Whereas tens of thousands of jobs and billions in agriculture-related economic activity are at risk if the proposed construction of the GTA West Highway (413) is approved;
And whereas, Ontario farming and food processing together employ one million persons and generate $35 billion annually, the Golden Horseshoe being the third largest agricultural producer in North America after California and Chicago;
And whereas, the proposed Hwy 413 will slash a broad 52 km swath through agricultural, natural heritage and environmentally sensitive lands - bisecting 85 streams (10 of which are ecologically high priority) destroying seven entire wood lots including a 5.95 km length of forest, significantly fragmenting valley lands, disrupting 1,000 ha of land significant to wildlife movement - making serious incursions into areas protected under the Green Belt Plan;
And whereas, the 413 project would create 8.8 million square metres of highway and transitway right of way including paved surfaces (880 hectares/2174 acres), the equivalent of 13.59 functioning Ontario farms without consideration of the co-located Northwest Greater Toronto Area Electricity Transmission Corridor (transmission corridor);
And whereas, the 413 project will include a minimum of 60 metre right of way for an adjoining transitway, in addition to 110 metre highway right of way along with a co-located transmission corridor to support the sprawling employment buildings and residential subdivisions that will follow the highway;
And whereas, a significant number of reputable organizations have demanded the cancellation of the project, including: Environmental Defence, the David Suzuki Foundation, the Federation of Urban Neighbourhoods, Gravelwatch, Halton Environmental Network, National Farmers’ Union- Ontario Rescue Lake Simcoe Coalition, Sustainable Vaughan, Transport Action Ontario, the Wilderness Committee and Sustainable Mississauga; as well as formal votes from the municipalities of Halton Hills and Orangeville;
And whereas, the TRCA - which is the regulatory authority for developments in flood plains, wetlands and valley lands - has also objected to the potential impact of the proposed highway as well as the streamlined Environmental Assessment process - that process to which the Region of Peel has also objected;
And whereas, Environmental Defence has filed a request for designation under Section 9 of the Federal Impact Assessment Act requesting the GTA West proposed project and associated Transmission Corridor to be considered within federal jurisdiction by way of it’s meeting the criteria for public concern, particularly since the Province is proposing a shortened EA process as well as the construction of bridges and other significant environmental disrupters in advance of the completion of the EA process;
And whereas, the 3 year EA undertaken by the previous provincial government was shelved because of strong objection to the 413 by experts in the fields of rural development, renewable cities, agriculture, environment and efficient transportation who sounded alarms over predicted irreversible ecological harm caused by the uncontrolled, low density urban sprawl the 413 would cause;
And whereas, the EA process was halted by the previous government and a three person expert panel was appointed that unanimously recommended the cancellation of the GTA West Highway 413, a recommendation that resulted in the project’s termination;
And whereas, the Region of Peel is currently undertaking a Municipal Comprehensive Review process which will allocate residential and employment numbers to 2051 as well as areas of concentration for both, within the greenfield development designated for the Town of Caledon - a process which has already been affected by the proposed highway;
And whereas, the current lack of opposition to the GTA West Highway by the Council of the Region of Peel has been cited as one of the provincial government’s key assets in pushing the highway forward;
And whereas, the Region of Peel plays a significant political, financial and leadership role;
Therefore be it resolved, that the Council of the Region of Peel approve the following:
- Strong opposition to any and all advanced construction associated with preparations for a GTA West highway and Transmission Corridor.
- Full support of the Environmental Defence request for a Federal Environmental Assessment pursuant to s.9(1) of the Impact Assessment Act (I.A.A.).
- Strong opposition in principle to construction of any transportation corridor traversing the Region of Peel, but specifically the currently proposed GTA West 413 highway and Transmission corridor which will wreak havoc on the environment, encourage residential sprawl and dependence on the car as a significant means of transportation.
- The motion be shared with Brampton, Caledon and Peel Councils, The Premier of Ontario, The Minister of Transportation, The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson – Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Mississauga MPs and MPPs, Councils of the Regions through which the proposed GTA West Highway will travel.
- A response to the federal government request for comments be completed by March 3, 2021 and be sent to the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada.