EDRD3400 Assign 2 02 2023_ Question1
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Dec 6, 2023
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State of Rural Canada: Ontario
The State of Rural Canada: Ontario (SORC 2021)
-
“In a series of Foresight Papers in both 2017 and 2019, the Rural Ontario Institute noted
that the major trends and issues facing rural Ontario include (but are not limited to): …
natural resource and water resource management”. (SORC, 2021)
The issue I am particularly looking at: The mismanagement and development of the Great
Horseshoe Greenbelt.
(falls into category of mismanagement of the natural and water
resources)
New release and decision:
50,000 new homes. 7,400 acres from the edge of the Greenbelt area (Remove 15 areas)
Adding 9400 more acres to it. (well that doesn’t mean much because the land that was already
undeveloped is now “protected”. They are adding areas to greenbelt that were never in threat
of development. They added more remote pieces that would need significant infrastructure to
make desirable. This doesn’t stop urban sprawl its just a political move. It does not preserve the
unique land around the escarpment region.
A unique perspective: a diverse multi stakeholder network of groups who share a common
vision for the environment.
100 + associations, companies, businesses and not for profits all members and supporters.
Natural and Water Resource Management: Greenbelt
The human race is reliant upon the health, and finite resources of the planet in which we
inhabit. Acknowledging this vital reality would demand the human race to value protecting and
preserving these resources. Sustainably managing the use of the resource’s humans are
dependent upon is known as natural resource management
(Charlotte Epstein, Britannia)
.
Though natural and water resource management is an issue across the globe, the State of Rural
Canada 2021 particularly mentioned it a major issue in Ontario. This section will address the
mismanagement of the natural and water resources in southern Ontario, the densest
population area in all of
Canada (Statista, 2023).
In 2005, Dalton
McGuinty and the Liberal
party introduced the
Greenbelt Act, making the
world’s largest greenbelt
with the purpose of
permanently protecting
and preserving farmland
and environmentally
sensitive areas. The Greater Golden Horseshoe (GGH) greenbelt spans approximately 2 million
acres of southern Ontario, encompassing the Niagara escarpment, the Oak Ridge Moraine, and
prime agricultural land
(Greenbelt.ca/History)
. The implementation of the Greenbelt Act was a
major milestone in Ontario, but the forward thinking of the Liberal party has been followed with
short sited development in supposed “permanently” protected rural countryside. Whilst there
have been great strides in protecting further areas from urban sprawl development, the
Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing in December 2022 amended the development of
7,400 acres to construct 50,000 new homes on the edge of existing Greenbelt boundaries
(ERO.ONTARIO.CA,2022)
. Included in this amendment was the addition of 9,400 acres onto the
existing GGH, resulting in a net gain of 2,000 acres of land, and the inclusion 13 new Urban River
Valley (URV) to the GGH (
ERO.ONTARIO.CA, 2022)
. This amendment appears wise, logical, and
sustainable at glance, but with further investigation may expose the mismanagement of the
natural and water resources management for rural communities and expose the lack of long
term planning.
This amendment further promotes the ideology of urban sprawl. Urban sprawl is best
defined as “the extension of low-density residential, commercial and industrial development
into areas beyond a city’s boundaries that occur in an unplanned or uncoordinated manner
(Lumen, The Impacts of Urban Sprawl).
It can be generally characterized by”
Low-density development that is dispersed and situated on large lots (greater that
one acre)
Geographic separation of essential places such as work, home, school, and shopping
High dependence on automobiles for travel
Increased impervious surface area in watersheds
Habitat fragmentation and degradation
Through these characteristics of urban sprawl, there is clear evidence for the negative
influence upon the health of the environment and people. A car dependent increases mortality
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rate, decreases the air quality, and contributes to less inefficient energy consumption
(Lumen,
The Impacts of Urban Sprawl).
As well as the environmental conflicts with car dependency, it
also has major transportation impacts. More vehicles on the road results in higher degree of
traffic, which directly correlates to more road infrastructure. Constructing more road
infrastructure looks like major highways, which degrades soil and environment health, increases
impervious surface, which ultimately reduces local aquifer water restoration. Major highways
also tend to paver over prime agricultural land. In a recent study from the
To continue, explain what urban sprawl does on farming agriculture (link to the viability of rural
communities)
Environmental impacts of urban sprawl on agriculture
See how urban sprawl is creating fragmented habitat systems
Sustainability is a whole community working together, with more and more people being
introduced to the environment with new ideas, their own perspective it makes it very difficult to
establish unity in sustainability and identity as a rural community. Urban sprawl also removes
the rural community culture.
Rural communities
1.
How does water and natural resource management
impact the sustainability of rural communities?
1.
How are they reliant upon, these natural resources
(economic stand point)
2.
This is my perspective,
Did a really good job implementing laws and regulation to help protect the crucial ecosystems
and land that Ontario is home to (THEN), NOW they are NOT being wise as they are taking
that away which is having huge impacts upon the health of the ecosystems, the farmers, the
vitality of rural communities and is not doing well to reduce urban sprawl from the GTA AREA.
(THIS IS MY FOCUS, HOW I AM GOING TO TIE IN THE CRAP THE GOV DOING NOW TO
NATURAL AND WATER RESOURCE MANAGEMENT (URBAN RIVERS??)
The State of Rural Canada 2021: Ontario Report (SORC, 2021) addresses the issues rural
communities in Ontario are facing currently; therefore, they state, “In series of Foresight Papers
in both 2017 and 2019, the Rural Ontario Institute noted that major trends and issues facing
rural Ontario include (but are not limited to): … natural resource and water resource
management” (SORC, 2021).