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Natural Resources and Agriculture

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Natural and agriculture resources are important elements of Caledon that provide recreation, food, raw material, and economic viability. They include our forests, wildlife, geological formations, farms, mineral, and water resources. The majority of the Town's natural and agricultural resources are located within the Oak Ridges Moraine, Niagara Escarpment, Greenbelt, and designated Prime Agricultural lands.

Focus Area's Project and Studies

Provincial and Regional Influences

Provincial Influences

Region of Peel Influences

Natural and agriculture resources are important elements of Caledon that provide recreation, food, raw material, and economic viability. They include our forests, wildlife, geological formations, farms, mineral, and water resources. The majority of the Town's natural and agricultural resources are located within the Oak Ridges Moraine, Niagara Escarpment, Greenbelt, and designated Prime Agricultural lands.

Focus Area's Project and Studies

Provincial and Regional Influences

Provincial Influences

Region of Peel Influences

Questions about natural resources and agriculture?

Please let us know if you have any questions about the work the Town is undertaking to plan for the future of our natural resources and agriculture. Your questions and responses from Town staff may be published here to help build awareness.

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  • Share WSP, which is overseeing the Caledon Official Plan Review, announced its acquisition of Golder Associates in December 2020, and closed the transaction in April 2021 for $1.4 billion. Golder Associates represents Votorantim Cimentos (St Marys CBM), which is contemplating an 800-acre mega quarry, accompanied by blasting and dewatering below the water table (application not yet filed). There is an apparent conflict of interest and apprehension of bias. What assurances does the Town of Caledon and its residents have that WSP will (or can) recommend new aggregate Official Plan policies that protect the environment; the health, safety and welfare of the public (citizens and visitors); and Settlement Areas from the deleterious effects of a blasting quarry operation, one of the most obnoxious, toxic and destructive (industrial) uses of land? Are WSP and Town Planners) aware of the Ontario Professional Planners Institute's (OPPI) June 2021 member advisory on the issue of "Quarry Fly Rock," the ultimate adverse effect, for which the only way to protect the environment and the public is by imposing mandatory minimum setback requirements on quarry applications, and locating quarries far from Settlement Areas and environmentally sensitive lands. on Facebook Share WSP, which is overseeing the Caledon Official Plan Review, announced its acquisition of Golder Associates in December 2020, and closed the transaction in April 2021 for $1.4 billion. Golder Associates represents Votorantim Cimentos (St Marys CBM), which is contemplating an 800-acre mega quarry, accompanied by blasting and dewatering below the water table (application not yet filed). There is an apparent conflict of interest and apprehension of bias. What assurances does the Town of Caledon and its residents have that WSP will (or can) recommend new aggregate Official Plan policies that protect the environment; the health, safety and welfare of the public (citizens and visitors); and Settlement Areas from the deleterious effects of a blasting quarry operation, one of the most obnoxious, toxic and destructive (industrial) uses of land? Are WSP and Town Planners) aware of the Ontario Professional Planners Institute's (OPPI) June 2021 member advisory on the issue of "Quarry Fly Rock," the ultimate adverse effect, for which the only way to protect the environment and the public is by imposing mandatory minimum setback requirements on quarry applications, and locating quarries far from Settlement Areas and environmentally sensitive lands. on Twitter Share WSP, which is overseeing the Caledon Official Plan Review, announced its acquisition of Golder Associates in December 2020, and closed the transaction in April 2021 for $1.4 billion. Golder Associates represents Votorantim Cimentos (St Marys CBM), which is contemplating an 800-acre mega quarry, accompanied by blasting and dewatering below the water table (application not yet filed). There is an apparent conflict of interest and apprehension of bias. What assurances does the Town of Caledon and its residents have that WSP will (or can) recommend new aggregate Official Plan policies that protect the environment; the health, safety and welfare of the public (citizens and visitors); and Settlement Areas from the deleterious effects of a blasting quarry operation, one of the most obnoxious, toxic and destructive (industrial) uses of land? Are WSP and Town Planners) aware of the Ontario Professional Planners Institute's (OPPI) June 2021 member advisory on the issue of "Quarry Fly Rock," the ultimate adverse effect, for which the only way to protect the environment and the public is by imposing mandatory minimum setback requirements on quarry applications, and locating quarries far from Settlement Areas and environmentally sensitive lands. on Linkedin Email WSP, which is overseeing the Caledon Official Plan Review, announced its acquisition of Golder Associates in December 2020, and closed the transaction in April 2021 for $1.4 billion. Golder Associates represents Votorantim Cimentos (St Marys CBM), which is contemplating an 800-acre mega quarry, accompanied by blasting and dewatering below the water table (application not yet filed). There is an apparent conflict of interest and apprehension of bias. What assurances does the Town of Caledon and its residents have that WSP will (or can) recommend new aggregate Official Plan policies that protect the environment; the health, safety and welfare of the public (citizens and visitors); and Settlement Areas from the deleterious effects of a blasting quarry operation, one of the most obnoxious, toxic and destructive (industrial) uses of land? Are WSP and Town Planners) aware of the Ontario Professional Planners Institute's (OPPI) June 2021 member advisory on the issue of "Quarry Fly Rock," the ultimate adverse effect, for which the only way to protect the environment and the public is by imposing mandatory minimum setback requirements on quarry applications, and locating quarries far from Settlement Areas and environmentally sensitive lands. link

