The Greenbelt is a VITAL…

The Greenbelt is a VITAL part of our ecosystem.

I am fiercely opposed to the Ontario government’s plan to open up protected land on the Greenbelt for development.

Just last year, the government said: “We’re not going to entertain any conversations about a land swap” on the Greenbelt.

This was on top of Premier Ford’s repeated promises that the government “will not touch the Greenbelt, we will protect the Greenbelt.”

We don’t have to choose between protecting the environment we need and love, and building the housing we need. The Housing Affordability Task Force made it very clear that the housing crisis is not caused by a lack of land to build on.

Planning experts in Ontario and around the world are unanimous: urban sprawl is an environmental and economic disaster. We need to build homes where people want to live – near jobs, transit, shops and entertainment, where they can work and play without the long, soul-crushing commutes that steal their time with loved ones.

The Greenbelt creates almost $10 billion in economic activity and supports over 177,000 local-full time equivalent jobs. It is also vital to our province’s food security.

I urge the government to withdraw the plan to open up the Greenbelt to sprawl development. There are far better solutions to the housing crisis – and future generations will thank us for preserving this precious legacy.

Sincerely,

Irvin C