The Greenbelt is a protected area of green space, farmland, forests, wetlands, and watersheds, located in Southern Ontario, Canada. It surrounds a significant portion of the Golden Horseshoe. Created by legislation passed by the Government of Ontario in 2005, the Greenbelt is considered a prevention of urban development and sprawl on environmentally sensitive land in the province. According to the Greenbelt Foundation, the Greenbelt includes 2,000,000 acres (810,000 ha; 8,100 km2) of land. That includes 721,000 acres (292,000 ha; 2,920 km2) of protected wetlands, grasslands, and forests.
History The Greenbelt was established around the Golden Horseshoe, one of the fastest growing urban areas in North America. The population in the region increased from 6.5 to 7.7 million between 1991 and 2001. The population increase put urban development pressure on areas surrounding Greater Toronto and Hamilton. Between 1996 and 2001, the amount of farmland decreased by 7% in the GTA, and by 6% in Hamilton. The Golden Horseshoe's population is projected to increase to 11.5 million by 2031.
The idea of establishing a greenbelt in Ontario was created by Premier of Ontario Dalton McGuinty in his Speech from the Throne in November 2003. Bill 27, the Greenbelt Protection Act, 2004 became law on June 24, 2004. The new legislation, in conjunction with a zoning order issued by the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, created a study area and placed a moratorium on some land uses until a specific plan was established. Bill 135, the Greenbelt Act, 2005 was introduced to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario for first reading of the bill in October 2004, and became law on February 28, 2005. It now provides permanent protection for the Greenbelt area. In 2015, the Greenbelt Plan started its 10-year review in coordination with the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, the Niagara Escarpment Plan, and the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan. As part of the review, the Province gathered public feedback through a series of community meetings and online engagement. The Province released a discussion document to "help inform and guide discussions." The deadline for feedback on the proposed changes for the Co-ordinated Land Use Planning Review was 31 October 2016 and the Provincial Government expected to release specifics about the future plan in "early 2017". The Building Industry and Land Development Association, a lobby group for the development and construction industry in Ontario, claimed that the Greenbelt and other anti-sprawl policies are responsible for the lack of affordable housing in southern Ontario. Urban planners dispute this, stating that large amounts of land in southern Ontario set aside for development remained unused as of 2016 and would be sufficient to support over a decade of new development. Facing pressure from realtors and home builders to decrease the size of the Greenbelt to allow for expansion of housing developments, Premier Kathleen Wynne said that the 27 April 2017 Provincial Budget will not diminish the protected lands. "We're committed to growing the Greenbelt not shrinking the Greenbelt," she explained. According to the Neptis Foundation (a publisher of nonpartisan research on urban regions), there are roughly 45,000 acres (18,000 ha; 180 km2) still available for development in the GTHA, adequate until at least 2031. Research conducted by the CBC confirms that a great deal of land is available in both Halton Region and Toronto; for example 6,000 and 118,610 housing units, respectively, have been approved but not built. Oakville Mayor Rob Burton commented to the CBC about developers in late March 2017 that "we've given them serviced land they're sitting on." Toronto's Chief Planner Jennifer Keesmaat added that "builders control supply in this region. We live in a cartel economy."
In late April 2018, during the 2018 Ontario general election campaign, Doug Ford, leader of the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party discussed the Greenbelt in a video released to the news media. Ford said that he would open the protected area to development if he was elected. His assurance to developers was made on the claim that the cost of new homes in the GTA and Hamilton area could be reduced if additional land were made available. Tim Gray, executive director of the environmentalist group Environmental Defence, reminded the news media that "municipal data shows that there is enough land available to provide for housing development within existing Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area urban boundaries until 2031." The next day, Ford reversed his position and said he would not develop the protected area.
Greenbelt scandal
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