OMAFRA Seeks Feedback

OMAFRA invites members of the agricultural community to join a webinar on September 6, 2017 from 9:30 to 12:00 noon on the Agricultural System.

This webinar is intended to increase the awareness of the agricultural community on the province’s draft Agricultural System mapping and Implementation Procedures (see below for details). It will also provide an opportunity for OMAFRA to gather your ideas on how to maximize the benefits of moving to an Agricultural System across the Greater Golden Horseshoe.

You may participate in the webinar from your own home or business, or by attending one of six host sites for the webinar:

· Colborne
· Elora
· City of Kawartha Lakes
· Midhurst
· Town of Simcoe
· Vineland

To participate, you must pre-register by September 1 by calling OMAFRA’s Agricultural Information Contact Centre (AICC) at 1-877-424-1300 or by sending an email to ag.info.omafra@ontario.ca.

When registering with the AICC, please provide:
· your name;
· name of the agricultural organization/s you belong to;
· municipality; and
· whether you will logon to the webinar individually or attend one of the six host sites (please specify which location).

Those who pre-register will receive the agenda, webinar and teleconference information, and location details.

Background

In the spring, the province released its four updated provincial land use plans for the Greater Golden Horseshoe as a result of the coordinated review: the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, the Greenbelt Plan, the Niagara Escarpment Plan and the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan.

The advisory panel for the coordinated review, chaired by David Crombie, recommended that Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) work with municipalities and stakeholders to develop an Agricultural System across the Greater Golden Horseshoe to support the viability of Ontario’s agri-food sector and protect farmland.

As a result of these recommendations, OMAFRA has posted the proposed Agricultural System on the Environmental Registry.
Click here for the Agricultural System posting (EBR# 013-0968).
Comments on the draft Agricultural System are welcome until October 4, 2017.

OMAFRA is consulting on three Agricultural System products:

• Draft Implementation Procedures for the Agricultural System in Ontario’s Greater Golden Horseshoe;
• Draft Agricultural System Portal;
• Draft Agricultural Land Base Map.For further information, please visit OMAFRA’s website.