NFU-O NCC Survey Response

The National Farmers Union – Ontario’s responses to the National Capital Greenbelt Master Plan Survey are in bold. 

• What are your thoughts regarding the proposed draft vision for the Master Plan? What could be improved or clarified?

The proposed draft vision:

The National Capital Greenbelt is an urban park that protects vital ecosystems, sustains local agriculture and offers diverse experiences in the National Capital Region. It is stewarded as a public asset of national significance and is a living legacy for present and future generations.

The Greenbelt is one of the most significant pieces of publicly held agricultural land in the country, and has the potential to provide relief for various crises we face today, like next-generation farmland access, increasing food sovereignty, ecological protection and improvement, climate change resiliency, and food literacy/ educational enrichment.

The vision is a great starting point for increasing food sovereignty, ecological protection, interactions between the public and nature, and responsible public land management/ protection. However, it would be strengthened by restoring agriculture as its core mandate. For a decade the NCC has operated with a vision to promote sustainable agriculture on the greenbelt while doing little to act on that vision. It is essential that the plan goes beyond these words, and commits to actively cultivating a thriving agricultural sector that prioritizes food security, new entrant access, ecological farming practices, and economic viability for farmers. 

• The next four questions introduce the proposed guiding principles for the Master Plan. These principles identify the key areas of focus that will guide planning decisions and ensure the plan reflects shared values and long‑term objectives. What are your thoughts regarding the following draft guiding principle? What could be improved or clarified?

Draft guiding principle 1: Responsible Leadership

Strengthening proactive collaboration with federal, provincial, municipal and Indigenous partners, community organizations, and farmers is essential to ensure long-term stewardship.

To strengthen collaboration and responsible leadership, the Master Plan should:

• Clarify structural commitments to make collaboration meaningful and accountable. For example, it should explicitly define “proactive collaboration”, and outline how it will actively integrate stakeholders in co-designed processes, and formal advisory bodies with decision-making influence
• Mandate annual reporting on progress tied to Master Plan objectives that is accessible to tenants and the public, using measurable success indicators
• Disaggregate “farmers” as a category, to recognize the distinct relationships that agricultural tenants, new entrant farmers, Indigenous land stewards, and community food producers have with the Greenbelt lands
• Develop an agricultural tenants advisory panel for ongoing decision-making and feedback around farmland and residential leases. The principle should explicitly acknowledge that the NCC, as landlord of Greenbelt farm properties, has a responsibility to maintain fair, transparent, and equitable lease relationships with current and future tenants, including clear division of structural responsibilities, accessible dispute resolution, and consistent follow-through on commitments made to tenants
• Strengthen Indigenous partnerships to reflect the obligations under UNDRIP and the calls to action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, recognizing Indigenous food systems and land governance

• What are your thoughts regarding the following draft guiding principle? What could be improved or clarified?

Draft guiding principle 2: Ecological Integrity

Protecting the natural environment in the Greenbelt is essential to ensure the sustainability of important habitats and ecological links and provide important ecosystem services for the broader area. The health of these ecosystems is an intrinsic part of the Greenbelt.

To strengthen the Greenbelt’s ecological integrity work, the Greenbelt Master Plan should:

• Provide, monitor, report on, and enforce quantifiable targets, benchmarks and indicators for things like soil organic matter, species diversity, water quality, pollinator habitat, and carbon sequestration
• Explicitly acknowledge that farming practices on the Greenbelt directly impact ecological integrity, and systematically incentivize/ prioritize ecological farming operations like certified organic, regenerative, agroforestry, cover cropping, and phase out practices that degrade soil, water, and biodiversity. Lease terms and tenant selection should reflect this
• Expand the definition of ecological links to reference wildlife corridors, wetland buffers, riparian zone protection, and the Greenbelt’s role in the broader Ottawa River and regional watershed system
• Prioritize agri-ecological education and include a measurable commitment to educational programming like connecting schools, communities, and aspiring farmers to ecological farmer operations as a core public benefit of Greenbelt lands

• What are your thoughts regarding the following draft guiding principle? What could be improved or clarified?

