Natural Heritage Study – Final Stage of the Project

After considering feedback received during the Spring 2026 consultation, the Natural Heritage Study is now entering the final stage of the project. The final version of the Natural Heritage Study, together with the Technical Report and natural heritage system mapping, will be presented to Planning Committee on December 17, 2026 at 6 pm in City Hall Council Chambers (located at 216 Ontario Street). The Natural Heritage Study is intended to inform the City’s new Official Plan, and marks an important milestone in the development of an updated and comprehensive approach to natural heritage planning.

The Spring 2026 consultation provided an important opportunity for residents, landowners, community organizations, environmental groups, the development community, and indigenous nations to review the draft materials and identify areas for consideration. The City received a wide array of feedback during this consultation period, many of which were conflicting and represent opposing sides of complicated and important issues. All feedback received was reviewed and carefully considered by the project team as part of the final modifications to the Natural Heritage Study components. A summary of modifications to the Natural Heritage Study resulting from the Spring 2026 consultation is available.

The final version of the Natural Heritage Study is available for review ahead of the December 17, 2026 Planning Committee meeting:

Natural Heritage Study: provides considerations for the policy and mapping framework to inform the City’s natural heritage system within the new Official Plan. The study is intended to provide the City with a variety of tools and options to select from to establish the municipal approach to protecting the natural heritage system, which will need to balance the other aspects of community planning outlined in the Provincial Planning Statement 2024 and the broader growth strategy of the City’s new Official Plan.
Appendix 1: Technical Report: outlines the mapped and unmapped components of the natural heritage system and outlines the criteria used to identify each feature and the methodology applied to determine the mapped components. Appendices to the Technical Report are available upon request.
Appendix 2: Summary of Public Consultation and Open House #1: summarizes and responds to the comments received during the Summer 2025 consultation on the initial drafts of the Technical Report and natural heritage system mapping.
Appendix 3: Summary of Public Consultation and Open House #2: summarizes and responds to the comments received during the Spring 2026 consultation on the draft Natural Heritage Study and revised versions of the Technical Report and natural heritage system mapping.
Natural Heritage System Mapping: Please use this link to view the recommended natural heritage system mapping, which has been prepared as a desktop exercise with the intention of enabling refinements supported by ground-truthed information reviewed and approved by the City as part of future development applications, watershed plans or similar initiatives.

We would like to thank everyone who participated in the consultation process and contributed their time, expertise, and perspectives. The breadth of feedback received throughout the project has contributed meaningfully to the final documents and helped ensure that the recommendations reflect the range of interests and considerations associated with natural heritage planning.