Ontario’s Greenbelt is an area of permanently protected green space, farmland, vibrant communities, forests, wetlands, and watersheds.
The Greenbelt protects environmentally sensitive land and farmlands in Ontario’s Golden Horseshoe area from urban development. These lands will serve as a legacy for all Ontarians by preserving and enhancing our natural and cultural heritage.
The Greenbelt protects 1.8 million acres—an area larger than Prince Edward Island.
It extends 325 km from the eastern end of the Oak Ridges Moraine, near Rice Lake, in the east, to the Niagara River in the west. The Greenbelt includes the 800,000 acres of land protected by the Niagara Escarpment Plan and the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan, and 1 million newly protected acres known as the Protected Countryside.
The Greenbelt Act, 2005 provides the authority for the creation of the Greenbelt Area and the establishment of the Greenbelt Plan. The Greenbelt Plan contains policies for providing permanent agricultural and environmental protection as well as providing for a wide range of recreation, tourism and cultural opportunities in the area. The Act requires that decisions made under the Ontario Planning and Development Act, 1994, the Planning Act and the Condominium Act, 1998 conform to the Greenbelt Plan.
The policies of the Niagara Escarpment Plan and the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan continue to apply to their respective areas.