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About the Greenbelt

The Greenbelt's 1.8 million acres (728,000 hectares) wraps around the Golden Horseshoe and is vital to the quality of life of Ontarians. It encompasses the Niagara Escarpment, the Oak Ridges Moraine, Rouge Park, agricultural land, pristine environment, and hundreds of rural towns and villages.

Where is the Greenbelt?

Established in 2005, the Greenbelt spans 1.8 million acres across Southern Ontario.

The area stretches 325 kilometres from Rice Lake in Northumberland County to the Niagara River and is about 80 kilometers wide at its widest point.

If you live in Southern Ontario or anywhere in the Golden Horseshoe from Niagara to Durham and Northumberland to Lake Simcoe, the Greenbelt is close to you – close enough for an easy day trip.

You can see road signs and trail markers indicating when you are in the Greenbelt. There are also detailed maps available on this site.

You can also pick up a 2006/2007 Ontario Road Map to see in detail where to find the Greenbelt.

What is the Greenbelt

Ontario’s Greenbelt is an area of permanently protected green space, farmland, vibrant communities, forests, wetlands, and watersheds.

It surrounds the province's Golden Horseshoe – the most populated area of Canada, and is vital to the quality of life in southern Ontario. It’s our protected countryside.

There are over 1.8 million acres in the Greenbelt – an area larger than Prince Edward Island. The Greenbelt includes the Niagara Escarpment, the Oak Ridges Moraine, and the Rouge Park.

The Greenbelt was created by legislation in February of 2005. The purpose of the Greenbelt is to protect key environmentally sensitive land and farmlands from urban development and sprawl.

Downloads

application/pdf iconGreenbelt Map (11x17)
greenbelt_map_11x17.pdf 5.1 MB
application/pdf iconGreenbelt Map
greenbelt_map.pdf 611.51 KB
application/pdf iconPossibility grows in Ontario’s Greenbelt
possibility_grows_in__ontarios_greenbelt_1.pdf 485.97 KB
 

The Greenbelt Foundation is

  • Contributing $2.65 million to Greenbelt farmers to improve their operations (leveraging millions of dollars from federal sources), and to employ the opportunities of the Green Energy Act

  • Supporting tourism initiatives including in the Niagara and Caledon areas

  • Bridging farming and hiking interests to acknowledge environmental progress by farmers

  • Supporting the creation of new multi-cultural crops and development of ethnic local food guides in Toronto and York Region

  • Creating a network of Farmer’s Markets to help improve our local food economy

  • Engaged Hamilton schools to switch to Greenbelt food for their students

  • Providing grants and support to significantly increase sales at farmers’ markets

  • Participating strategically in growing the Greenbelt by working with Toronto, Peel, Halton, and Guelph

  • Supporting the Ontario Greenbelt Alliance to foster strong Greenbelt Plan implementation at the municipal level

  • Partnering with Harbourfront Centre to tell the story of Ontario’s Greenbelt to 12 million people via a year-long, outdoor photography exhibit

  • Funding research and analysis on greenbelts around the globe which concluded that Ontario’s Greenbelt is the most robust in the world, with a strong legal and policy framework

  • Contributing to greater sales of Greenbelt wines at the LCBO

  • Hosting the successful Tour de Greenbelt to promote Ontario’s Greenbelt as a tourism destination

  • Increasing amount of Greenbelt food in food share program 140%

  • Supporting changing the City of Toronto policy to adopt a local food purchasing bylaw for city facilities

  • Funding the Holland Marsh Growers’ transition from an export, commodity focus to one that serves the local market with value- added products

  • Engaging with over 170 million Ontarians directly through our marketing, events and communications activities

  • Supporting food policy council in Durham to create food charter

  • Securing local food procurement commitments for Peel schools, City of Toronto, City of Markham and others

  • Enhancing Farmers’ Markets, increasing sales for farmers in the Greenbelt and beyond

  • Convincing Peel school boards to buy Greenbelt food for students

  • Identifying barriers to opening markets for Greenbelt farmers and proposing solutions

  • Funding visionary planning processes such as the new Cootes to Escarpment Park Management Plan, and a massive reforestation plan in Rouge Park

  • Supporting the development of multi-cultural crops and training new Canadian Farmers

  • Securing local food procurement commitments for Peel, U of T. City of Toronto Facilities and Markham

  • Assisting in designing new policies to protect Lake Simcoe through timely research

  • Bringing thousands of Ontarians out into the Greenbelt each year through grantee activities and the Annual Tour de Greenbelt cycling event

  • Funding policy changes to encourage more local food to be sold in Durham

  • Hosted the first ever Global Greenbelts Conference in Toronto in March 2011 with speakers and delegates from over nine countries

  • Supporting the creation of an award-winning Greenbelt granola bar

  • Supporting interested Greenbelt Farmers to Go Organic

  • Reaching over 75 million by placing 220 permanent highway and regional road signs to ensure Ontarians and visitors know about this valuable protected area

  • Creating Greenbeltfresh.ca, the leading electronic marketplace to source local, Greenbelt foods from over 600 producers

  • Supporting the Credit Valley Conservation Authority to protect and restore wetlands

  • Building a local food economy from developing new markets to enhancing distribution channels

  • Supporting development of action plans for a variety of agricultural areas and commodities

  • Developing a successful culinary tourism platform for Niagara

  • Successfully merging social welfare initiatives with environmental concerns

 
Learn more about what the Greenbelt Foundation has done for you »

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