HomeMy WebLinkAboutPD-34-92 THE CORPORATION OF THE TOWN OF NEWCASTLE
DN: WETLANDS.GPA REPORT
Meeting: General Purpose and Administration Committee File#
Date: Monday, January 20, 1992 Res. #
By-Law#
Report#: p.D_-_i4_-_9_2_ File #: p 1 7
Subject: PROPOSED PROVINCIAL POLICY STATEMENT ON WETLANDS
Recommendations:
It is respectfully recommended that the General Purpose and
-Admin-istration -Committee recommend-to Counc_il--the following:
1. THAT Report PD-34-92 be received;
2 . THAT the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and ministry of Natural
Resources be advised of the Town of Newcastle's comments with the
draft Policy Statement on Wetlands as contained in Report PD-34-
92 ;
3 . THAT a copy of PD-34-92 and Council's resolution in this matter
be forwarded to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs, the Ministry
of Natural Resources and Region of Durham.
1. BACKGROUND
1. 1 In January 1989 , the Minister of Municipal Affairs and the
Minister of Natural Resources had issued a proposed Policy
Statement on Wetlands for review and public comments. Staff
prepared PD-127-89 advising Committee and Council of the
draft provincial policy protecting wetlands through the
land-use planning process. Committee and Council offered no
objection to the proposed Policy Statement.
1. 2 In September, 1991 Staff were advised by the Minister of
Municipal Affairs and the Minister of Natural Resources of a
new release of Draft Policy Statement on Wetlands. Both
Ministries are now requesting comments on the new Draft
Policy Statement from the members of the public and public
agencies.
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REPORT NO. : PD-34-92 PAGE 2
1. 3 The Policy Statement on Wetlands is issued under Section 3
of the Planning Act, whereby The Minister of Municipal
Affairs and together with any other Minister can issue
policy statements on matters relating to municipal planning
that, in the opinion of the Minister, are of Provincial
Interest. Thereafter, in exercising their authority in any
planning matter the Council of a municipality, every local
board, minister, board, commission and agency of the
government shall have regard to such policy statements.
The Wetlands Policy Statement replaces the Guidelines
previously issued as the Province's expression of Policy on
Wetlands Management. This Policy Statement on Wetlands has
equal weight and must be considered in conjunction with
other Policy Statements issued under the Act, which may also
have an impact on the management and use of wetlands.
1. 4 The Ministry of Municipal Affairs and the Ministry of
Natural Resources will release "Wetlands Implementation
Guidelines" to assist planning authorities with the
implementation of the Policy Statement in the near future.
2. A SUMMARY OF THE REVISED WETLANDS POLICY STATEMENT
2 . 1 Definition
Wetland has been defined as:
"land that is seasonally or permanently covered by shallow
water, as well as land where the water table is close to or
at the surface. In either case the presence of abundant
water has caused the formation of hydric soils and has
favoured the dominance of either hydrophytic or water
tolerant plants. "
Swamps, marshes, fens and bogs are all considered wetlands.
2 . 2 Basis of the Policy Statement
A significant number of wetlands have been lost within
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REPORT NO. : PD-34-92 PAGE 3
Southern Ontario due to continuing pressure from competing
land uses and other activities such as dredging, filling,
drainage and land clearing.
Through the Policy Statement the Province intends to protect
wetlands as part of its approach to the management of
natural resources, specifically to:
sustain intrinsic ecological values
protect heritage values
conserve high quality ground water
manage fish and wildlife habitat
maintain surface water quality and quantity
encourage the maintenance of an adequate supply of both
public and private open space
2 . 3 The Evaluation System
In 1984 , the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment
Canada introduced "Guidelines for Wetlands Management in
Ontario" . The Ministry had introduced an evaluation system
for identifying and classifying wetlands in order to measure
wetlands values.
The Policy Statement of 1989, Class I and II were classified
as being Provincially Significant Wetland, Class III
wetlands as Regionally Significant and Class IV to VII as
Locally Significant.
The revised Policy Statement is more stringent in its
classification to Provincially Significant Wetlands, which
includes the Class I, II and III as Provincially
Significant. However, Class IV through VII wetlands have not
been defined.
2 .4 The Policies
2 . 4 . 1 The Policy Statement requires all municipalities, boards and
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REPORT NO. : PD-34-92 PAGE 4
all other agencies with planning jurisdiction to have regard
for wetlands in their decisions affecting any planning
matter. In this regard wetlands are to be identified and
protected through Official Plans, Zoning-by Laws, and other
planning documents.
