Comments from OFAC on the Draft Environmental Strategy
June 12, 2003

The City of Ottawa formulated an Environmental Strategy under the Official Plan to underline the importance of the City's natural environment and to promote sustainable development as the City grows into a much larger community. The Ottawa Forest Advisory Committee (OFAC) reviewed the Draft Environmental Strategy during the months of April and May. Provided within this report are OFAC's comments, concerns, and recommendations regarding the City of Ottawa's Environmental Strategy. We would like to stress the importance of developing a Forest Strategy as part of the Environmental Strategy. OFAC looks forward to a dialogue with City staff as the Environmental Strategy is further developed.

Principles, Goals, and Commitments

This section provides comments on ideas articulated in the Environmental Strategy that we believe will lead the City of Ottawa to be a sustainably developed community. Since the City's plan is to implement a sustainable development approach to urban and rural planning, we feel that these principles should remain in the Final Environmental Strategy. The seven guiding principles developed by the City through community consultations are well developed and make sense. The second principle, "A City of Distinct, Liveable Communities", especially recognizes the importance of an abundance of trees. OFAC believes that trees are necessary for a sustainably developed city. The seventh principle, "A Creative City Rich in Heritage, Unique in Identity", stated that the City must capitalize on the many overlooked opportunities for development in already built-up areas. We agree with this principle, but we also believe that it is important to retain pockets of greenspace and plant more trees. OFAC suggests that neo-traditional planning methods be used to provide denser development leaving space for forests and natural environments.

Four environmental goals were identified by the community to achieve a Green and Environmentally Sensitive City. OFAC agrees with these four goals, which promote the continued existence of natural environments. They all focus on the importance of our natural environments.

Six strategic commitments were identified under the four environmental goals. The City explained that they are the guiding principles for the Environmental Strategy. The fall-out plans from the Environmental Strategy (Greenspace Master Plan, Forest Strategy, Groundwater Management Strategy, Integrated Waste Management Plan, Air Quality & Climate Change Plan) will have specific and quantifiable targets. OFAC believes that these commitments are a good starting point for the development of specific targets. It should be stated within the Environmental Strategy that the fall-out plans would contain these specific targets, since the Environmental Strategy is fairly broad in nature.

Concerns

OFAC's main concern with regards to the Environmental Strategy lies in the method by which the goals and commitments will be achieved and how their performance will be measured. Perhaps further clarification will be given in later drafts of the Strategy. Although many studies and assessments will be carried out to assess the progress against these goals (Table 3: Key Actions required for the Strategic Environmental Commitments), there is little or no detail on how these goals are to be achieved. For example, under the fifth goal, "A Green and Environmentally Sensitive City", statements are made about maintaining environmental integrity and avoiding urban sprawl. OFAC supports this goal since urban sprawl is something that needs to be contained. OFAC would like to see statements made about how this is going to happen. Will this information be outlined in a fall-out plan? It is also stated within the Strategy that the environmental commitments will need to be considered in the planning and service delivery aspects of all programs throughout the Corporation. How will this be done?

Since the Environmental Strategy is fairly broad in nature, there is the concern that many specific targets that need to be formulated and accomplished will not be formed in the first place. A specific strategy could motivate everyone in the community to do their part and provide achievable outcomes (i.e. tree planting target - X number of trees to be planted each year).

Recommendations

OFAC would like to stress the importance of the Forest Strategy. The Forest Strategy is listed as one of the fall-out documents of the Environmental Strategy. It should remain a document separate from the Greenspace Master Plan. Maintaining and promoting forest cover is an integral part of sustainable development.

The January draft of the Official Plan included five components to the Forest Strategy: creation of a woodland preservation bylaw; naturalization of city owned greenspaces; development of community forest management plans; best management practices for city owned trees and forests; a leadership role in the promotion of urban forestry; guidelines for tree preservation and protection in review of development proposals, and promotion of good forestry practices among private landowners. These were repeated in different form in the final Official Plan, and should be retained as the core of the Forest Strategy.

Below are some recommendations regarding the Forest Strategy and the Environmental Strategy. We believe the City should pay more attention to:

• Protecting the natural basis of community and household food security and local food sustainability (the agricultural lands and allotment gardens)
• Buffering community forests by zoning abutting lands at their boundaries
• Giving special zoning to community forest through-roads such as Upper Dwyer Hill, to eliminate or prevent ribbon and strip development
• Actively managing the urban corridors, and re-greening them: Carling Ave, Richmond Rd, St. Laurent Blvd, etc.
• Implementation of the "Arterial Road Corridor Design Guidelines" (as described in the Official Plan) and creation of similar guidelines for other roadways.
• Consider instituting interpretation programs at the county forests and other major natural areas of significance (at a minimum, interpretive signs)
• Preparing an annual report, for public consumption on the successes in natural areas of significance
• Pro-actively addressing the rapidly changing climate - water and energy conservation, aggressively greening the city, minimization of the city "heat island effect" with specific measures to reduce heat retention

Specific recommendations that speak directly to what was written in the Draft Environmental Strategy include the following:

• Define greenspace: greenspace is a general definition, which appears to be all inclusive, and lumps soccer fields and forests together. We have proposed in the past that the City distinguish between 'greenlands' and greenspace and the term greenlands define natural areas such as forests, and that greenlands be identified based upon principles of ecology - considerations of related functions, attributes and linkages, so basically natural environment areas such as forests, wetlands, and corridors which adjoin otherwise fragmented and isolated areas
• State the specific targets under the strategic commitments or refer to the fall-out plan that contains the specific targets under the environmental commitments.
• State what will be done with the 28% forest cover, please state where this number came from, and does this number include farm land which is viably important to the City as well?
• Environmental Issue, Climate change: increase the tree and shrub population by 50%. Shrubs can contribute up to 30% of the oxygen and sequester 30% of carbon dioxide in the urban forest. If a tree is not appropriate for a spot, plant a shrub.
• Environmental Issue, Biodiversity: ensure urban forests maintain a diversity of native plants.
• Environmental Issue, Soil Decline and Erosion: increase forest cover to reduce soil erosion.
• Environmental Issue, Forest Health: ideas include but are not limited to; parking lots with a bench and two trees, narrower streets for more space for trees (alternate design standards for roads), roof gardens (new buildings should be designed with roof gardens in mind), use of properly designed tree wells with irrigation in the urban core.
• Environmental Issue, Urban Sprawl: use neo-traditional urban planning methods.