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economist suntyibune agriculture saturday feb 12 2000 farmers environmentalists and ratepayers fight for farmland preservation file photorob alary don chapman right shown with his son joe says residents must have a prominent voice when it comes to land development in the gta planning before paving by joan ransberry staff writer public pressure is being sought in the battle to plan before paving the development of lands in the greater toronto area is the driving force behind the estab lishment of a large lobby group we are squandering valuable lands paving our green areas and putting housing in locations that result in a vast cost to the province said john holtrop spokesperson for the greater toronto area land use planning coalition there is no planning no logic and no sense to the way develop ment is taking place said holtrop a georgina farmer the coalition made up of more than 30 groups is launching a cam paign to stimulate citizen and com- munity pressure on legislators the group wants the provincial govern ment to adopt a strategy for the development and protection of lands within the gta a web site www gtalupccom will make it easy for people to get informed and involved holtrop said through the site users can send a message to their mpr it also provides instruction and materials for groups wanting to circulate peti tions an immediate step should be a there is no planning no logic and no sense to the way development is taking place john holtrop farmer and lobby group spokesperson moratorium on the oak ridges moraine and the prime farmland around it holtrop said its an obvious step and if done would gain the harris government all sorts of applause organizations joining the coali tion include the south lake simcoe naturalists halton region federation of agriculture save the oak ridges moraine storm the citizens alliance of uxbridge the coalition for a better georgina lake simcoe marine heritage the lakewatch society jacksons point west ratepayers association as well individuals from queensville king township richmond hill markham stouffville and newmarket are taking an active part in the new group there is a common ground between the agricultural communi ty and the environmentalconser vation movement storm execu tive director debbe crandall said all of us are concerned about the fate of the land in particular we have to make people realize the value of our farmland the groups mission statement emphasizes the need to recognize the components within the gta and their interdependence includ ing the oak ridges moraine the viable agricultural lands green space farmlands woodlands wet lands and rural communities there is a recognition of the need for economic development including necessary infrastructure said holtrop a cash crop farmer who operates a family farm queensville vegetable farmer don chapman said the grassroots effort must have a distinct and prominent voice when it comes to proposed land development when the housing projects come up at the municipal level of government the people need to be given a better chance to be heard he said we definitely- need more grassroots input chapman grows 900 acres of vegetables and is passionate about protecting farmland i dont want the farm issue to be lost in the shuf fle the loss of prime farmland is too important an issue much of the local farmland has already been lost to urban develop ment in the past two decades york region lost a total of 50000 acrejf of prime land to urbanization in 1976 york had about 2000 farms the number has dwindled toil200 holtrop said the future of farming is very much at risk and more important ly food production is in jeopardy he said if farms disappear so will food he added however the coalition is not antidevelopment holtrop said we simply want a logical and planned balance between develop ment and protection right now there is no balance farmlands and environmentally sensitive areas like the oak ridges moraine are being sacrificed members of the new group are convinced that land use and plan ning seldom go hand in hand no thought is being given to the future holtrop said there are legitimate needs for development and housing but there should be in areas defined within a considered plan for more information on the gta land use planning coalition call debbe crandall at 905 8803465 wynn walters at 905 649- 3330 john holtrop at 905 4762038 or peter lambrick at 905 8549457 regional news digest whats happening 50s and 60s dance saturday feb 198 pm college restaurant and bar 7880keelestathwy7 alan direnfeld of the windy ridge band lynn ziraldo of the learning disabilities association and student luke frazer are set to rock the night away in benefit of the lda tickets are 30 call 905 8847933 unsolved crash recreated york regional police returned to the scene of an unsolved hit and run last friday night in a bid to find the driver who killed a pedestrian two years ago police were stopping vehicles on hwy 27 south of rutherford road r hoping to speak with someone who may remember a helpful detail surrounding the feb 11 1998 hit and run 7 we recovered very little evi- derieejfrbm the scene at the time staffsgt ai ledger said francesco decicco 62 of brampton was walking south on hwy 27 at about 8 pm after his car had broken down when he was struck anyone with information should contact const dave mitchell at 8811221 ext 7703 board studies mileage hi a year after they were sup posed to examined theissue 1 public school board trustees are to decide in march whether to give themselves a hike in their mileage expenses trustees and board employ ees get 30 cents for every kilo metre they drive on board busi ness policy dictates officials are to examine issues such as mileage expenses every five years trustees last looked over their expenses six years ago officials are to ask parents and students what they think about an increase 1 1 chrysler jeep i 8280 woodbine ave markham 3- o s3 ftl 09 c jo 0 8280 highway 7 south of hwy 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