2 .4 . 2 The Policy Statement applies to the entire Province of
Ontario, which has been divided into the Boreal Region and
the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Region, which includes the
Greater Toronto Area. The boundaries of these areas are
indicated on Figure 1 which forms part of the Policy
Statement, noted as Attachment 1 to this report.
2 . 4 . 3 The Great Lakes - St.Lawrence Region.
a) The Policy Statement prohibits a number of activities
within Provincially Significant Wetlands such as the
construction and alteration of structures as well as
any site grading. However, new land uses are permitted
provided it does not result in the loss of the function
of wetlands or any wetland area and does not create a
negative impact at the time of its implementation or in
the future.
b) The Policy Statement recognizes a "wetland complex" , an
area identified as having two or more wetlands that are
related in a functional manner. New development and
compatible land uses are permitted on lands separating
the wetlands provided it does not result in the loss of
its functions.
C) Within a 120 metres from a Provincially Significant
wetland, the Policy Statement permits only development
and compatible land uses which do not result in loss of
wetland area or its function.
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REPORT NO. : PD-34-92 PAGE 5
2 .4 . 4 In both Regions the Policy Statement encourages new public
utilities/facilities to be located outside Provincially
Significant wetlands wherever possible. Environment
assessment or other approvals shall ensure negative impacts
on wetland functions are minimized.
3. WETLANDS IN THE TOWN OF NEWCASTLE
3 . 1 Three Provincially Significant Wetlands have been identified
in the Town of Newcastle.
West Side Beach Marsh
McLaughlin Bay
Black/Farewell Creek Complex
The approximate locations of these three wetlands are
indicated on Schedule 1 .
The West Side Beach Marsh
The West Side Beach Marsh is located in within an area
currently held under quarry license by St. Marys Cement. The
license for extraction was granted in 1970 by the Ministry
of Natural Resources and covers more than 600 acres of land.
Under the license extraction would be permitted into the
Marsh at a significant depth thereby destroying the marsh
and any possibility of rehabilitation.
As noted earlier, the Wetland Policy Statement has equal
weight and must be considered in conjunction with other
Policy Statements. In this regard, reference is made to the
Mineral Aggregate Resources Policy Statement (MARPS) jointly
issued under Section 3 of the Planning Act. It establishes
mineral aggregate resources as a matter of provincial
interest and requires municipalities to identify and protect
resources as much possible in the context of other land uses
planning objectives.
REPORT NO. : PD-34-92 PAGE 6
The two Policy Statements have differing objectives and have
been applied to one single property. Staff has discussed the
issue of protecting the West Side Beach Marsh with the
Ministry of Natural Resources. Ministry Staff has taken the
position that since the approval of St. Marys Cement quarry
licence predated both policy Statements, the Ministry is
obligated to honour the license. Ministry Staff also
indicated that the Wetlands Policy Statement is not intended
to apply retroactively to lands previously committed to
other uses.
The protection of the Marsh has been sited by the Crombie
Commission as being of significant ecological value. In
Watershed the Commission recommended the protection of the
marsh and the creation of a suitable buffer area in relation
to continued quarry operations.
McLaughlin Bay
McLaughlin Bay is part of Darlington Provincial Park, the
western the portion of the wetland located in the City of
Oshawa is privately owned by General Motors. The 1987
Oshawa Waterfront Development Plan has recommended the area
immediately west of the McLaughlin Bay for public
acquisition. However General Motors has been managing the
Mclaughlin Bay area, preserving and enhancing its natural
qualities. The City of Oshawa has no objection to General
Motors activities.
The Farewell/Black Creek Complex
The Farewell/Black Creek Complex is located outside of the
Urban Area for Courtice as designated in the 1991 Region of
Durham Official Plan and is not threatened by urban
development in the near future. The Black/Farewell Creek
Complex is located however in the study area for the
Connecting Link between the 401 and 407 . It should be noted
that the exact alignment has not been announced by the
Ministry of Transportation.
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REPORT NO. : PD-34-92 PAGE 7
Other Wetlands
Other wetlands in the Town of Newcastle are listed below:
Darlington
Golf Course Wetland, Class 4
Mitchell's Corners, Class 7
Bowmanville Marsh, Class 6
Raby Head #1, Class 6
Raby Head #2 , Class 7
Clarke
Lower Wilmot Creek, Class 6
Kendal Complex, Class 6
Clarke's Summit Swamp, Class 6
Newtonville, Class 7
The approximate locations of these wetlands are indicated on
Schedule 2 .
