Dear Government of Ontario,…

Dear Government of Ontario,

I would like to submit my formal opposition to this legislation. I am a family physician in Northumberland County; I grew up in Toronto; I have lived in London and Kingston ON. I have been an Ontarian my entire life. One aspect of Ontario that I cherish is the existence of natural forest and field in the Green Belt area. Now is not the time to destroy the fragile ecosystem that, for decades, was enshrined as protected land. I find this legislation offensive. It does not provide any evidence that the planned development will be environmentally sound. It does not provide a realistic housing solution for Ontario. We do not need homes built in our Green Belt. Toronto needs to be densified. Developing the Green Belt will lead to 100 km radius of suburban sprawl in all directions from Toronto as the central hub. Living in London, ON for 10 years from 2011-2020, I can speak firsthand to the issues with suburban sprawl that devours farmland and natural resources. Constant development around London's periphery create a suburban hell that is difficult to drive through and navigate with traffic and congestion due to poor planning.

I oppose this legislation on grounds that it is not environmentally sensitive; it is not forward-thinking to the problems it will create in the future; it is wasteful and greedy to give these beautiful natural resources to private developers. Ontarian people should see the profits of the Green Belt - the beneficial environmental effects. Developers should not be able to profit off of years of environmental conservation. Doug Ford was elected premier, but he does not have a mandate to change decades of policy. He did not run his campaign on a promise to destroy the Green Belt.

I hope that you will take my comments, and of the many others who oppose this legislation, into account before our province's green areas are destroyed senselessly.