    WSP, which is overseeing the Caledon Official Plan Review, announced its acquisition of Golder Associates in December 2020, and closed the transaction in April 2021 for $1.4 billion. Golder Associates represents Votorantim Cimentos (St Marys CBM), which is contemplating an 800-acre mega quarry, accompanied by blasting and dewatering below the water table (application not yet filed). There is an apparent conflict of interest and apprehension of bias. What assurances does the Town of Caledon and its residents have that WSP will (or can) recommend new aggregate Official Plan policies that protect the environment; the health, safety and welfare of the public (citizens and visitors); and Settlement Areas from the deleterious effects of a blasting quarry operation, one of the most obnoxious, toxic and destructive (industrial) uses of land? Are WSP and Town Planners) aware of the Ontario Professional Planners Institute's (OPPI) June 2021 member advisory on the issue of "Quarry Fly Rock," the ultimate adverse effect, for which the only way to protect the environment and the public is by imposing mandatory minimum setback requirements on quarry applications, and locating quarries far from Settlement Areas and environmentally sensitive lands.

    Tony Sevelka asked over 2 years ago

    The Caledon Official Plan Review is being undertaken by a multifaceted team of Planning Professionals, covering a variety of disciplines. The Official Plan Review will be developed with a focus on public engagement through an open and transparent process. Multiple public open houses have been undertaken in the process in recent months and more will be scheduled in 2022 as milestones in the work are achieved, in order to ensure that public engagement and input continue to play an essential role in developing the new Official Plan. An aggregate policy review is being conducted jointly by the Region of Peel and Town of Caledon for inclusion in their respective Official Plans. This work is being led by the Region of Peel and is ongoing.

     

    WSP is guiding the process but the Town and other partners have the final say of what’s included in the Official Plan. This is informed by public feedback, technical studies, and a variety of other factors. When completed the Draft Official Plan will be presented to Town Council for their review and debate, with the objective of adoption by Council and approval from the Region of Peel.

     

    As part of the procurement of consultants for planning related work, the Town requires any consultant performing work on the Town’s behalf, to avoid any conflict of interest in the performance of their contractual obligations and disclose to the Town any actual or potential conflict of interest that arises during the duration of the contract. The Town has the ability to terminate contracts where a consultant fails to meet the terms regarding conflict of interest. The comments against WSP were addressed in a staff memo on November 30, 2021 which included a memo from WSP’s Legal Department as an attachment.