4. COMMENTS
4 . 1 The new draft Policy Statement is intended to be brief, more
forceful and assertive in dealing development in the
vicinity of wetlands, intending to protect the function of
wetlands and recognizing their importance to the natural
environment. Staff has reviewed the draft Policy Statement
and offer the following comments:
4 . 1. 1 The Policy Statement has created a number of definitions to
clarify the intend of the policies. Terms such as Compatible
Land Uses and Development are specifically defined. The
term "new land uses" is not defined. Staff is of the opinion
that clarification is required as to what would constitute a
"new land use" .
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REPORT NO. : PD-34-92 PAGE 8
4 . 1.2 Regional or Locally significant wetlands do not receive any
protection under the Wetlands Policy Statement. This is a
serious and unfortunate omission. Excluded, for example, is
the Bowmanville Marsh. Given the limited number of
remaining wetlands, the provisions of the Policy Statement
should provide a general clause that would encourage
Regional and Local municipalities to protect those which may
have regional and local significance.
4 . 1. 3 As noted earlier, the Wetlands Policy Statement requires
municipalities to have regard for provincially significant
wetlands in decision making. The implementation of the
policy statement shall be done through their Official Plans
and Zoning By-laws. To some extent the policy framework to
accomplish this objective is currently in place within the
Regional and Town of Newcastle Official Plans as areas
designated as environmentally sensitive or hazard lands.
The Town's Comprehensive Zoning By-law has identified the
majority of wetlands as "Environmental Protection (EP) " . .
The permitted uses in the by-law are generally consistent
with the concept of compatible land uses in the Policy
Statement.
There are a number of wetlands that have yet to be zoned
accordingly. McLaughlin Bay wetland is currently zoned as
"Agricultural (A) ' . The wetland forms part of the
Darlington Provincial Park and for the most part its
natural environment and wetland functions are protected by
the passive recreational use of the park.
A ,change to the current zoning however would ensure its full
protection.
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REPORT NO. : PD-34-92 PAGE 9
Westside Beach Marsh, Raby Head #1 & #2 , and a portion of
the Bowmanville Marsh are zoned "Extractive Industrial
(M3) " and owned by St. Marys. As noted earlier in this
report, the Policy Statements related to Mineral Aggregates
and the Wetlands Policy appears in conflict as it applies to
Westside Beach Marsh. The Ministry should clarify which
Provincial Policy Statement is applicable. Given the fact
that the Westside Beach Marsh takes up only a small portion
of the St. Marys Cement property and recognizing the
ecological significance of the marsh, the Town requests that
the Wetlands Policy Statement should be paramount, to ensure
that these wetlands are protected from further extraction.
If the draft Policy Statement is approved the zoning by law
will have to be amended to include the 120 metre setback
from the wetland area.
6. CONCLUSIONS
6. 1 Staff agree with the general philosophy of the proposed
Provincial Policy Statement on Wetlands. However, the
policy statement could offer further clarification and
refinement duly noted in this report.
Respectfully submitted, Recommended for presentation
to the Committee
9 ;
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Franklin Wu, M.C. I.P. awre c E. Kotseff
Director of Planning Chief A` ministrative
and Development Officer
CS*DC*FW*df
*Attach
13 January 1992
ATTACHMENT # 1 THE 1;t
PLANNING
ACT
Z ® f POLICY STATEMENT
Ontario
Wetlands
A Draft Policy for Consultation
under Section 3 of the Planning Act
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Wetland Benefits
Wetlands provide environmental, economic and social benefits that contribute to the
quality of life in Ontario. Wetlands throughout the province can contain ecological,
hydrological,recreational, agricultural and wildlife/fisheries habitat values.
Wetland Loss
Over 75% of the original Wetlands in southern Ontario have been lost. This loss is
continuing as pressure escalates from competing land uses and other activities such as
dredging, filling, drainage and land clearing. In northern Ontario, where Wetlands are
relatively abundant, losses are also becoming significant particularly near urban areas
and along the Great Lakes shorelines.
Evaluation System
Evaluation systems are used to rate the values of Wetlands and to determine their rela-
tive importance by measuring a number of indicative features, such as biological,
hydrological, social and special features. In 1984 an evaluation system was developed
by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Canada. This system applies
generally to the area of Ontario outside the Canadian Shield. This system was used in
the 1984"Wetlands Guidelines"to protect significant Wetlands in Ontario.
