Curbing urban sprawl by promoting greater density, improving public transit, and preserving farmland are critical to protecting the Greater Golden Horseshoe, says former Toronto mayor David Crombie.

In a sweeping 177-page report to the provincial government that makes 87 land-use recommendations, Crombie urged Queen’s Park to expand the 800,000 acre Greenbelt on the outskirts of the Greater Toronto Area.

“It is essential the province acts quickly in order to ensure the brightest future for everyone who lives and works in the region,” he told reporters Monday, adding it is “an historic opportunity” for Ontario.

“We’re all energized.”

Crombie’s panel, which examined Greenbelt Plan, the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan, the Niagara Escarpment Plan and the Greater Golden Horseshoe growth plan, said the Greenbelt must be strengthened and increased in size to tackle the “risk of ‘leapfrog’ development in areas … such as Simcoe and Brant Counties.”

The Greater Golden Horseshoe, which encompasses the vast swath around the GTA from Niagara Falls to Brantford to Kitchener-Waterloo to Orillia to Peterborough to Brighton, is “Canada’s largest economic engine,” said Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Ted McMeekin.

“I’m very excited about the recommendations,” said McMeekin, adding Crombie’s findings will help shape new land-use legislation expected next spring.

Queen’s Park estimates the region will grow from about 9 million people today to around 13.5 million by 2041 – a 50 per cent increase in a quarter century.

But Southern Ontario’s traditional way of handling such rapid growth — building sprawling subdivisions along highways — is no longer sustainable for many reasons.

“Ultimately, the amount of land needed to accommodate expected growth to 2041 will depend on the rate of intensification (infill in existing urban areas) and the density of new development in each municipality,” the report said.

“Fortunately, land consumption rates are decreasing, reflecting a trend towards building more compact communities.”

Crombie noted that while the region only contains 3.5 per cent of the province’s land area, it contains 42 per cent of the province’s best farmland, including the Niagara tender fruit and grape area and the Holland Marsh.

Burkhard Mausberg, chief executive of the Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation, said the report makes “thoughtful recommendations to strengthen the agriculture sector at a time when farmland is under increasing pressure from development.”

“Recent data shows that three quarters of the GTA’s most-productive farmland is under threat of being swallowed up by unsustainable growth,” said Mausberg.

Tim Gray, executive director of Environmental Defence, hailed the Crombie panel’s call for “greater urban densities that limit sprawl and enable better transit is a clear, smart solution.”

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“It sets the stage for the province to provide transit funding incentives that are contingent on growing more compactly and for Ontario to clarify to communities that land cannot be removed from the Greenbelt to ensure sprawl is slowed and stopped.”

Premier Kathleen Wynne has already promised $31.5 billion in new transit and transportation infrastructure over the next decade with about half of that earmarked for the GTA.

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