Provincial land use planning review - Making policies jibe
NRU
March 4, 2015
By Leah Wong
When it comes to the province’s comprehensive review of land use planning policies, just announced, environmental groups and the development industry share a desire to remove policy gaps from existing plans.
On Friday, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing announced a review of the Greenbelt Plan, Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan, Niagara Escarpment Plan and the Growth Plan. The ministry is currently seeking public feedback through a series of public consultations and written comments submitted through the Environmental Registry.
An advisory panel led by led by former Toronto mayor David Crombie will also provide input to Municipal Affairs and Housing minister Ted McMeekin and Natural Resources and Forestry minister Bill Mauro. The panel is comprised of experts from different industries and includes Vaughan planning commissioner John MacKenzie, who played a major role in preparing the Greenbelt Plan and Oak Ridges Moraine plan when he worked at the province. The review is expected to be complete by early 2016.
In preparation for the review municipalities, environmental groups and other stakeholders have created a range of documents to guide discussion on the review.
The Conservation Authorities Moraine Coalition, for example, created a report card on the Greenbelt Plan and Oak Ridges Moraine plan.
“We wanted to make sure the review was based on some sound science and monitoring of actual environmental conditions out in the field,” Toronto and Region Conservation Authority provincial and regional planning manager and CAMC coordinator David Burnett told NRU.
The report card looks at forest conditions, surface water quality, groundwater quality and stream temperature and coldwater fish species within the moraine and Greenbelt lands. Burnett said while the plans have been good from a growth management perspective they have not achieved the goals of enhancing, restoring and improving environmental health.
“Currently we’re maintaining the status quo of maintaining the health and that health is not always in the best condition,” said Burnett. “What we need to do is to address the plans other goals to improve and restore environmental health.”
One way that the review could address the failure to improve environmental health is through policy clarification says Burnett.
Oak Ridges Moraine Foundation chair and Ontario Nature executive director Caroline Schultz agrees with Burnett.
“There needs to be clarity around the language so that there is continuity between the plans [in regards] to terminology,” said Schultz. She added that this is particularly important in areas that fall within more than one plan.
While clarity is important Schultz said there needs to be three separate plans and she does not want to see the Greenbelt Act subsume the Niagara Escarpment and Oak Ridges Moraine plans.
“Our [main message] is that the Oak Ridges Moraine plan is unique and special and was developed with a very specific purpose and we want to ensure it persists and is strengthened,” said Schultz.
On the moraine plan Schultz recommends policy language that gives the plan primacy over other provincial policies. She is concerned that the Green Energy Act has trumped the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan on development of wind generation facilities. While the moraine plan is very restrictive when it comes to individual land owners, it is less clear when it comes to large scale infrastructure.
“There is a strange situation where the plan is so restrictive that somebody can’t even build a shed on their property and yet you can have a big wind farm be developed,” said Schultz. “On the small shed end, this was an unintended consequence of the plan.”
As such, the foundation recommends that some restrictions be loosened so that local landowners can have a sustainable livelihood working on the moraine. Burnett said the coalition also sees room for more flexibility on permitted uses in some designations, particularly for agricultural and other rural, small scale uses.
Burnett wants to see new policies introduced that give stronger direction on ecological design and the use of green infrastructure. He said this will ensure the province builds in resilience to climate change and potential flood risk as some of the urban areas are intensified.
On the development side, Ontario Home Builders’ Association CEO Joe Vaccaro said municipal tools related to pre-zoning and pre-designating need to be better utilized to create investment-ready communities near government funded infrastructure.
“The best example would be the Eglinton Crosstown,” said Vaccaro. “There are still challenges to get the land use around that transit line zoned for appropriate use and this is one of the challenges we continue to see.”
While the consultation is ongoing the OHBA plans to present recommendations to support new housing supply and employment opportunities while protecting the province’s significant environmental features.
