Glengarry Landowners Activities 2009

In January members of the GLA attended a presentation on the new Endangered Species Act. The speaker gave her presentation, and then learned a few salient points herself, about the ESA. There is no compensation for the landowner whose land use becomes restricted because of the presence of an endangered species, or its habitat, or the habitat of an extirpated species. Rural residents and farmers comprise less than 15% of Ontario's population. Yet this provincial government expects that this 15% of the population should foot the bill for the ESA, because the remaining 85% "can't afford to pay compensation." That lack of logic is astounding! Fines have increased to $250,000.00 for an individual, and $1 million for a corporation, when the habitat of an endangered species or the species itself is destroyed. The fines will be levied whether the destruction is intentional OR accidental.

January 10th saw the founding meeting of the Muskoka Landowners' Association. The MLA was created when the local municipality proposed a tree cutting by-law. The trees are owned by the landowner, not the public. Once again, private property is perceived as publicly owned. This is an infringement of property rights.

January 20th heralded the founding meeting of the Lambton-Middlesex LA. At this meeting The OLA unveiled its plan of action against the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) to protest the unfair Property Assessment Notices that were recently sent to all Ontario landowners. The Lambton-Middlesex LA is the 22nd county chapter of the OLA.

Shawn McRae, a Glengarry farmer, sits on the Raisin Region/South Nation Source Water Protection Committee. Shawn is one of many area landowners worried that their privately owned wood lots are about to be regulated by the RRCA through the Natural Heritage Strategy (NHS). The Stage 4 report of the NHS states that development and site alteration should be prohibited on significant wetlands, woodlands, valley lands, wildlife habitat and areas of natural and scientific interest, "unless it has been demonstrated there will be no negative impacts on the natural features and their ecological functions." The RRCA has decided not to become involved when there is a development application for a site alteration locally.

In February The Ministry of the Environment asked the Raisin-South Nation Source Protection Committee to hold meetings for public consultation, concerning the allocation of grants for voluntary stewardship projects immediately adjacent to municipal intakes and wellheads. These stewardship grants were described as "trinkets and beads" by Ian Cumming. Once again, landowners reiterated the same message,: Fair and timely compensation must be paid to landowners who lose the use of their land when it falls within the areas affected by the Clean Water Act.

For more information about Landowner activities, you may do the following:
  1. Visit the OLA website: RuralRevolution.com
  2. You may subscribe to the magazine, The Landowner, via the internet: Landowner Magazine The Landowner is a magazine for rural people. It features a wide range of topics that are not often covered in mainstream newspapers. The words on the cover sum up its focus: "Rural Politics, Rural Businesses and Rural Families".


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