What you need to know about the Greenbelt as MPPs return to Queen’s Park

Here is what you need to know about the Ontario Greenbelt as the fall session at Queen’s Park begins:

While MPPs were on their summer break, two scathing reports were released detailing a lack of supervision, transparency and leadership when it came to the development of the Greenbelt.

The reports suggested that certain developers with ties to the housing ministry were given an unfair advantage throughout the process. The backlash following this revelation resulted in resignations and a cabinet shuffle—and will continue to be a point of contention as MPP’s return to the legislature this week.

Here is what you need to know about the Greenbelt as the fall session at Queen’s Park begins:

In November 2022, the Doug Ford government announced it would be removing 7,400 acres of land from the Greenbelt and adding an additional 9,400 acres of land elsewhere. The majority of the land added to the Greenbelt was already protected under other means.

The announcement came as a surprise to opposition parties and Ontario residents, as the premier had previously promised not to touch the protected land.

Since then, media reports have suggested that some developers who purchased land before November may have been tipped off about the decision. The Ontario New Democratic Party, Ontario Liberal Party and Ontario Green Party all filed requests for further investigations with the province’s integrity commissioner and auditor general.

The Greenbelt is about two-million acres worth of protected greenspace throughout Ontario’s Greater Golden Horseshoe, including the Niagara Escarpment and Oak Ridges Moraine. It includes farmland, forests, wetland and multiple river systems.