Draft guiding principle 3: Agricultural Vitality

Agriculture remains a vital contributor to community well‑being and the Capital’s food security and sufficiency. It is supported by responsible, sustainable, diversified and climate‑ready models and farming systems that protect soils, water and ecosystem health. This principle recognizes the essential role of farmers, whose knowledge, livelihoods and financial viability are integral to sustaining the Greenbelt’s agricultural resources.

• Add a new entrant farmer strategy that explicitly commits to integrating a new entrant farmer pathway into Greenbelt land allocation, including incubator plots, mentorship-linked leases, transparent selection processes, and reduced-barrier entry points for new, young, and underrepresented farmers.
• Prioritize diversified and direct-market farming, like CSA operations, market gardens, seed farms, nurseries, and mixed operations that supply local food systems directly should be actively recruited and retained. Diversified farming models should be explicitly named as a strategic priority in relation to food sovereignty efforts
• Define “financial viability” and commit to increasing structural support for farmers. Provide a clear outline for fair and transparent lease rates, on-farm housing options, long-term lease security, and additional costs like tax or service payments. Additionally, provide a clear outline for infrastructure investment by the landowner (the NCC) in barns, drainage, energy systems, and buildings, and a clear division of structural responsibilities so farmers are not bearing costs that belong to the NCC. Finally, develop a fee reduction incentive strategy for things like soil health improvement, cost of living discounts, and gradual fee scales based on business growth to support new businesses/ farmers.
• Include a formal dispute resolution mechanism for agricultural tenants by establishing accessible, low-cost dispute resolution options that are separate from litigation, so farmers can resolve conflicts over lease terms, structural responsibilities, and operational decisions through a clear and fair process
• Strengthen the food sovereignty framing by providing and operating under a clear definition of food sovereignty – the right of communities to define their own food systems

• What are your thoughts regarding the following draft guiding principle? What could be improved or clarified?

Draft guiding principle 4: Capital Experience

The Greenbelt continues to serve residents and visitors as a distinctive Capital destination with meaningful, accessible and diverse experiences that connect people to nature, water, agriculture, culture and heritage while preserving its integrity.

• Clearly outline the regulations and boundaries between recreational and experiential land use and ecological or agricultural stewardship on the lands to avoid pressures on working farmland and sensitive habitats
• Expand the experience mandate to include commitments, responsive support, and infrastructure where needed for agri-tourism, farm visits, farmers markets, community-supported agriculture, and educational programming that builds food literacy and public appreciation for the farmers who work this land
• Explicitly recognize Indigenous cultural heritage, history, land relationships, and ongoing presence, and commit to co-developing Indigenous cultural programming and interpretive content with Indigenous communities, not on their behalf
• Ensure that capital experience development does not privatize this public space. Any commercial development, event programming, or experience infrastructure should be subject to public consultation and must not displace farming, restrict ecological access, or generate private profit from publicly held land

• What do you believe should be valued the most in the National Capital Greenbelt? Please rank the following options from most important to least important to you. (1-6, least to most important).

Protecting nature and wildlife 4

Providing places and opportunities for recreation and outdoor activities 2

Being a large, living green space 1

Supporting local farming and food production 6

Safeguarding cultural or heritage value 3

Other – Establish a clear pathway for new entrant farmers to access greenbelt land 5

• How concerned are you about the following issues and their impact on the future of the National Capital Greenbelt?

Very concerned

Somewhat concerned

Slightly concerned

Not at all concerned

Urban growth and land-use pressure

Climate change Very concerned

Infrastructure development Very concerned

Housing development Very concerned

• ***Which opportunities or experiences would you like to see expanded in the National Capital Greenbelt? (Select your top three.)

• Nature protection and restoration
• Access to water
• Recreation and trail connections
• Farming and local food access
• Education and interpretation

• To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement: There should be more public transit and active transportation options to access the Greenbelt.

• Strongly agree
• Agree
• Neutral
• Disagree
• Strongly disagree

• To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statements about agriculture in the National Capital Greenbelt?

Agree

Somewhat agree

Somewhat disagree

Disagree

• • Having access to locally produced food is important to me.

• Agree

• •  Agriculture in the Greenbelt provides additional benefits such as agritourism, heritage preservation, education or climate research.

• Agree