I would like to register my…

I would like to register my objection to the proposed changes for the following reasons, among others:

* The government has repeatedly promised not to allow development on the Greenbelt. This proposal is in direct opposition to those promises.

* The Greenbelt lands are not required to meet housing target as outlined in the Ontario Housing Affordability Task Force Report on page 10 of the report.

* Land swaps put the entire Greenbelt at risk. Some of the proposed additions to the Greenbelt area had already been proposed as additions. Also, some of the areas in the proposed additions are already protected areas.

* These changes set a harmful precedent and remove permanent protections. They allow a few developers to generate large profits that will have a negative impact on generations to come. They also set up a potential stream of new requests for changes that have the potential to erode the protection the Greenbelt is supposed to provide for the environment.

* Using the proposed land for development will only encourage urban sprawl and put further strain on transportation resources, both public transit and roads and highways.

* The proposed lands will likely not be used for medium to high density housing developments which are the kinds of housing that will be required to have an impact on housing affordability.

* Harm to the Greenbelt’s Natural Heritage System:
Most of the lands to be removed from the Greenbelt (10 of the 14 areas shown on the maps) overlap with the Natural Heritage System, which supports “the highest concentration of the most sensitive and/or significant natural features and functions” and is meant to be managed “as a connected and integrated natural heritage system, given the functional inter-relationships between them.” (Greenbelt Plan, sec. 3.2.1).

* The government appears to not have done anything related to past proposals (in 2020 and 2022) to add to the greenbelt (https://ero.ontario.ca/notice/019-4485) and are only now using the lands outlined in those proposals for the land swap in this proposal.