Report to: Development Services Committee Report Date:
SUBJECT: Environmental
Policy Review and Consolidation Study
Final Report and Recommendations
PREPARED BY: Lilli Duoba, Senior Project Coordinator
Environmental
RECOMMENDATION:
That the staff report entitled
Environmental Policy Review and Consolidation Study Final Report and
Recommendations, dated June 16, 2009 be received;
And that the Environmental Policy Review and Consolidation Final Report and Policy Framework be endorsed in principle as the basis and framework for finalizing the Greenway System and policy directions to be included in the Town’s Growth Management Strategy for implementation through the Town’s new Official Plan Review;
And that Staff continue to work
with stakeholders to confirm natural heritage and hydrologic features through
the Official Plan Review including potential site visits where warranted,
subject to the costs for any necessary participation of the Town’s consultants
for this level of detailed site specific review to be the responsibility of the
landowner;
And that Staff be authorized and directed to do all things necessary to give effect to this resolution.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
The Town of
Although the study was initiated in 2004, considerable time was
needed to resolve the Provincial Greenbelt Plan planning process and
negotiations needed for the settlement of Official Plan Amendment No. 140
(Rouge North Management Area). The study
team included a multi-disciplinary team of consultants led by
The Environmental Policy Review and Consolidation Study is a key component of the Town’s Growth Management Strategy. Once the Town has adopted a Growth Management Strategy, an Official Plan Review process will be initiated to prepare a new Official Plan for the Town and to implement the Growth Management Strategy recommendations. The Greenway System and policy directions and framework will form part of the new Official Plan.
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this report is to present to Council for endorsation the Environmental Policy Review and Consolidation Study recommendations and obtain Council approval in principle to continue to advance the study recommendations through the Town’s Growth Management Strategy and the future Official Plan review process.
BACKGROUND:
In 2004, Council authorized the Environmental Policy Review and Consolidation Study. This study was designed to extend environmental policy protection to the Town’s rural area, but has evolved to become a comprehensive Town-wide Natural Heritage Strategy incorporating the Greenbelt Plan conformity requirements. The amount of time undertaken to deliver the study recommendations is attributable to refinements in the study process to accommodate the Province’s completion of the Greenbelt Plan planning process and the negotiations needed for the settlement of Official Plan Amendment No. 140 (Rouge North Management Area).
The Environmental Policy Review and Consolidation Study supports
the requirements of the Provincial Policy Statement, the Provincial Growth Plan
for the Greater Golden Horseshoe and the Greenbelt Plan. The study consolidates the myriad existing
policies that the Town has adopted through various official plan amendments and
addresses the natural heritage planning policies and requirements of the TRCA
and upper tier governments (Ministry of Natural Resources,
A copy of the Environmental Policy Review and Consolidation Study Executive Summary is attached as Appendix ‘A’. The entire consultants report is available through an electronic link to the Development Services Committee agenda and will be posted on the Town’s website.
OPTIONS/ DISCUSSION:
Extensive Public Consultation
Process Undertaken
The EPRC Study was
designed to proceed in three phases with opportunities for Council commentary
and public input at all key milestones of the study process. Three public information meetings were held
in June 2007, December 2008 and April 2009.
In addition, Technical Advisory meetings, agency meetings and Provincial
ministry meetings were held through the study process. In December 2008, and again April 2009, full
day one-on-one focus group meetings were held with all interested stakeholders
to identify site specific issues and provide the opportunity to engage in more
detailed discussion regarding the mapping and draft policies. Town staff and the study team, landowners
and their consultants and the TRCA participated in field verification visits to
address site specific issues in 2008 and 2009.
The site visits in 2008 were
specifically targeted to address the settlement of the OPA No. 140 Ontario
Municipal Board hearing and were related to the delineation of the
Additional public consultation
opportunities will be made available to the public and stakeholders through the
ongoing Growth Management Strategy and the future Official Plan Review process.
The summary of the public responses received to date is attached as Appendix ‘B’.
