before it happens again. The Greenbelt should be HANDS OFF. Time and time again, this government prioritizes money over the environment and wants to act more like a dictatorship rather than listen to the people.
Even in the Report of the Ontario Housing Affordability Task Force, it states the "greenbelts and other environmentally sensitive areas must be protected, and farms provide food and food security." Some of the land proposed to be removed appears to be natural heritage already and should be protected. Other land is agricultural and should also be protected. There is a lot of talk about protecting agricultural land however in practice it is not happening very well. The talk is great in the PPS and growth plan about how agricultural land is a finite and non-renewable resource but it keeps disappearing. Sure housing is great but feeding the people of Ontario is also. Between 1996 and 2016, 175 acres of farmland was lost daily in Ontario to development and now is up to 319 acres/day based on 2021 Census of Agriculture. It will be even more with the new settlement boundaries worked out during MCR process, and PPS 2.3.6b) will be used to destroy more ag. land. If you plan on putting housing on the greenbelt lands that are currently in agricultural production, you will affect the farmers (and wildlife) currently using that land and few will trust the government not to do more of the same. My understanding is that the lands in the Paris Galt Moraine are already protected from development. Certainly they can be added to the Greenbelt but without removing the lands already in the Greenbelt.
Use bill 23 to increase the density of housing within urban settlements to increase housing quickly. Many people are struggling financially that if they could add more housing and be paid for it, they would do so.
Developers should not be allowed to donate money to political parties or municipalities. It is human nature to want to reciprocate when given something. In my experience the planning process is not fair to the public and is even less so with the passing of Bill 23.