In 1999, as part of the “Lands for Life” planning process, the MNR produced “Ontario’s Living Legacy Land Use Strategy” which documents land use policies for Crown Land in southern Ontario and “mid-northern” Ontario.
The Lands for Life planning process had four (4) objectives:
- Complete Ontario’s system of parks and protected areas.
- Recognize land use needs of the resource-based tourism industry.
- Provide resource industries with greater land and resource certainty.
- Enhance Ontario fishing, hunting, and other Crown Land recreation opportunities.
Ontario’s Living Legacy Land Use Strategy provides broad land use classifications, and outlines many new parks, conservation areas, and enhanced management areas. It outlines the intended strategic direction for the management of 39 million hectares of Crown lands and waters in an area covering 45% of the province.
Here’s the Ontario’s Living Legacy Land Use Strategy as it appears in the Crown Land Use Policy Atlas. I believe it’s the same version as the link above.
The OLL LUS document also identifies and recommends additional detailed planning for nine (9) “signature sites” (code word for new provincial parks):
- Great Lakes Heritage Coast
- Lake Nipigon Basin
- Algoma Headwaters
- Spanish River Valley
- Kawartha Highlands
- Killarney
- St. Raphael
- Nagagamisis Central Plateau Complex
- Woodland Caribou
Many of the policies contained in Ontario’s Living Legacy Land Use Strategy are included in the Crown Land Use Policy Atlas. It appears the Crown Land Use Policy Atlas is the “master index” for all land use planning documents, including local land use documents.
WARNING – reading these documents could be hazardous to your health!
Imagine the $ millions (maybe $ billions) of dollars, time, and resources spent on this process. It’s one thing to protect selected wilderness areas for future generations to enjoy, but it’s another thing to organize thousands of meaningless meetings and documents.
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