Region of
The Region of York is preparing a
new draft Regional Official Plan containing regional scale Greenlands mapping
and policies including
Environmental Management
Policies, Special Policy Area Land Use
The draft recommendations for a proposed policy and directions framework includes an organization model for general environmental management policies incorporating policies to address sustainability, soil conservation, urban forestry, air quality, waste management, noise and vibration. Some of these policies would be new to the Official Plan and some would represent updates to existing policies. These policies will be reviewed further with staff at the Official Plan process stage to obtain input and reflect current studies, programs and priorities.
The Town’s Special Policy Area (SPA)
policies are currently reflected as a separate land use designation on Schedule
‘A’ – LAND USE to the Official Plan.
This is the approach adopted by the Town in 1990 with the approval of Official
Plan Amendment No. 100. Most of the Special Policy Areas have now
redeveloped and it is appropriate to reflect the existing land use designation
on Schedule ‘A’ – LAND USE to the Official Plan together with an SPA
overlay. This is the approach used by
most municipalities who have Special Policy Areas within their
jurisdiction. It provides clearer direction
to staff and landowners on land use permissions while ensuring the requirements
of the Special Policy Area are met. The
land use designation for the SPA lands will reflect the uses contained within
the operative Secondary Plans (Unionville Core Area,
The Greenbelt Plan provides
municipalities with a single, one-time opportunity to adjust the boundaries of Hamlets
located within the Greenbelt Plan area to rationalize these relative to the
Town’s Greenway System Strategy
Approach
Municipalities are empowered
through Provincial legislation to develop natural heritage system policies and
mapping to implement provincial, regional, agency and local policies and
programs. The Greenway System strategy
for the Town of
The systems approach to natural heritage planning uses ecological planning principles and is a well recognized planning tool. Natural Heritage Systems planning is used at all levels of government including local, regional and provincial scale planning, and was also used in the Town’s Natural Features Study undertaken in 1993. Figure ‘4’ identifies the Regional Context and illustrates the how the natural heritage systems approach extends beyond the municipal boundaries.
The Greenway System and the
Components
The Town’s proposed Greenway System includes natural
features, water features and additional lands necessary to support the
long-term sustainability and function of these features. Lands within the proposed Greenway System are
not available for urban land development, but may support existing residential,
rural and agricultural uses. The system would
also include all the lands identified by the Province within the Greenbelt
Plan. The proposed Greenway System is
further identified in 3 distinct policy management areas:
·
Natural Heritage Network (NHN)
·
Natural Heritage Network Enhancement (NHNE)
·
The Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan has already been implemented through Official Plan Amendment No. 117 and is recommended to be retained as a separate designation. No changes in the ORM policies (now approved by the Province) are proposed. Table 1 identifies the land areas within the Town.
Table 1
Land Statistics of the Proposed Greenway
System
|
|
Area (hectares) |
Percentage of the Town |
|
Greenway System made up of: |
6,830 |
32% |
|
Natural |
5,336 |
25% |
|
|
1,494 |
7% |
|
Natural Enhancement (estimated) |
134 |
.5% |
|
Oak Ridges Moraine |
601 |
3% |
|
Total (Greenway, Enhancement and ORM) |
7,565 |
35.5% |
The proposed Greenway System (see
Figure ‘1’) was delineated at a Town-wide scale using government and agency
data through a desk top and GIS process.
The Greenway System boundaries are subject to confirmation through
future detailed site and secondary plan level studies. The consulting team and the
Natural Heritage Network (NHN)
The Natural Heritage Network (NHN) is the major component of the Greenway System. The NHN is shown on Figure ‘2’, Greenway Components Map. The Natural Heritage Network includes the following components:
•
Flood plain lands, watercourse and stream corridors
•
Wetlands meeting Provincial or TRCA criteria
•
Woodlands meeting Provincial, Regional, TRCA and
Town criteria including zoned woodlots
•
Meadows that are contiguous with a valley corridor
or other listed feature
•
Naturalized stormwater management ponds that are
contiguous with a valley corridor or other listed feature
•
Habitat for species of special concern, threatened
and endangered species and species ranked by the TRCA as L1 to L3 that is
contiguous with a valley corridor or other listed feature
•
Environmentally Significant Areas identified by the
TRCA
•
Locally Significant Areas identified by the Town
•
Environmental Protection Areas identified by the
Town
•
Rouge North Management Lands delineated in
accordance with OPA No. 140
•
It is the long-term intent that
lands contained within the Natural
Figure ‘3’, reflects the feature
and policy layers that were used to build the Greenway System. The features layers were derived from
numerous sources and have differing levels of accuracy (e.g.
