On the surface, the review…

On the surface, the review of the provincial policy statement and A Place to Grow seem to be needed steps that keep the best interests of Ontarians in mind. Conflicts between the documents should be resolved, and the guidelines such as infrastructure planning and natural heritage protection are important elements to consider when planning Ontario's future. There are some problems that arise when looking more closely, however.

The first of these problems is the settlement area boundary expansion. A number of municipalities have shown that they are able to meet standards to continue serving the projected growth of their populations, and if this is the case, they should not be required to sprawl outward, endangering the agricultural land and natural heritage these policies are required to protect.

The next is the policy of offsetting or compensating the destruction of natural heritage. This policy is not one of protection, but of allowing destruction. Offsetting cannot reproduce what is lost of our natural heritage, only provide a lower-quality copy at best, and we rely on our natural heritage for more than abstract concepts of Canadian identity. Our ecosystems provide direct benefits like water filtration that cannot be easily replaced if they are destroyed.

Many of the actions being taken by the Ontario government seem to contradict the commitments in these policies. Opening the Greenbelt to development when it was supposed to be protected in perpetuity and promises were made that this would not happen is not consistent with protecting farmland and natural heritage. Acting to protect what was promised to be protected must be a high priority, not something that is considered only when everything aligns to make it convenient.