Evidence of meeting #35 for Environment and Sustainable Development in the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site.) The winning word was farming.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Conservative
Paul Calandra Conservative Oak Ridges—Markham, ON
When you said that you could share the park with a heritage farmer, you didn't actually mean the families who were expropriated; you meant that you would go at it on an individual basis. So if I've been farming for two years, in essence I could be a heritage farmer.
General Manager, Friends of the Rouge Watershed
I think you have to look at it on an individual basis.
Conservative
Paul Calandra Conservative Oak Ridges—Markham, ON
So, is that statement you made about being willing to work with heritage farmers incorrect?
General Manager, Friends of the Rouge Watershed
No, I think that you would want to give special consideration to people who were on the land when it was expropriated, because expropriation is a nasty process.
Conservative
Paul Calandra Conservative Oak Ridges—Markham, ON
Okay.
You talked about the ecological corridor. I'm told that the development of an ecological corridor would mean the removal of about 1,700—Parks Canada suggest it's about 2,000—acres of class 1 farmland. Is that about what you would expect?
General Manager, Friends of the Rouge Watershed
Mr. Calandra, when you were with the Harris government, the ecological corridor was defined at that time—
Conservative
Paul Calandra Conservative Oak Ridges—Markham, ON
I'm not asking you about the Harris government. I'm asking you, in your opinion, right now, the 600-metre corridor—
General Manager, Friends of the Rouge Watershed
I can only tell you that it was defined in law when you were there in 2001 and it was put in the greenbelt plan in 2005.
Conservative
Paul Calandra Conservative Oak Ridges—Markham, ON
I'm not asking you about that. Answer a question that's put before you.
What is your estimate of the amount of land that would have to be taken out of production that farmers like Mr. Reesor would lose, to develop a 600-metre corridor?
General Manager, Friends of the Rouge Watershed
You can get that directly from the Little Rouge corridor management plan, the Rouge national urban action plan—
Conservative
Paul Calandra Conservative Oak Ridges—Markham, ON
Do you accept that it's about 2,000 acres from Parks Canada?
General Manager, Friends of the Rouge Watershed
The number I am aware of is about 1,700, but that's from the Rouge Park Alliance's unanimous report.
Conservative
Paul Calandra Conservative Oak Ridges—Markham, ON
I'm not going to disagree with you.
So you're talking about removing 1,700 acres, and Parks Canada says 2,000.
General Manager, Friends of the Rouge Watershed
I'm not the one talking about it. This is the law of the land right now. It's not me; it's the Rouge Park Alliance; it's the provincial governments; it's the greenbelt plan; it's the Rouge North plan that was put in place when you were in the provincial government and when the mayor of Markham was Don Cousens, a former Conservative MPP.
Conservative
Paul Calandra Conservative Oak Ridges—Markham, ON
You understand that this is a new park that's being created, right? We're not talking about a historical park, right?
General Manager, Friends of the Rouge Watershed
That's why the province won't transfer the land, because you are ignoring their policies.
Conservative
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Harold Albrecht
Mr. Calandra, your time is up.
We're going to move now to Ms. Sitsabaiesan, for seven minutes.
NDP
Rathika Sitsabaiesan NDP Scarborough—Rouge River, ON
My first question is addressed to Friends of the Rouge Watershed, and Mr. Reesor. You both spoke of the development of the land.
Mr. Reesor and Mr. Robb, what do you see as a bigger threat to farming in York Region, urbanization or ecological restoration?
Mr. Reesor or Mr. Robb, I have less than seven minutes.
Reesor Farm, As an Individual
Urbanization is not going to be a threat on the parkland.
Reesor Farm, As an Individual
I'm saying that it's not going to be a threat to farming on the parkland. But I will say, as I mentioned in my little speech, that urbanization is a huge threat to privately owned land. Markham will be completely developed within a few years.
General Manager, Friends of the Rouge Watershed
It's definitely urbanization. Markham just expanded the urban envelope by 11 square kilometres, and 120 kilometres of Markham's 200 is already urbanized. That's the finest class 1 agricultural land.
We fought it every step of the way.
NDP
Rathika Sitsabaiesan NDP Scarborough—Rouge River, ON
Mr. Moola, on the phone there—I almost forgot you were there, my apologies—I want to ask you the same question that I've been asking everybody else. In your opinion, what is the biggest threat to preserving the ecological health of Rouge national park?
Mr. Moola, and then Mr. Reesor and Mr. Robb. Be very, very brief, please.