There are places…

Where.

Cradled by the Maitland River this precious swath of land that passes from Londesboro Road through to Little Lakes is surround by woodland that is designated in the ACW official plan as both “provincially and locally signifigant” as well as “signifigant wildlife habitat”

What if…

The aggregate company uses all of the land that is has secured creating a gravel pit from agriculture and woodland spanning over 100 acres. This would happen if the zoning is approved and expanded to include the rest of the property beyond a smaller portion on Londesboro Road that has already been zoned.

The "zoning" codes in the area are AG for agriculture, ER for resource extraction, and NE for natural environment.  The area around the new part of the proposed pit is NE 1, meaning that existing buildings are permitted but no further development can take place.  The new part of the proposed pit is zoned AG 1, but the Official Plan envisages its eventual use as ER subject to rezoning, which would require a Township process plus an MNR aggregate license, and hence an Environmental Assessment by MNR.  The surrounding and inclusive woodlots are also "designated" [rather than "zoned"] as both "Provincially and locally significant woodland" AND "Significant wildlife habitat," and there is a continuous belt of land so designated along the Maitland from Benmiller to Auburn.

It must at some point have been decided that the "woodland" designation was warranted by the dense and continuous nature of the forest and that the "wildlife" designation followed from the fact the river valley is a wildlife corridor.

What makes it important.

History.

Cultural.

Wetland.

Woodland.

Fish Passage.

User Groups.

Tourism.

Natural Heritage

Wetland
Woodland
Fish Passage