Land Trusts and Stewardship
Although the different approaches to greenlands acquisition and stewardship that are currently being undertaken in Central Ontario generally lead to positive results, far more could be accomplished if a central body was responsible for these initiatives. Given that the real estate value of Central Ontario's core greenlands is much higher than the money available for their acquisition, consideration should be given to the idea of pooling both the financial resources and the collective expertise within both government and non-government organizations.
Recommendation #9: The Province should take a leadership role in the administration and co-ordination of greenlands acquisition and stewardship. This could include expansion of the Managed Forest Tax Incentive Program and Conservation Land Tax rebate programs to provide further inducements to landowners to protect and manage privately-owned greenlands. One of the potential negative consequences of this action is that it may meet with some resistance from municipalities, who stand to lose some much needed tax revenue if the rebate program is expanded.
Recommendation #10: The Province should expand the Natural Heritage policies of the PPS to promote the protection of ANSIs beyond those that have merely been identified as Provincially Significant. Under the current system, only the best examples in an MNR Site District are protected and many other fine examples worthy of protection are not included.