Letter to New Ministers on Provincial Policy Statement (PPS)
Posted: May 2, 2013
Categories: GoodFoodBites / News from Sustain Ontario
Click image for full letter to Ministers in PDF format.
The Provincial Policy Statement (PPS) is the government’s statement on policies regarding land use planning, providing direction to the entire province on matters of planning and development. Led by Ontario Nature, a coalition of organizations from across the province, Sustain Ontario included, have issued a letter to Premier Kathleen Wynne as well as the Honourable Linda Jeffery, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, and the Honourable David Orazietti, Minister of Natural Resources, concerning proposed revisions to the PPS.
Of particular concern to the signatories is the failure of new proposals to protect prime farmland and significant natural heritage features from aggregate extraction. According to the text of the letter, “these changes are fundamentally at odds with the proposed PPS vision which has been amended to emphasize such values as sustainable and resilient communities, human health, biodiversity, resilience to climate change and Ontario-grown food.”
The proposed revisions leave aggregates licences open-ended, providing no guarantee that affected lands will be rehabilitated. Given the still evolving nature of the science of rehabilitation and the fact that open-ended aggregates extraction risks the loss of food-producing lands and natural heritage features, the letter issues two key recomendations for revisions of the PPS:
- “Revise section 2.5.4.1 so that aggregates extraction is strictly prohibited on prime farmland (Classes 1 – 3) and in specialty crop areas, without exception.”
- “Remove in its entirety proposed section 2.5.3.2, which opens the door to aggregates extraction in significant wetlands, significant woodlands, significant wildlife habitat and the significant habitat of endangered and threatened species, and on lands adjacent to these features. Aggregates extraction must be prohibited in these areas, without exception.”
The letter encourages the Ministers to consider fundamental values such as access to healthy foods and the protection of local economies, clean water, and biodiversity in developing policy related to land use planning and development. In order for Ontario to maintain resiliency in the face of climate change and to empower local farmers and businesses to thrive by meeting the growing demand for local food, aggregate extraction should not take precedence over these important values.
Sustain encourages other groups, organizations, and individuals to use the letter’s text in sending their own messages to the premier and relevant ministers in advocating for a responsible PPS that emphasizes biodiversity, health, and strong local economies.
A full text of the letter can be downloaded in PDF format here.