Natural Heritage Network –
Enhancement Areas
The Natural Heritage Network
Enhancement lands are shown conceptually on the Greenway Components Map (see
Figure ‘2’). Enhancement lands are lands that currently do
not contain natural heritage or hydrological features, but which have been
identified as providing further support to the Greenway System to address the
Town’s biodiversity and linkage objectives.
Enhancement core lands are identified in areas adjacent to significant
natural features. The additional lands
assist in creating larger natural areas necessary to retain the existing amount
and diversity of flora and fauna, if and when lands uses become urbanized in
the future. Enhancement lands were
identified by the consulting team using both ecological principles for
biodiversity centres, as well as the
The most northerly proposed
ecological enhancement corridor area creates a 200 metre wide ecological
corridor connecting the Little Rouge Creek to the Berczy Creek. The location of the proposed corridor builds on
an already robust base of existing natural heritage and hydrological features which
minimizes the additional enhancement land requirements needed to achieve the
corridor. The ecological corridor connects
into
In Phase 2 of the study process,
the Natural Heritage Network incorporated a multi-use activity linkage
connecting the Little Rouge Creek to the
Overall, the NHN provides a
comprehensive solution to protecting the Town’s natural features in the long term
within an ecologically-based natural heritage system. It not only protects and connects natural
features within the Town, but links them to the larger regional landscape
through connections to the
The Provincial Greenbelt Plan was released by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing in February 2005. The accompanying Greenbelt Protection Act requires that local and regional municipalities implement the Greenbelt Plan within 5 years through their Official Plan review processes. The Environmental Policy Review and Consolidation Study incorporates the Greenbelt Plan requirements within the Greenway System framework.
The Greenbelt Plan designates all
the lands within the Greenbelt Plan area as Protected Countryside, Oak Ridges
Moraine and Niagara Escarpment. In
Because of the significant public
ownership of lands in eastern
The Town has had several meetings
with Provincial and
The Greenbelt Plan allows
municipalities to refine their rural and prime agricultural designations. All of the agricultural lands in
Land Securement
The proposed policy directions and
framework identify a number of mechanisms to protect and secure the proposed
Natural Heritage Network and Enhancement areas into public ownership. These include the traditional and new planning
tools provided through the
A Land Securement Strategy will be an important component for the implementation of the Greenway System. The proposed Natural Heritage Network Enhancement lands are intended to be identified as a potential opportunity. If the funding or necessary incentives are not available to secure the lands for protection as part of Natural Heritage Network, they may be considered for urban uses, if and when, urban expansion is contemplated for the adjacent lands.
Monitoring
The EPRC
included a monitoring protocol for the Greenway System for the purpose of
gauging the success of the implementation process and to determine future
restoration priorities. This monitoring would be based on a Geographic
It is
proposed that the monitoring information would include the following:
- Delineation of Baseline
Conditions - to a great extent this has been completed through the current
mapping exercise which was undertaken as a part of the EPRC process.
- Review and Update (including
aerial photography interpretation) – this would be undertaken whenever new
aerial photographs became available to the municipality and would probably
occur every two years. Importantly this proposed exercise would provide
greater clarity as to the extent of natural cover (percentage) in
- Tracking of Agency and
Volunteer-based Restoration Projects – Since the advent of the Town’s
Trees for Tomorrow program tracking of trees planted by both the Town and
other volunteer-based restoration projects have been undertaken by the
Operations Branch of the Town. This information includes the number of
trees planted, species composition, location of restoration sites and the
name of the agency or volunteer group undertaking the plantings. This
information will need to be geo-referenced and added to the GIS database.
