Reasons to protect the Greenbelt.

Google: "Greenbelt NCC Boy Scouts." December 2009. 107 pages. "The 1950 plan for the National Capital, The Greber Report." and "The NCC Annual Report" on December 28, 2022. 

•  Decisions made about the future of the Greenbelt directly affect livelihoods and the day-to-day living of residents of Ottawa and beyond. (page 5)
• The Greenbelt is a crescent shaped band of publicly owned land including farms, forests, wetlands and federal campuses supporting research and defence initiatives. Approximately 30% is comprised of agricultural lands in close proximity to the urban centre of Ottawa and its satellite communities. 
• Half of the Greenbelt consists of a system of significant features that provide ecological functions that are important to the long-term health of the National Capital Region and beyond. These lands and their associated views also provide numerous scenic gateways into the Nation's Capital, an abundance of passive recreational opportunities, and represent a network of the rural landscapes of which Canadians can be  proud. (page 6)
• Recognize the role of this greenspace in psychological health and stress reduction. (page 14)
• Protect the Greenbelt for future generations.
• The top three places identified were Green's Creek, Mer Bleue and Stony Swamp, while the three favourite activities were walking and hiking, cycling and cross-country skiing. (page 19)
• Do not permit development on the property. (page 19)
• Protect the Green's Creek Conservation Area.
• 2067 Greenbelt Vision Statement: "The Greenbelt will forever protect natural systems, agriculture and opportunities for outdoor recreation and will inspire Canadians and contribute to the sustainability and quality of life in Canada's Capital Region." (The 1950 Plan for the National Capital-The Greber Report- Page 53/196)
• One of the mandates of the National Capital Commission: "Managing, conserving and protecting NCC assets (including Gatineau Park, the Greenbelt, urban parks, real property and other assets including bridges, pathways and parkways." (NCC Annual Report, December 28, 2022, page 39/116.)   

 House of Commons Ottawa November 3, 1981 Mr. Jean-Robert Gauthier, Ottawa-Vanier, Liberal: "Madame Speaker, my question is directed to the Minister of Public Works who is responsible for the National Capital Commission. Last week, Ottawa newspapers headlined that the NCC was prepared to give up NCC land in the Greenbelt, the untouchable zone surrounding the National Capital." 

• Leader of the Opposition Pierre Poilievre: "Canada can build more homes without getting rid of Greenbelts." From an interview with Josh Pringle and Bill Carroll, CFRA Morning Rush, August 23, 2023. 
• The Greenbelt's greatest asset is that it is there. Urbanization is the greatest long-term threat. The focus should be more towards the property being national treasure. (page 51/107)

Valued Natural Ecosystems & Habitats:

1.Shirleys Bay - Connaught, Crystal Bay

2.Stoney Swamp

3. Pinhey Forest

4. Black Rapids Creek

5. Lester Wetland

6. Pine Grove Forest

7. Mer Bleue Bog

8. Chapel Hill's North Forest

9. Green's Creek (the information is from "Canada's Capital Greenbelt Master Plan" NCC, November 2013, page 72/196)

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Threats to the greenspace:

• Government of Canada departments, for example the National Capital Commission and Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. The NCC has the power to remove designations that protect federal properties---National Interest Land Mass; Historic Site of Canada; Classified Federal Heritage Building; Recognized Federal Heritage Building; Capital Park; Waterfront Open Space...From 1973 until 1979 Bill Teron was the head of the CMHC. Mr. Teron wanted "a million people" to live on the Greenbelt.
• The City of Ottawa wants 1/4 of the land, or 13,700 acres.
• Misguided generosity.
• Infrastructure-Greenbank Road that runs through the property will be "realigned". Does that mean it will be widened? What is going on near the Wesley Clover Equestrian Park? A boulevard was constructed on Mer Bleue.
• Section 10 (2) of the National Capital Act gives the NCC the right to "sell, grant, convey, lease or otherwise dispose of or make available to any person any property, subject to such conditions and limitations as it considers necessary or desirable." Senator Noel Kinsella believed that the National Capital Act is outdated (it was created during the John Diefenbaker era); and Senator Kinsella felt that federal public land should be owned by the citizens of Canada. (The Senate investigated the Moffat Farm sale in 2002.)