  • Share If growth and development become primary focus points, how are you equally growing wildlife corridors, protected habitat, wetland and waterways, green spaces not for public use. It is already a significant problem in this area that these issues have been falling behind the focus on population growth. However the very reason why people move here is being eroded tremendously every day. Therefore please comment on how the issues noted above will have a a significant place at the table for discussion and decision making and will not be just afterthoughts. Thank you on Facebook Share If growth and development become primary focus points, how are you equally growing wildlife corridors, protected habitat, wetland and waterways, green spaces not for public use. It is already a significant problem in this area that these issues have been falling behind the focus on population growth. However the very reason why people move here is being eroded tremendously every day. Therefore please comment on how the issues noted above will have a a significant place at the table for discussion and decision making and will not be just afterthoughts. Thank you on Twitter Share If growth and development become primary focus points, how are you equally growing wildlife corridors, protected habitat, wetland and waterways, green spaces not for public use. It is already a significant problem in this area that these issues have been falling behind the focus on population growth. However the very reason why people move here is being eroded tremendously every day. Therefore please comment on how the issues noted above will have a a significant place at the table for discussion and decision making and will not be just afterthoughts. Thank you on Linkedin Email If growth and development become primary focus points, how are you equally growing wildlife corridors, protected habitat, wetland and waterways, green spaces not for public use. It is already a significant problem in this area that these issues have been falling behind the focus on population growth. However the very reason why people move here is being eroded tremendously every day. Therefore please comment on how the issues noted above will have a a significant place at the table for discussion and decision making and will not be just afterthoughts. Thank you link

    If growth and development become primary focus points, how are you equally growing wildlife corridors, protected habitat, wetland and waterways, green spaces not for public use. It is already a significant problem in this area that these issues have been falling behind the focus on population growth. However the very reason why people move here is being eroded tremendously every day. Therefore please comment on how the issues noted above will have a a significant place at the table for discussion and decision making and will not be just afterthoughts. Thank you

    Michelle asked about 3 years ago

    Thank you for your inquiry and thoughts,

    Environmental feature protection and connectivity is a significant issue in Caledon. The Town is in the unique position of being the only municipality in Ontario to contain lands subject each of the Greenbelt Plan, Niagara Escarpment Plan, Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan and Lake Simcoe Protection Plan, which when combined, represent approximately 80% of the Town’s area. As part of the Future Caledon Official Plan Review, the Town is mandated to ensure conformity with the environmentally protective policy requirements of these plans. Caledon also contains lands within the regulatory jurisdiction of 4 Conservation Authorities (Credit Valley Conservation, Toronto and Region Conservation Authority, Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority and the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority), that each play a role in the development review process in the Town.

    Caledon continues to work with the Region of Peel, also currently undertaking a Municipal Comprehensive Review of it’s Regional Official Plan, to develop effective environmental policy based on a Natural Heritage System approach.

    In preparation for the Official Plan review, the Town of Caledon was one of the first municipalities in Ontario to prepare Greenbelt Key Natural and Key Hydrological Feature Mapping as a tool to better identify and understand features and their distribution, an action now mandated by the Province for all Greenbelt Plan municipalities.

    As land use and development demands change over time, so to do opportunities and innovations for improving the conditions and local policies for environmental protection and enhancement. Through the Future Caledon Official Plan Review, the Town looks forward to the opportunity to receive ideas from members of all branches of the community on how and where such policies can be enhanced. 

    natural heritage system,environmental protection ,provincial plan,conservation authority
    natural heritage system environmental protection provincial plan conservation authority
  • Share How can we take your leadership and care of our natural resources seriously when the Town is considering allowing the company on 10795/10819 Highway 9 to continue to store leaching toxic products on the Oak Ridges Moraine? on Facebook Share How can we take your leadership and care of our natural resources seriously when the Town is considering allowing the company on 10795/10819 Highway 9 to continue to store leaching toxic products on the Oak Ridges Moraine? on Twitter Share How can we take your leadership and care of our natural resources seriously when the Town is considering allowing the company on 10795/10819 Highway 9 to continue to store leaching toxic products on the Oak Ridges Moraine? on Linkedin Email How can we take your leadership and care of our natural resources seriously when the Town is considering allowing the company on 10795/10819 Highway 9 to continue to store leaching toxic products on the Oak Ridges Moraine? link

    How can we take your leadership and care of our natural resources seriously when the Town is considering allowing the company on 10795/10819 Highway 9 to continue to store leaching toxic products on the Oak Ridges Moraine?

    Penny asked over 3 years ago

    Thank you for your questions and engaging with us. 

