Municipal leaders, candidates, pledge support for greenbelt

July 9, 2014 · 0 Comments

By Mark Pavilons
Municipal leaders and candidates in the coming election, have put pen to paper, pledging their support for the environment.
Politicians and others across the greenbelt gathered in Toronto recently and launched the 2014 Municipal Election?Greenbelt Pledge. The goal is to add one million acres to Ontario’s greenbelt and create a protected “Food Belt.”
The MLGB co-chairs – Oakville Mayor Rob Burton, Guelph Mayor Karen Farbridge, Ajax Mayor Steve Parish and Toronto Councillor Glenn DeBaeremaeker – were at Queen’s Park to urge Ontario to take the following steps:
• Expand the Greenbelt by an additional 1 million acres.
•?Create Ontario’s (and Canada’s) first Food Belt consisting of 200,000 acres for farming.
• Reduce red tape for municipalities who want to grow the Greenbelt in their communities.
“The threat of urban sprawl is on the Greenbelt’s doorstep. It’s time for a bold plan to expand the Greenbelt and permanently protect one million more acres of sensitive environmental lands and farmland. Let’s build on the success of Ontario’s world renowned Greenbelt and help it grow to 3 million acres across the Greater Golden Horseshoe region,” said De Baeremeaker.
“Since the Greenbelt was established in 2005, growth pressures have impacted our communities. With even more growth expected, farmland that gives Ontarians access to healthy, high quality, local food is at risk of being paved over. Establishing a food belt would protect some of Canada’s best and remaining farmlands threatened by development in the Whitebelt under the Places to Grow Act,” said Mayor Farbridge.
“As the first municipality in Ontario to grow the Greenbelt, we know firsthand how challenging and slow the process can be. There may be Greenbelt planning loopholes which allow construction on Greenbelt land but we do our best to make sure that these are not taken advantage of by those who would destroy the Greenbelt. We need a more streamlined approach so municipal governments can respond more easily to what constituents are asking us to do – protect and expand the Greenbelt in our communities,” added Oakville’s Mayor Burton.
Ontario’s Greenbelt protects green space, farmland, forests, wetlands, and watersheds, and provides habitat for more than one-third of Ontario’s species at risk. Each year, the Greenbelt contributes $2.7 billion in ecosystem services to Ontario’s economy.
“It is an extremely important provincial policy that protects our environmentally significant land and our much needed farm fields,” said King Mayor Steve Pellegrini. “King benefits immensely from this protection.”
Councillor Debbie Schaefer said it’s important for citizens to be aware of such issues affecting the bigger picture.
“It is important that 2014 voters know the position of candidates regarding the three conservation plans up for review in 2015.
“I have signed the 2014 pledge to renew my support for the continued permanent protection of Ontario’s Greenbelt. Ontario’s Greenbelt is 1.8 million acres; it includes areas protected by the GB Plan, the ORMCP and the Niagara Escarpment.
“These plans are not perfect, hence I welcome the opportunity to review them with the objective of strengthening them to achieve the objectives of stopping sprawl, protecting farm land so that food is grown locally, connecting natural heritage systems to achieve clean water through river systems, protecting the source of fresh water for hundreds of thousands people and providing green space for recreation and renewing the spirit. I want to see amendments which will enhance the ability for farmers and other stewards of the land to operate their businesses successfully across the Greenbelt. The greatest protection for the Greenbelt is every land owner operating as a steward of the land and seeing the brightest future as one including their lands as productive agricultural acreage or as landscape for the rivers to flow through or as a host for wetlands.”
Greg Locke, candidate for the Ward 4 council seat, also lent his support to the cause.
“I was delighted and more than supportive to have been invited as a candidate to this event,” he said. “As chair of Concerned Citizens of King Township, I’ve been leading our board to promote the protection and enhancement of our Greenbelt, Oak Ridges Moraine and Niagara Escarpment Plans. The mandated reviews commencing in 2015 are critical to us in King, as 70% of our land mass is on the Moraine and 30% is on the Greenbelt.
“As a King candidate, signing the MLGB pledge is a ‘no-brainer’ for me and I support it wholeheartedly. I encourage all candidates to do so.
“One thing we all have to not only enjoy, but rely on for our safe water and local food supply, is our local environment. I’m determined to protect it for these reasons and more, for my daughter and for all King residents now and for generations to come.”
The MLGB is a network of 70 elected mayors and councillors from across the province who support the Greenbelt as a permanent feature of Ontario’s landscape. They are committed to protecting the Greenbelt, encouraging the protection and connection of natural heritage systems in Greenbelt adjacent communities, ensuring agriculture thrives and ensuring that planning decisions adhere to the Greenbelt Plan.