Ontario's land use policies are currently under review. Starting in May, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (MMAH) has been seeking input from the public on the 2005 Provincial Policy Statement (PPS). The PPS sets the Ontario government's policy direction for land use planning and development; it states matters of provincial interest and provides a framework for guiding and regulating local land use decisions. The PPS applies province-wide and is the policy basis for provincial plans such as the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe and the Greenbelt Plan. The PPS is intended to acknowledge and strengthen the relationships among economic, environmental, cultural and social factors in land use planning.

In its response to the PPS review, the Farmland Trust offered 33 recommendations to enhance the protection of Ontario's prime agricultural land and farming communities. These included comments related to development and land use patterns, transportation infrastructure planning, specialty crop areas and aggregate extraction in prime agricultural areas.

To read OFT's submission on the PPS review click here (PDF file)