Canada has lost one of its greatest environmental champions. We have all lost a gentle giant for natural heritage and conservation. In 1978, Ron was one of the founders of the Coalition on the Niagara Escarpment (CONE) and his vision and unrelenting commitment led to the adoption in 1985 of the Niagara Escarpment Plan, Canada’s first large-scale environmental land use plan. Read more

On June 12, NEF President Rob Leverty presented, at a public meeting, the highlights of our written submission opposing the housing development proposed for the lower Talisman lands in the Beaver Valley, Grey County. We emphasized the 50+-year history of successful efforts to protect the natural corridor of the valley and the water quality of the Beaver River. Read more

The Beaver Valley Development Group has filed an application with the Municipality of Grey Highlands for 370 housing units on the lowest parcel of land (below the escarpment slope) that was part of the former Talisman ski resort in the Beaver Valley, Grey County. The Niagara Escarpment Foundation is working with the Escarpment Corridor Alliance to conduct research about and promote a greener future for the Talisman property, one that protects the continuous natural corridor of the Niagara Escarpment in the valley. Read more

UNESCO requires that the Biosphere designation for the Niagara Escarpment, as for all other Biospheres around the world, be reviewed every 10 years, the last review having been completed in 2014. Two key UNESCO recommendations flowing from the 2014 review were that the central convenor of the Biosphere transition away from a government agency (the Niagara Escarpment Commission) to a community-based organization; and that there be more Indigenous community involvement in the leadership/governance of the Biosphere than had been the case until then. Read more

The Niagara Escarpment Foundation is generally very supportive of the proposed changes to the NEPDA in Bill 139. These amendments seek to modernize several provisions of the Act as well as increase enforcement powers in the Act, such as expanding the kinds of officials who can enforce the Act and enhancing powers of entry to property and buildings to check on whether provisions of (for example) Niagara Escarpment Commission development permits are being met. Read more

A broad coalition of civil society organizations, including the Niagara Escarpment Foundation, is calling on Queen’s Park to abandon proposed changes to Ontario’s land use planning laws that would drastically harm Ontario’s agricultural sector and natural habitats while wasting limited construction and development resources building housing in the wrong places. Read more

The Ontario government proposes to remove 7,400 acres from the Greenbelt in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton area ostensibly to provide more land to build housing to help address the current housing crisis.

While none of the proposed removals of farmlands and natural areas are in the Niagara Escarpment portion of the Greenbelt, the proposal sets a very dangerous precedent and must be stopped.

The Niagara Escarpment Foundation supports the position statement of the Ontario Greenbelt Alliance on the proposed land removals. Read more

The Niagara Escarpment Foundation has been invited to send a representative to this public engagement group hosted on behalf of the Beaver Valley Development Group (BVDG), the new developer-owners of the formerly municipally-owned lands at Talisman in the Beaver Valley.

In this position statement, we explain our reasons for declining the invitation and offer our assistance for an alternative, environment-first path to protect these lands. This statement has been provided to The Planning Partnership, the public engagement consultants for the BVDG. Read more

In spite of a groundswell of public opposition over the past year to the sale of municipally owned lands at the former Talisman Resort in the Beaver Valley, today the Municipality of Grey Highlands decided that it will close the deal to sell its lands to Westway Capital Inc. no later than May 25. Closing of the sale represents a major step backward for Niagara Escarpment protection. The Niagara Escarpment Foundation presented its views to Council today. Read more

Today, the Council of the Municipality of Grey Highlands unanimously passed a bylaw to finalize the sale of their municipally owned Talisman lands (see May 11, July 30 & December 16, 2021 updates). The sale of the municipality’s two parcels to Westway Capital Inc. should be viewed a major step backward for Escarpment protection. Read more

The municipally owned Talisman lands (see May 11 and July 30 updates) remain in municipal hands. The proposed Municipality of Grey Highlands sale of their two land parcels to Westway Capital remains in a “due diligence” period. The Beaver Valley community has been very active over the past few months, primarily in strong opposition to the proposed municipal sale. Read more

The Municipality of Grey Highlands has just announced the conditional sale to Westway Capital of the two parcels of land owned by the municipality at the former Talisman ski resort in the Beaver Valley. The Niagara Escarpment Foundation strenuously opposes this sale, urges Grey Highlands to abandon the sale, and calls on the municipality to consider all conservation-first proposals for the property. Read more

The Municipality of Grey Highlands has an historic opportunity to protect the lands of the former Talisman ski resort in the Beaver Valley instead of facilitating re-development. Read the Niagara Escarpment Foundation’s letter to Grey Highlands encouraging a no-development, ecological option for the Talisman lands. Read more