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How
can we halt Dumb Growth!
Urban sprawl -- the uncontrolled
growth of urban centres -- poses a serious threat to the natural environment, our foodland
and energy resources, and to human health and quality of life.
Ontario's major urban centres
are growing rapidly. Without careful planning and compact development we will lose
more land than is necessary and exacerbate existing air and water quality problems.
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Population
of Ontario Urban Centres
(thousands)
(Source: Statistics Canada)
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1992 |
1993 |
1994 |
1995 |
1996 |
% Change |
Toronto |
4,116.9 |
4,198.2 |
4,256.0 |
4,346.3 |
4,444.7 |
7.92% |
Ottawa-Hull |
974.6 |
997.7 |
1,010.7 |
1,023.2 |
1,030.5 |
5.73% |
Hamilton |
626.8 |
631.1 |
635.8 |
643.1 |
650.4 |
3.76% |
London |
400.5 |
404.3 |
408.3 |
413.2 |
416.1 |
3.90% |
Kitchener |
376.3 |
382.3 |
388.5 |
395.4 |
403.3 |
7.18% |
St
Catharines |
381.8 |
383.7 |
384.4 |
386.5 |
389.7 |
2.07% |
Windsor |
274.4 |
277.7 |
281.5 |
285.9 |
291.7 |
6.30% |
Oshawa |
256.7 |
263.4 |
269.6 |
275.6 |
280.9 |
9.43% |
Ontario |
10,827.5 |
10,964.9 |
11,100.9 |
11,263.6 |
11,413.7 |
5.41% |
How this growth is managed will affects our
ability to achieve several important environmental goals, such as...
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protecting significant natural areas
(wetlands, forests, waterways);
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conserving valuable resources (in particular
Canada's prime agricultural farmland and fossil fuels);
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protecting essential ecological processes
(such as groundwater recharge and stream flows);
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preventing pollution (especially smog,
climate change and hazardous wastes).
If recent history is anything to
go by, the prospects are bleak:
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Approximately 4,700
square kilometres of Canada's dependable agricultural land (Classes
1, 2, and 3), or about 1 square kilometre daily, was lost between
1981 and 1996 (Statistics Canada, Human Activity and the
Environment, p.126 ). That rate increased to 1.3 sq. km a day
in the five year period from 1991-96.
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INDEX |
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Current
Strategies
formal strategies and plans to address sprawl
the Planning Act
Major
Activities
major activities in Ontario that address sprawl.
What
Else Could be Done?
other initiatives that could be taken
barriers and negative trends
Individual
Action
What you can do to help.
Key
Players
Who's working on the issue.
Other sources of information.
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Just how much
prime agricultural land is being lost to urbanization is hard to tell. Neither the
Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, nor the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and
Housing keeps track of the loss of prime agricultural land to urban development. |
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Class
1 Farmland Occupied by Urban Land in Ontario |
| Date |
Percentage |
| 1971 |
13 |
| 1981 |
14 |
| 1991 |
17 |
| 1996 |
19 |
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Source: Human Activity
and the Environment 2000, Statistics Canada |
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The provincial government is
developing a Smart Growth Strategy for Ontario, which will includes goals
for the protection of natural areas and farmlands. For details, see
the Smart Growth section of this
web site.
Regionally,
the Niagara Escarpment is afforded special protection through the Niagara
Escarpment Plan. Urban
planning is managed through the Planning Act and guided by a policy
statement. |
Formal Strategies
or Plans for
Controlling Urban Sprawl |
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Federal Government
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None
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Provincial Government
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Niagara Escarpment Plan
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Regional Governments
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Municipal Official Plans
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Non-Government
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None
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Other
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None
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Goal
The 1997 Policy Statement
under the Planning Act includes several clear commitments to protecting resources and
environmental quality:
2.1.1 Prime agricultural areas will be protected for
agricultural use.
2.3.1 Natural heritage and features will be protected from
incompatible development
2.4.1 The quality and quantity of ground water and surface
water and the function of sensitive ground water recharge/discharge areas will be
protected or enhanced.
The opportunity to protect Ontario's prime agricultural land
lies within the provincial planning system. Currently, municipal planning is
governed by the Ontario Planning Act, which requires that municipalities prepare Official
Plans to manage the development and growth within their boundaries.
The Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing has produced a
Citizen's Guide to the Land
Use Planning System in Ontario. It gives a good introduction to how
the planning system is supposed to work.
The
Regulatory Framework
1. The Planning Act (available online)
The Planning Act sets out the ground rules for land use planning in Ontario and
describes how land uses may be controlled, and who may control them.
Under the Act, the Province has the responsibility for
setting the policy statements, and municipalities are required to develop Official Plans
to guide local development.
