Lakeshore Council is set to consider the next steps when it comes to the future of greenhouse developments in the municipality. A report going before the meeting asks the mayor to send a letter to the Minister of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs outlining the Council's ongoing concerns with large-scale greenhouse development.
Four options on how to respond are up for consideration, although the administration is recommending Option 2, which calls for revisions to Official Plan policies, zoning bylaw regulations pertaining to large-scale greenhouse facilities, and design guidelines for large-scale greenhouse facilities, with a goal of tightening regulations around their development.
Option 2 takes into consideration that greenhouse operations are considered by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs as farm use, so under provincial regulations, it would be difficult for the municipality to ban them.
Lakeshore mayor Tracey Bailey would prefer Option 4, which would prohibit greenhouse operations but knowing that may not be successful, she also believes tougher regulations need to be developed now before an interim control bylaw expires. "I think we need to take a strong stance here and say that 'we don't want them at all!' It's one thing just to say we won't be able to. I think we need an outcome by way of a letter coming back to us indicating that we can't," she says.
Read the complete article at www.iheartradio.ca.