<html><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html charset=utf-8"></head><div><div><div class="ApplePlainTextBody" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><div id="div1703" class="act asset-mediaplayer" contenturl="/pagecontainer/1703/?mode=desktop&pskey=4689519800604047505283730&acid=A8151003" cid="79" pcid="1703_1463" primary="false" lpos="asset-mediaplayer" loaded="true" done="div1703" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; font-family: 'Open Sans'; width: 711px; float: left;"><div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" class=""><div theme-2="" ui-attr="pgallery" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); overflow: hidden;" class=""><component id="gl1703" class="communities gallery" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin-bottom: 0px; padding: 15px 20px;"><gallery function="media.gallery" class="media" style="box-sizing: border-box; width: 671px; display: block; visibility: visible; opacity: 1;"><div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;" class=""><slider style="box-sizing: border-box; white-space: nowrap; overflow: hidden; width: 671px; display: block;" class=""><slide ind="0" class="ac" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; vertical-align: top; width: 671px; height: 454px; text-align: center; z-index: 10;"><div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; height: 417px;" class=""></div><text style="box-sizing: border-box; padding: 8px 20px !important; display: block; white-space: normal !important; text-align: left !important;" class=""><div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 6px 0px 0px; font-size: 17px; line-height: 21px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'UniversLTStd Cn', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" class="">An aerial view of Kitchener. - Mathew McCarthy,Record staff </div></text></slide></slider></div></gallery></component></div></div></div><div id="div1785" class="asset-body-part1" loaded="true" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; font-family: 'Open Sans'; width: 711px; float: left;"><div article="" page="" text="" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 20px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); overflow: hidden; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;" class=""><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.1em; padding: 0px; font-family: 'UniversLTStd Cn', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 1.3em; font-size: 1.1em; clear: none; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">WATERLOO REGION — Waterloo Region should oppose a provincial pitch to expand the greenbelt unless it allows for the region's higher level of land and water protections to prevail, recommends a staff report released on Friday. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.1em; padding: 0px; font-family: 'UniversLTStd Cn', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 1.3em; font-size: 1.1em; clear: none; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">The report will go to the planning and works committee on Tuesday for approval and then be sent off to the province, which is conducting a study on the potential expansion of the greenbelt into the outer ring of the Greater Golden Horseshoe. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.1em; padding: 0px; font-family: 'UniversLTStd Cn', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 1.3em; font-size: 1.1em; clear: none; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">"Our position is, if you're going to do it, don't weaken our plan," said Ken Seiling, regional chair. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.1em; padding: 0px; font-family: 'UniversLTStd Cn', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 1.3em; font-size: 1.1em; clear: none; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">"What we have is actually stronger than the current greenbelt legislation in terms of groundwater protections, in terms of gravel extraction — and we're concerned about some of the level of mapping in the greenbelt legislation."</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.1em; padding: 0px; font-family: 'UniversLTStd Cn', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 1.3em; font-size: 1.1em; clear: none; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">In December, the province announced it would commence public consultation for a study to explore the expansion of the greenbelt into areas in the outer ring of the Greater Golden Horseshoe. The intention is to protect important water features by preventing urban development. The Greenbelt Plan was created in 2005 and includes the Oak Ridges Moraine and the Niagara Escarpment. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.1em; padding: 0px; font-family: 'UniversLTStd Cn', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 1.3em; font-size: 1.1em; clear: none; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">The study area includes the Waterloo and Paris/Galt Moraines, the Orangeville Moraine, Escarpment area moraines, Oro Moraine, Nottawasaga River Corridor, surface water and recharge areas in southeast Simcoe, and west of Minesing.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.1em; padding: 0px; font-family: 'UniversLTStd Cn', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 1.3em; font-size: 1.1em; clear: none; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">"The study area itself has been developed by looking at the location of important features for the protection of groundwater and surface water," said Anna MacDonald, manager of the Greater Golden Horseshoe and Greenbelt Section of the provincial planning policy branch. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.1em; padding: 0px; font-family: 'UniversLTStd Cn', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 1.3em; font-size: 1.1em; clear: none; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">"The three features that the government has, through the study area mapped, is the location of moraines and high concentrations of wetlands, cold water streams and their catchments." </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.1em; padding: 0px; font-family: 'UniversLTStd Cn', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 1.3em; font-size: 1.1em; clear: none; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">But Seiling said the province's initial greenbelt plan "got its roots" from Waterloo Region's policies. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.1em; padding: 0px; font-family: 'UniversLTStd Cn', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 1.3em; font-size: 1.1em; clear: none; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" class="">"They'd taken what we'd done here after 2003 and extrapolated it in southern Ontario, but we went a step further," he said. </p></div></div><div id="div2831" containergroup="true" cid="1" pcid="2831_2434" loaded="true" class="flexV override detail" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: 'Open Sans'; width: 711px; float: left; visibility: visible;"><div id="div1788" class="bigboxad2 borderB borderL act" contenturl="/pagecontainer/1788/?mode=desktop&pskey=4689519800604047505283730" cid="144" pcid="1788_1549" primary="false" lpos="bigboxad2" loaded="true" done="div1788" appeared="" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; -webkit-box-ordinal-group: 2; order: 2; flex: 1 1 auto; border: none; width: 711px; float: left;"><ads style="box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; text-align: center; margin-bottom: 0px; height: 255px; padding-right: 5px;" class=""><div id="Ad_1788" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-box-ordinal-group: 2; order: 2; flex: 1 1 auto; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" class=""><div id="CasaleDIV0.5224093480078248" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; width: 0px; height: 0px; position: absolute;" class=""></div><iframe src="https://ad.doubleclick.net/ddm/adi/N7372.3020245OATH.COM/B20614153.212529502;sz=300x250;dcopt=rcl;mtfIFPath=nofile;click=http://pr.ybp.yahoo.com/cj/cd/_AB1RXkacYr3Ht1ps9ROiyv60MDKmIrHezYNmB_VbNh-62HCfL-LIXKeWdP3xXQT6lsybMt3dZSjYVoIl-4P3d7XBsUmw00MKj_O7aWHzNUolGOBkQHif1V2Nv7NLkDf1lZLSyEKm6u-HWsvmsA5psYOV1zUtd3v/rurl/;ord=53364257586221872;dc_lat=;dc_rdid=;tag_for_child_directed_treatment=?" width="300" height="250" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" hspace="0" vspace="0" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" bordercolor="#000000" style="box-sizing: border-box;" class=""></iframe></div></ads></div><div id="div1789" class="youmightbeinterested-matrix1 act" contenturl="/pagecontainer/1789/?mode=desktop&pskey=4689519800604047505283730" cid="80" pcid="1789_1550" primary="false" lpos="youmightbeinterested-matrix1" loaded="true" done="div1789" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; -webkit-box-ordinal-group: 2; order: 2; flex: 1 1 auto; width: 711px; float: left;"><span lineup="ar_article_1_news" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 0px;" class=""></span><div id="matf1789" matrixf="" border="" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; height: 286px; border-width: 3px 1px 1px; border-style: solid; border-color: rgb(0, 0, 0) rgb(179, 179, 179) rgb(179, 179, 179);" class=""><header style="box-sizing: border-box; border-top-style: none; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 15px;" class=""></header></div></div></div></div></div></div></body></html>