2. Municipal Official Plans
Each municipality in Ontario is required to produce an Official Plan that, according to
the Planning Act (Section 16.1),
a) shall contain goals, objectives and policies established
primarily to manage and direct physical change and the effects on the social, economic and
natural environment of the municipality or part of it, or an area that is without
municipal organization; and
b) may contain a description of the measures and procedures
proposed to attain the objectives of the plan and a description of the measures and
procedures for informing and obtaining the views of the public in respect of a proposed
amendment to the official plan or proposed revision of the plan or in respect of a
proposed zoning by-law.
Municipalities are required to "have regard for"
the provincial policy statement, but it is not a binding requirement. Most of Ontario's
municipalities are actively promoting housing development. For examples of
municipal plans, see the links to
municipal web sites on Green Ontario's list of Ontario's
communities.
3. The Ontario Municipal Board
The Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) is an independent administrative tribunal
responsible for hearing appeals and deciding on a variety of contentious municipal
matters.
Members of the public can appeal a development decision to
the OMB. The Board reviews each appeal and makes a decision in light of:
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environmental, social and economic considerations
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provincial interest
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rights of the individual citizens
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the best interests of the community as a whole
This process can be done for little cost, but an effective
appeal is costly and rarely results in a reversal of a development decision. Given that
the provincial policy statement is seen only as a guideline (and not a mandatory
requirement), the OMB usually has little option but to uphold the landowner's right to
develop.
Voluntary Initiatives
Case studies of voluntary initiatives for compact, healthy
urban development will be include here at a later date. Please e-mail the Conservation Council with any case studies you'd
like us to consider.
State of the Environment Reporting
The provincial government does not publish any statistics on
urban development or the rate of loss of agricultural lands and natural areas.
Without this information, it is difficult to provide an accurate assessment of the ability
of the current planning system to provide an adequate level of protection for farmland and
ecological features.
The best information we have been able to find is through the
Statistics Canada web site.
Clearly, strong government
leadership is required at both the provincial and municipal level if
we are to control sprawl and create healthy, vibrant communities. Here
are some of the options:
| Strengthen
the Planning Act to require ecologically sound development. |
Although the
Provincial Policy Statement includes ecological goals, there is no
requirement that municipalities, planners, and developers meet the
highest ecological standards. In particular, the requirement
to "have regard for" provincial policies could be
strengthened
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Develop Regional Plans to manage growth.
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Municipal Plans are currently
developed in isolation from each other. Regional plans are required
to determine where development and growth is appropriate and can
best support an efficient public transportation system
See our Smart
Growth section for more information on regional smart growth
panels.
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Provide special protection for the Oak Ridges Moraine, prime farmland, and other significant ecological areas. |
An alternative to regional plans is
to develop special plans, similar to the Niagara Escarpment Plan,
for other significant ecological features and resources of the
province.
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Barriers
Highways and Transit
Highways and urban sprawl go hand in hand. New roads open up more
land for development, and car-dependent suburbs need bigger highways to move people
around.
The Ministry of Transportation has dropped public transit
from its Business Plan, preferring instead to define an effective transportation system as
one where 90 per cent of the population lives within 10 kilometres of a major provincial
highway (1998 Ministry of Transportation Business Plan). The Province no longer provides
any operating support for public transit.
For more on
highways, see our Emerging Issues page on Highways.
Amalgamation
The amalgamation of municipalities is supposed to result in cost savings
through a reduction in bureaucratic overlap. No assessment has been made of the impact of
amalgamation and downsizing on the ability to fulfill the provincial commitment to
environmental protection under the Planning Act.
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Get involved! Speak up for the future of our province.
Make sure provincial and municipal planning will result in
healthy and sustainable development. |
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Learn the Process
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Participate in municipal planning
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Find out when your local plan is up for review, and what
opportunities there are for public involvement
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Talk to your local Councillor or MPP
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Join a local group
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Provincial
Government
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Federal
Government
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Municipal
Government
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Environmental
Organizations
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The Land
Use Planning Coalition is a new coalition of agriculture interests
and naturalists that have joined together to provide a forum to express to the Province of Ontario the need for a comprehensive land use
strategy for the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).
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The Ontario
Environment Network has a Land Use Caucus that assists local and provincial groups in
working together on land use issues.
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The Green Door Alliance
is fighting the expansion of Highway 407 across the Rouge River.
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The Preservation
of Agricultural Lands Society is working to preserve the best foodland in the Niagara
region (the link takes you to their "unofficial" web site).
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The Federation of
Ontario Naturalists is working to protect woodlands and other significant natural
areas.
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Save
the Oak Ridges Moraine (STORM) Coalition was formed in 1989 in response to increased developmental pressures on the Oak Ridges Moraine and to The Planning Act that was not addressing the environmental needs of this fragile ecosystem.
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Business
Associations
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Farm
Associations
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Professional
Associations
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