DEFINITIONS:
For the purposes of this policy statement:
Adjacent Lands are those lands within 120 metres of the boundary of Provincial-
ly Significant Wetlands.
* Boreal Region is the area of Ontario north of the line shown on Figure 3 (see Note 1).
't, Compatible Land Uses or Development are those which do not:
a) result in a loss of Wetlands Functions, and
b) create a subsequent demand for measures which will negatively impact on
existing Wetlands Functions, and
c) conflict with existing site-specific wetland management practices.
('I Q 99
3
I
POLICY
It is the policy of the Province of Ontario that:
1. All planning jurisdictions, including municipalities and plan-
ning boards, consider the implications of their actions on the �a
protection of Provincially Significant Wetlands.
2. Development is prohibited within Provincially Significant Wetlands in the Great
Lakes -St.Lawrence Region.New land uses are prohibited within Provincially ��
Significant Wetlands in the Great Lakes -St.Lawrence Region unless they do not:
a) result in a loss of Wetland Functions, and
b) create a subsequent demand for measures which will negatively impact on s
existing etland Functions, and
g
c) conflict with existing site specific wetland management practices, and
d) result in a loss of area of Wetland.
3. New land uses and Development are generally prohibited within Provincially Sig- r
nificant Wetlands in the Boreal Region. However,provided that an Environmen-
tal Impact Study is carried out by a proponent and approved by the Ministry of
Natural Resources, new Compatible Land Uses or Development may be permitted. '.
4. Despite Policy 2, on lands separating Wetland Areas within a Wetland Complex in
Provincially Significant Wetlands:
a) new Compatible Land Uses or Development may be permitted in the Great
Lakes-St.Lawrence Region if they do not result in a loss of area of Wetland.
b) new Compatible Land Uses or Development may be permitted in the Boreal
Region,
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5. On Adjacent Lands:
a) in the Great Lakes-St.Lawrence Region, new Compatible Land Uses or p '�
Development which do not result in a loss of area of Wetland may be
permitted.
b) in the Boreal Region, new Compatible Land Uses or Development may be
permitted.
6. New public utilitieslfacilities be located outside Provincially Significant Wetlands,
wherever possible. ;
When proposals to construct transportation, communication, sanitation and other
such public utilitieslfacilities in Provincially Significant Wetlands are being con- t
sidered under the provisions of the Environmental Assessment Act, the Ontario
Energy Board Act and other applicable legislation, the approval authorities shall
have regard to the policies of this Policy Statement and determine what measures
are to be taken to minimize negative impacts on Wetland Functions.
5
6 U
2. "Hydric soils"are characterized by an abundance of moisture, to the extent that the
soils are either inundated or dominated by water-tolerant vegetation.
"Hydrophytic plants" (hydrophytes) commonly grow in water or in water-logged
soil and are water-tolerant.
3. In Wetland Complexes, it is the whole complex that is evaluated and classified, not
the-individual Wetland Areas.
Additional copies are available from:
Publications Ontario, 880 Bay Street, Toronto for personal shopping. Out-of-town cus-
tomers write to Publications Ontario, 5th Floor, 880 Bay Street,Toronto M7A 1N8.
Telephone (416) 326-5300. Toll free long distance 1-800-668-9938. Hearing impaired
call (416) 325-3408 or toll free 1-800-268-7095. MasterCard and Visa accepted.
Cheques and.money orders payable to the Treasurer of Ontario. Prepayment required.
ISBN: 0-7729-8812-9
For further information contact any of the following offices:
MINISTRY OF NATURAL RESOURCES
Doug Hagan, Manager
Wildlife Policy Branch
6th Floor, ICI House
90 Sheppard Ave East
North York, Ontario
M2N 3A1
(416) 314-1051
MINISTRY OF MUNICIPAL AFFAIRS
Municipal Planning Policy Branch Plans Administration Branch- North and
777 Bay Street East
13th Floor 777 Bay Street
Toronto, Ontario 14th Floor
M5G 2E5 Toronto, Ontario
(416) 585-7130 M5G 2E5
(416) 585-6014
Plans Administration Branch - Central and Southwest
777 Bay Street
14th Floor
Toronto, Ontario
M5G 2E5
(416) 585-6014
599 61
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