Pickering Airport: Threat to Greenspace
In the 1970's, the government expropriated over 18,000 hectares of land in North Pickering to build a new airport and city (Seaton). These plans met strong opposition and were defeated by citizens who were concerned about the implications of paving over prime greenspace for an unnecessary new development and airport. Approximately 12,000 hectares of this land are still publicly owned, and 3,000 hectares were resold to farmers to form the Duffins Agricultural Preserve. Now, over 30 years later, plans to build a new airport and housing development are once again being pushed forward at an alarming pace, putting key greenspace, prime agricultural land, natural heritage properties, and wildlife habitat at risk.

An Integral Resource At Risk
The Airport and Seaton lands form a key connection between the Oak Ridges Moraine and Lake Ontario, as well as a wildlife corridor which connects the Rouge Park to the Greenbelt. These lands make up some of the last remaining habitat for wildlife species in the GTA. Many of the species that reside in the Airport and Seaton lands are considered rare, threatened, or endangered, such as the Hooded Warbler, Barn Owl, Loggerhead Shrike, and Red Shouldered Hawk. The area also contains the Duffins watershed, one of the healthiest coldwater ecosystems in Canada. This watershed is an integral recharge area for groundwater flowing into Lake Ontario. The lands themselves act as the largest green house gas sponge in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Furthermore, the Airport and Seaton lands form the largest unpaved parcel of land with the highest quality class of agricultural soil from Toronto to Halifax, with more growing days than anywhere else in Canada. This represents a key opportunity for near-urban food production. These invaluable public lands clearly need to be preserved in their current state.  

The New Pickering Airport Proposal

The Pickering Airport proposal is once again being pushed forward by the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA), despite the fact that design capacity of existing airports in the GTA today can satisfy even the most optimistic passenger forecasts up until at least 2032. The initial plans for Pickering are to build a small commuter airport, requiring 700 hectares. However, the GTAA is trying to grab 11,600 hectares of publicly owned land, which could become Canada’s largest air cargo depot. This would be an environmental disaster for the Pickering area. While the initial plan is still at the proposal stage, tenants who have been residing on these lands for over 30 years are already being evicted, and historic homes are being bulldozed. Accompanying the Pickering airport plans is the looming approval of a so-called 'environmentally friendly' development to support the airport. The Seaton developments, which will pave over 55% of a 6,000 hectare parcel of greenspace south of the proposed airport lands, would create 70,000 new homes on what is currently forest and farmland.

The Pickering Airport: Environmental Impacts

Watersheds:
Runoff from the proposed Pickering Airport would introduce harmful chemicals into the surrounding watershed, which would eventually make their way into our drinking water in Lake Ontario. Airports are notorious polluters: Pearson International discharges chemicals from de-icing in amounts hundreds of times in excess of federal guidelines. This has a similar effect as dumping the untreated sewage of 35,000 to 40,000 people into local watersheds. In addition to issues relating to runoff, paving over greenspace is also extremely damaging. The Seaton developments will boost impervious cover near the Duffins Creek above 10%, which is the threshold at which permanent damage to the watershed begins to occur.

Agricultural land:
As a result of the reintroduction of these plans, the Duffins Agricultural preserve, a 3,000 hectare parcel of agricultural land, is being threatened. As one of the largest areas of Canada’s best soils, it is integral that these lands not be paved over. The loss of this farmland represents the loss of the best opportunity for near-urban food production for the GTA. This lost opportunity would increase our dependence on international food trade, resulting in emissions from transport of food, lower-quality foods travelling longer distances to the market, and lost jobs in the agricultural sector in Canada.

Wildlife:
The proposed developments will pave over vital habitat for endangered species. Of particular importance is the proposed airport’s close proximity to the Rouge Park, a wildlife preserve home to 224 bird and 28 mammal species, many of which are considered rare, endangered, or threatened. The goal of airport wildlife management is to eliminate or reduce the carrying capacity of habitat for species hazardous to aviation, including many species found in the Rouge Park. Other wildlife removal practices include trapping, shooting, and poisoning of 'problem species.' It is extremely troubling that wildlife in Rouge Park would have to cross through Pickering Airport lands -- and primary flight paths -- to reach the Greenbelt. This poses a serious threat both to wildlife and to commuters using the airport.  

Sprawl vs. Smart Growth:
The Seaton developments have been heralded as a new model for eco-friendly developments because the community’s homes will all be within 5 minutes of transit, will contain extensive bicycle paths, and will use renewable energies. While these are excellent measures that should be included in all developments, they do not erase the fact that the development plans are in direct contradiction with the province’s Smart-Growth principles. Smart-Growth is about intensifying current developments, raising density targets, and expanding existing infrastructure, not paving over protected forest, farmland, and sensitive recharge areas, and using public dollars to extend new infrastructure to outlying areas. The Seaton development is a long distance from other developed areas, and will have a density of 35 people per hectare, embarrassingly short of the provincial targets of 50 per hectare. The reality is that Seaton is not a new model for enviro-friendly development, but is instead just a cleverly disguised version of suburban sprawl.

A Better Alternative:
The Hamilton International AirportHamilton officials and the Hamilton International Airport have been urging the federal government to scrap the Pickering Airport development in favour of putting more resources into the Hamilton International Airport as a more viable secondary Airport for Southern Ontario. The Ontario Government has identified Hamilton as a growth opportunity in its “Places to Grow” document, meaning that funding will flow towards Hamilton for transportation options like the airport. Transportation, demographic, and economic trends all point to Hamilton as a better location for an airport than one east of Toronto. Commitments have been made to Smart-Growth principles, and our governments should be seeking opportunities to expand on existing infrastructure in areas that are being intensified, as opposed to paving over greenspace for unnecessary new infrastructure!

Take Action!

These plans were defeated once by concerned citizens like you, so please take a few moments to contact the Prime Minister and Premier and let them know that a bad idea 35 years ago is an even worse idea now!

• The GTA does not require a new airport or a sprawling new suburb to support it.
• The Airport and Seaton lands are an invaluable public resource, as a heritage site, a recharge area for our drinking water, high quality near-urban farmland, and a haven for endangered wildlife species.
• These areas form a key connection linking the Oak Ridges Moraine, Rouge Park, and Lake Ontario, and must be protected as part of Ontario's Greenbelt.
• Resources should be put towards the Hamilton International Airport as a much better, Smart-Growth oriented alternative.

Direct your comments to:

Provincial:  

Premier of Ontario
 Legislative Bldg, Room 28
 Queens Park, Toronto, ON  M7A 1A1
 Fax: 416-325-9895
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Or submit your comments through the Premier's website:
https://www.premier.gov.on.ca/feedback/default.asp

Federal:          

Office of the Prime Minister
80 Wellington Street   
Ottawa, ON  K1A 0A2
Fax: 613-941-6900    

For more information, contact Josh Kohler, Earthroots Southern Ontario campaigner at 416-599-0152 x14 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

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