    Under the Planning Act, a property owner may submit development applications to the Town of Caledon's Planning and Development Services Department on matters of zoning variance, temporary use and other forms of amendments to the official plan. The Town’s receipt of a complete application by a landowner does not constitute an automatic approval of the proposal. The Town is required to reviews all applications based on their compliance with current Municipal, Regional and Provincial policies. Caledon residents are given the opportunity to provide input on planning applications during the review process before a decision can be made by Council.

    The Town has received  applications for  a Zoning By-law Amendment (Temporary Use) for  each of the subject properties. Links to additional information on these applications, including notices for upcoming public meetings (held electronically on September 8th in both these instances) and contact information for the Town Planning Staff managing these files can be found by following the link below. 

    https://www.caledon.ca/en/town-services/current-applications.aspx 

  • Share Is the Dick-owned farm on the northeast corner of Olde Base Line Road and Winston Churchill being considered to be included as a future aggregate mining site? We. the residents in the area, spent millions defeating his last petition to the OMB and do not want to see it relived by his request to have it included in the new master plan. If it is included, he will be back at the OMB asking to open the mining site. It is clear that he has not lost sight of his goal to mine this property, notwithstanding the last decision from the OMB. on Facebook Share Is the Dick-owned farm on the northeast corner of Olde Base Line Road and Winston Churchill being considered to be included as a future aggregate mining site? We. the residents in the area, spent millions defeating his last petition to the OMB and do not want to see it relived by his request to have it included in the new master plan. If it is included, he will be back at the OMB asking to open the mining site. It is clear that he has not lost sight of his goal to mine this property, notwithstanding the last decision from the OMB. on Twitter Share Is the Dick-owned farm on the northeast corner of Olde Base Line Road and Winston Churchill being considered to be included as a future aggregate mining site? We. the residents in the area, spent millions defeating his last petition to the OMB and do not want to see it relived by his request to have it included in the new master plan. If it is included, he will be back at the OMB asking to open the mining site. It is clear that he has not lost sight of his goal to mine this property, notwithstanding the last decision from the OMB. on Linkedin Email Is the Dick-owned farm on the northeast corner of Olde Base Line Road and Winston Churchill being considered to be included as a future aggregate mining site? We. the residents in the area, spent millions defeating his last petition to the OMB and do not want to see it relived by his request to have it included in the new master plan. If it is included, he will be back at the OMB asking to open the mining site. It is clear that he has not lost sight of his goal to mine this property, notwithstanding the last decision from the OMB. link

    Is the Dick-owned farm on the northeast corner of Olde Base Line Road and Winston Churchill being considered to be included as a future aggregate mining site? We. the residents in the area, spent millions defeating his last petition to the OMB and do not want to see it relived by his request to have it included in the new master plan. If it is included, he will be back at the OMB asking to open the mining site. It is clear that he has not lost sight of his goal to mine this property, notwithstanding the last decision from the OMB.

    Gordon Michael Finnigan asked about 4 years ago

    Thank you for your questions and engaging with us.  The following is in response the question raised: 

    1. The James Dick’s property on Old Baseline Road and Winston Churchill Boulevard is currently designated as Rural Lands and Environmental Policy Area. 
    2. Schedule L to the Caledon Official Plan identifies the lands as being within the Caledon High Potential Mineral Aggregate Resource Area (CHPMARA - Bedrock Resource).    
    3. The current designation and identification as CHPMARA suggest that aggregate/quarry operations may be considered on the lands subject to amendments to the Town’s Official Plan and Zoning By-law and the Ministry of Natural Resources' Aggregate Resources Act (ARA) license requirements.
    4. As part of this current OP Review, the Town will conduct a study to review current aggregate policies and lands identifies as CHPMARA based newly published resource maps produced by the Government of Ontario. The study will determine whether current policies and practices are effective in managing the Town's aggregate resources while protecting the environment and the community.
    5. The policies of the next Caledon Official Plan and associated schedules will be based on the findings from all the studies that are part of the Official Plan Review. 
    6. Until the review process is completed, staff cannot determine whether the subject lands will remain as CHPMARA (which will continue to make the lands a potential area for aggregate operations).


    Should you require further information please contact Ohi Izirein at ohi.izirein@caledon.ca

Page last updated: 26 Mar 2024, 04:01 PM