Matters Requiring Further Review
The endosation of the Environmental Policy Review and Consolidation study does not in any way impact the ability of the staff to continue to review the Greenway System mapping and policy approaches as part of completing a new Official Plan where detailed information and comments are brought forward. However, to provide some certainty to landowners who have identified a significant mapping issue, the specific areas listed below will be reviewed further as new information is brought forward. These sites are identified on Figure ‘5’. This list does not preclude the review of other lands where new information is provided.
1. Natural Heritage/ Agricultural
designations on Greenbelt East Lands (Site 1)
The
2. Romandale Farms (Site 2)
The Romandale Farms property is located on
3. Remington Lands (Site 3)
The Remington lands located at
Ninth Line and
The Remington lands also contain a
4. Angus Glen (Site 4)
The Natural Heritage Network encompasses lands identified as Regionally Significant Woodlands and a TRCA woodlands layer located north of the Angus Glen Community Centre. The lands are wooded, but are primarily used for a tree plantation. The boundary of the Natural Heritage Network is subject to confirmation through Environmental Management Study. This feature can be assessed in more detail at the development stage.
5. North Markham Landowners
Group
The North Markham
Landowners Group (NMLG) represent a landowners group in north
Next Steps – Growth Management
Strategy and New Official Plan Update
The EPRC Study provides a
framework for a Town-wide Greenway System and a policy framework for
implementation within the Growth Management Strategy and the Town’s Official
Plan. The study mapping and draft policy
framework will replace the Town’s current environmental and natural heritage
policies, consolidate the existing Oak Ridges Moraine, Special Policy Area and
The Greenbelt Act
provides that municipalities must bring their official plans into conformity
with the Greenbelt Plan within the context of
Staff heard throughout the study
process that notwithstanding using multiple means of study process notification
(e-mails, website, newspaper notification), many landowners, predominantly in
the rural area, felt the information was not being communicated to all
Staff will continue to work with
stakeholders to address specific issues related to existing natural heritage
and hydrological features. Where landowners
request site visits to confirm natural heritage or hydrologic features be
undertaken, in advance of the specific study requirements outlined in the draft
policy framework, the cost of any necessary participation of the Town’s
consultants for this level of detailed site specific review will be the
responsibility of the landowner.
FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS AND TEMPLATE: (external link)
There are no direct financial
implications as a result of this report.
HUMAN
RESOURCES CONSIDERATIONS
Not applicable.
ALIGNMENT WITH STRATEGIC PRIORITIES:
The proposed study is consistent
with the
BUSINESS UNITS CONSULTED AND AFFECTED:
The EPRC study has consulted
widely with external agencies and stakeholders, as well as staff in the
Development, Corporate and Community Services Commissions. Comments provided by internal staff regarding
policy wording will be incorporated into the future draft official plan
policies.
CONCLUSION:
The Environmental Policy
Review and Consolidation Study reflects the direction provided by the Province
for natural heritage planning through the Provincial Policy Statement, Growth
Plan and Greenbelt Plan, reflects the current policies adopted by the Town and
incorporates the requirements of the Region and Toronto and Region Conservation
Authority. The study also reflects
The full Environmental Policy Review and Consolation Study Final Report will be available by electronic link and will be posted on the Town’s website. The Executive Summary is included as Appendix ‘A’.
RECOMMENDED BY:
________________________ ________________________
Valerie Shuttleworth, M.C.I.P, R.P.P. Jim Baird, M.C.I.P, R.P.P
Director of
ATTACHMENTS:
Figure 1: Greenway System
Figure 2: Greenway Components
Figure 3: Natural Heritage and Hydrological Features and Policy Layers
Figure 4: Regional Context
Figure 5: Matters Requiring Further Review
Figure 6: Proposed Land Use
Appendix ‘A’ EPRC Study Executive Summary
Appendix ‘B’ Public Response Summary
Appendix ‘C’ Environmental
Policy Review and Consolidation Study Final Report (electronic link to agenda)
Q:\Development\Planning\MISC\MI494 EPRC Study (Natural
Heritage\Reports\DSC Report June 2009.doc