Rural Ontario fighting to protect farmland

Changes to the Provincial Planning Statement could open the door to residential development on agricultural lands. County of Brant could lose 7,700 acres of scarce agricultural land, if approved

By Casandra Turnbull

There’s a storm brewing in rural Ontario over the recently released proposed Provincial Planning Statement. Some of the more significant changes take aim at Ontario’s agricultural sector and if approved, will drastically impact the agri-food industry as previously protected farmland will be open for development, essentially killing scarce, non-renewable lands in favour of more residential homes

It’s a devastating blow for agricultural and environmental activists who are urging the government to reconsider plans to revoke the Greater Golden Horseshoe Growth Plan which will be be replaced by this revised Provincial Planning Statement (PPS).

There’s a lot of modifications under the PPS, which received its first reading in legislature in early April, and a majority of the modifications are in place to drive the government’s agenda to push more growth in Ontario’s largest and fast-growing municipalities to create 1.5 million homes over the next 10 years. One of the biggest and most controversial amendments centres around prime agricultural land as owners of agricultural land will be allowed three new lot severances per farm property, if agriculture is the principal use of the existing parcel of land. These residential lots will also be permitted, under the new PPS, to build two Accessory Residential Units (ARU) on each lot, subject to certain criteria.

“My professional opinion is that this is not a bad change, until the 2 ARU policy is applied to the three new severed lots policy – then it’s simply too much,” said Pam Duesling, General Manager of Development Services for the County of Brant. Duesling did acknowledge that ARU’s are a great way for farmers to create generational successional planning and as long as it is compact development, ARU’s could create a low carbon footprint and do not utilize agricultural lands.

Under these proposed PPS changes, the County of Brant is expecting 7,700 new severances. With each severance capped at one acre, that’s a potential loss of 7,700 acres of farmland countywide.

According to the 2021 Census of Agriculture, the County is home to 669 farms, which is down from 712 in the 2016 Census. Brant farms generate a total Operating Revenue of $349, 423, 782 and employ 316 fulltime year-round workers, 165 parttime year-round workers and 943 seasonal or temporary workers.

“Farms in Brant are a growing contributor to the Tourism sector with many farms participating in Agritourism activities,” said Duesling of the important role agriculture plays in Brant’s economic resilience. Newly elected Ward 1 Councillor and a long-time Brant County farmer, Jennifer Kyle has some serious concerns with the revised PPS.

“Looking at the proposed changes as a councillor and as a farmer, the proposal to allow the creation of three new lots on farm parcels is very concerning to me,” said Kyle, who farms in the northwest part of the County. “On one hand, the thought of the potential profit we, as farmers, could make from severing three lots off each of our farm properties is certainly enticing. However, it’s important to take a step back and look at the bigger long-term implications that would have on our own farm and on the farming community across the county. Adding three more residences to a farm property not only takes prime agricultural land out of farm product, it also has potential to create significant challenges for future growth of that farm, particularly if it’s a livestock farm such as ours,” she explained

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Elaborating further, she said “There would also be increased danger in having many more driveways coming off an already busy road and the potential for more strain with neighbours who may or may not be familiar with normal farming practices and smells. We need to make sure we are protecting our farming community and ensuring it remains viable and productive for generations to come.”

According to the County of Brant’s New Official Plan, which will be presented at a public meeting May 29th before it’s ratified by council on May 30th , the county’s long-term Community Area land needs assessment confirms the County continues to have a surplus of residential (designated greenfield area) lands in primary settlement areas required to accommodate the forecasted growth of 59,000 people by 2051. In other words, there’s enough land to meet our growth before opening agricultural severances to enhance residential growth in the county. While the new PPS does state that municipalities will still be required to designate and protect primate agricultural areas for long-term use, it also states it will be easier to establish more housing within prime agricultural lands and this has left the local agricultural community extremely concerned.

Ward 1 Councillor, and local farmer, Jennifer Kyle has concerns how lot severances will impact future generations of farmers who will face growth challenges if prime agricultural land is taken out of production.

“There would also be increased danger in having many more driveways coming off an already busy road and the potential for more strain with neighbours who may or may not be familiar with normal farming practices and smells. We need to make sure we are protecting our farming community and ensuring it remains viable and productive for generations to come.”

In a rare move, the leadership of Ontario’s agricultural organizations – Ontario Federation of Agriculture, National Farmers Union-Ontario, Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario, Beef Farmers of Ontario, Ontario Pork, Egg Farmers of Ontario, Ontario Sheep Farmers, Veal Farmers of Ontario, Chicken Farmers of Ontario, Ontario Farmland Trust, Turkey Farmers of Ontario, Dairy Farmers of Ontario and the Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance – have all come together to release a joint statement taking a strong stance against the PPS.

“We do not support policies that will increase residential lot creation in prime agricultural areas or in rural areas that are actively farmed. Ontario boasts some of Canada’s richest and most fertile farmland and these policy changes put the sustainability of that land the food system it provides at great risk,” according to the statement issued last week. It goes on to state that Ontario’s agri-food sector is an economic powerhouse, fuelling rural communities, generating nearly 750,000 jobs and contributing more than $47 billion to Ontario’s annual GDP.

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But to farm, farmers need land. Right now, Ontario’s farmland is a scarce resource, making up less than five percent of all the land in the province. To open it up to development not only jeopardizes the most fertile soil suitable for agriculture, but also opens the door to conflict between the farming and non-farming neighbours who will need to co-exist on shared land. The PPS does include a clause that states there must be a minimum distance of separation between the residential units and the farm its severed from, however, it’s inevitable that there will be issues surrounding noise, livestock smells, farm equipment, operational hours, etc There’s also questions about why it’s necessary to build more homes in isolated areas away from vital infrastructure and community services

Opening the door to residential units in a rural area also creates risk of driving up the value of existing farm land and operations making it significantly difficult for the next generation of farmers looking for attainable land.

“Rural estate housing had been banned in Ontario because it is not a good use of the land. It requires water and septic systems in remote locations and is low density. We are likely going to see a resurgence in rural estate residential housing if Bill 97 and the proposed changes to the PPS go through,” said Joan Faux, a local advocate who sits on the board of the Brant Land Trust, is a member of the County of Brant Heritage Committee and is a representative for Brant on the Greenbelt West Coalition – a group advocating for the protection of the entire Grand River Watershed.

Correction

In our May 13th edition The Paris Independent featured an article on farm and road safety. In that article, we talked to Will Stoneman, Member Service Representative with Ontario Federation of Agriculture. The article contained incorrect spelling of Will’s last name. We apologize for the error.

“The County of Brant has no land protected by the Greenbelt. There appears to be nothing that the municipality will be able to do to stop this other than to oppose these changes before they come into effect,” added Faux.

The newly proposed PPS and Bill 97 is currently posted on the Environmental Registry of Ontario for a 60-day commenting period, which ends on June 5th Faux urges concerned residents to write to MPP Will Bouma’s office and send messages to local media or on social media to spread the word before it’s too late.

“You do not need to be a farmer or an expert to express your opinion,” she stated, noting the loss of farmland impacts everyone as it has consequences on our local food security and our local economy If you’re not sure how to put the words together, the National Farmer’s Union provides letter templates online: https://wwwnfu ca/speak-up-toprotect-ontarios-farmland-for-farming/ Right now, Duesling says Development Services staff are pondering the possible impacts to this new proposed Provincial Planning Statement on the County of Brant and all of Ontario.

“We are working in the background on next steps to be prepared We are thinking about resources and processes,” she said. If approved in legislature, Duesling said staff will pivot in the fall of this year as required to assist in managing responsible land use development.