Ontario’s livelihood depends…

Ontario’s livelihood depends on the Greenbelt. Even if all the evidence that points to the destruction of the greenbelt causing provincial flooding of homes and cities, starvation of many from the loss of local farmland, and loss of biodiversity on a critical scale; all of which will absolutely have dire consequences for us not even in the distant future, but almost immediately (~2-10 years), let’s acknowledge that development of the greenbelt was never about “affordable housing” when so much of Ontario is currently bulldozed dirt lots on the waiting list to be turned into housing, or is already housing that sits empty currently or is owned in stock by corporations both here and overseas.

The greenbelt development plan by our government is not to help our province, it is to further strengthen the divide that lies between the citizens of Ontario and a provincial government that has broken our trust by lying and walking back on their false promises.

In the end, even if those who don’t care about the greenbelt are not swayed from an ecological or economic perspective, let us remember that this is land where many of us grew up, formed core memories, made new friends and became closer with family. From days on the lake that felt too short, to shopping at the every farmer’s stand you see in the countryside and chatting with them about life, to catching butterflies and other critters as kids, to enjoying ice cream at the local ice cream shop after a long day of walking with your family, friends, or pets. Why have those just be memories, when we still have the opportunity to do those things while the greenbelt still exists as it does today?