January 28, 2023 Published in the Globe and Mail, February 5, 2023 Dear Editors, Ontario Premier Doug Ford claims that matters related to the GTA Greenbelt and land-use are “our jurisdiction.” The constitutional, legal and financial reality is a bit …
A Triumph of the Incumbents? Assessing the federal government’s choices on the road to decarbonization.
Published in Policy Options, January 25, 2023 Canada’s nuclear industry got an important pre-Christmas gift from the federal government in the form of the announcement of its decision not to conduct an impact assessment of a proposed small modular nuclear …
Has Ontario’s housing ‘plan’ been built on a foundation of evidentiary sand?
Mark Winfield (York) and Joe Castrilli (CELA) Published in the Conversation, January 22, 2023; the National Post, January 23, 2023, The Narwal, January 27, 2023 In late 2022, the Ontario government adopted Bill 23, the More Homes Built Faster Act. …
Re: Comments re: ERO number019-6163 – Proposed Planning Act and City of Toronto Act Changes (Schedules 9 and 1 of Bill 23 – the proposed More Homes Built Faster Act, 2022)
December 8, 2022 To: PlanningConsultation@ontario.ca From: Mark Winfield, Ph.D., Professor, Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change York University (marksw@yorku.ca) Re: Comments re: ERO number019-6163 – Proposed Planning Act and City of Toronto Act Changes (Schedules 9 and 1 of Bill …
Letter to the Editor – Globe and Mail Re: Ontario needs density, its getting sprawl
November 23 The Editors The Globe and Mail Toronto, Ontario Dear Editors, The Globe continues to treat Ontario’s housing task force report as if it should constitute the guiding light for the province’s approach to planning and development. The reality …
Doug Ford’s More Homes Built Faster Act (Bill 23) and the future of the Greater Toronto Region.
November 7, 2022 Mark Winfield Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change York University The Ford government’s More Homes Built Faster Act (Bill 23), introduced last week, is extraordinary in scope, dealing with virtually every dimension of planning and …
Darlington reactor announcement invites questions about Ontario’s high-cost, high-risk, and high-emissions electricity path.
Published in the Toronto Star and Hamilton Spectator, November 5, 2022 Last week Ontario Power Generation (OPG) announced its intention to proceed with a proposed new 300MW nuclear power reactor at the provincially owned utility’s Darlington site. The announcement …
Name-calling and simplistic narratives on development won’t make Toronto the ‘city that works’
Published in the Toronto Star, October 24, 2022 Discussions around growth and development in the Toronto region have taken some deeply simplistic and disappointing turns as we head towards this month’s municipal elections. Questions around how to manage growth …
Market ‘correction’ provides opportunity for GTA housing policy reset
August 22, 2022 Published in the Toronto Star August 25, 2022 A defining feature of discussions around housing in the Greater Toronto Area over the past few years has been the notion of an affordability ‘crisis,’ as housing prices rose …
Comments on proposed Frame for Clean Electricity Regulations
August 16, 2022 Environment and Climate Change Canada Hull Quebec Via E-mail: ecd-dec@ec.gc.ca Re: Proposed Frame for Clean Electricity Regulations Dear Environment and Climate Change Canada, I am writing to comment on the proposed Frame for Clean …