Greenbelt politics in Ontario

In August 2023, the Ontario Auditor General released a report on the amendments made by the Toronto provincial government to remove 3,000 hectares from the 800,000 hectare greenbelt.

Greenbelts are planning policy used to limit urban sprawl, protect agriculture and keep green breaks between settlements. Many cities around the world use this policy, including Melbourne (called green wedges). Sydney has a metropolitan rural area and the North Coast NSW has urban growth areas. 

The Auditor General’s report is blunt.

'Political staff had substantial control over the entire Greenbelt amendment exercise. The Housing Minister’s Chief of Staff provided a small team of non-political public service staff in the Housing Ministry the criteria to be used in the selection process, directed the team to alter the criteria to facilitate the selection of many sites provided by the Chief of Staff, and imposed a three-week timeline and confidentiality provisions, limiting the team’s time and ability to assess the land sites and provide alternatives.

Even though hundreds of site removal requests had been submitted to the Housing Ministry since the Greenbelt was established in 2005, only 22 land sites were considered in the 2022 selection exercise. Of those, only one was proposed by the Housing Ministry’s non-political public service staff, while 21 were provided directly by the Housing Minister’s Chief of Staff. Of the 15 land sites ultimately approved for removal in December 2022, 14 were brought into the exercise by the Housing Minister’s Chief of Staff and one was identified by the Housing Ministry’s non-political public service staff.

The Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk also noted that the owners of the 15 land sites removed from the Greenbelt could ultimately see more than an $8.3 billion increase to the value of their properties.

Restrictions on the Housing Ministry’s non-political staff team precluded an assessment of the cost to add needed infrastructure to each of the land sites proposed for removal, how the costs would be apportioned between the public and private sectors, or whether the affected municipalities would even allow those lands to be developed if the removals proceeded.'

I firmly believe a better approach if you don't want an area to be urbanised is to promote more large lot and environmental living style housing that is compatible with environmental areas. Don't draw a line.

https://www.auditor.on.ca/en/content/specialreports/specialreports/Greenbelt_en.pdf