Save the Oak Ridges Moraine
Encyclopedia
Save the Oak Ridges Moraine (STORM) is a coalition of 25 citizen's groups and individuals dedicated to preserving the ecologically sensitive Oak Ridges Moraine
in Ontario
, Canada
. Formed in 1989, its primary goal has been to lobby the Government of Ontario to create legislation to protect the moraine.
The coalition was founded when two groups (one from Peterborough
that was supporting a group in Durham Region
, and one in King Township
) discovered that they had the same name (STORM), and networked with other local groups to organize a first coalition meeting. The brief that the Peterborough group prepared had a significant impact on the Environmental Assessment Advisory Committee who held a hearing to hear perspectives on the disputed land use proposal near Kendall in Durham.
STORM has played an important role in triggering political action to preserve the Oak Ridges Moraine
. Soon after its formation, it raised the profile of the Moraine at both the local and provincial levels, causing the provincial government to declare an "expression of provincial interest" in the Moraine in 1990.
STORM was appointed as a member of the government-sponsored Oak Ridges Moraine Technical Working Committee. In addition to STORM, membership on the committee included: Regional Municipalities of Durham, Peel and York, MNR, MMAH, MOE, Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA), Ganaraska Region Conservation Authority (GRCA), Conservation Council of Ontario (CCO), Urban Development Institute (UDI), Aggregate Producers Association of Ontario (APAO), and Federation of Ontario Naturalists (FON). The committee operated from 1991 - 1994. Its task was to develop a long-term preservation strategy for the moraine. The committee's final report, submitted to the province in 1994, was never implemented. Instead, the province expanded the powers of the municipalities in administration of the lands that were the subject of the committee's report.
Oak Ridges Moraine
The Oak Ridges Moraine is an ecologically important geological landform in the Mixedwood Plains of south-central Ontario, Canada. The moraine covers a geographic area of between Caledon and Rice Lake, near Peterborough...
in Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Formed in 1989, its primary goal has been to lobby the Government of Ontario to create legislation to protect the moraine.
The coalition was founded when two groups (one from Peterborough
Peterborough, Ontario
Peterborough is a city on the Otonabee River in southern Ontario, Canada, 125 kilometres northeast of Toronto. The population of the City of Peterborough was 74,898 as of the 2006 census, while the census metropolitan area has a population of 121,428 as of a 2009 estimate. It presently ranks...
that was supporting a group in Durham Region
Regional Municipality of Durham, Ontario
The Regional Municipality of Durham, informally referred to as Durham Region, is a regional municipality located in Southern Ontario east of Toronto, Ontario. It has an area of approximately 2,500 square kilometres. Durham Region is considered part of the Greater Toronto Area, with the communities...
, and one in King Township
King, Ontario
King is a township in York Region north of Toronto, within the Greater Toronto Area in Ontario, Canada.The rolling hills of the Oak Ridges Moraine are the most prominent visible geographical feature of King. The Holland Marsh, considered to be Ontario's "vegetable basket", straddles King Township...
) discovered that they had the same name (STORM), and networked with other local groups to organize a first coalition meeting. The brief that the Peterborough group prepared had a significant impact on the Environmental Assessment Advisory Committee who held a hearing to hear perspectives on the disputed land use proposal near Kendall in Durham.
STORM has played an important role in triggering political action to preserve the Oak Ridges Moraine
Politics of the Oak Ridges Moraine
The politics of the Oak Ridges Moraine in southern Ontario, Canada, have centred on the question of how to preserve this extensive natural resource that is increasingly threatened by human modification...
. Soon after its formation, it raised the profile of the Moraine at both the local and provincial levels, causing the provincial government to declare an "expression of provincial interest" in the Moraine in 1990.
STORM was appointed as a member of the government-sponsored Oak Ridges Moraine Technical Working Committee. In addition to STORM, membership on the committee included: Regional Municipalities of Durham, Peel and York, MNR, MMAH, MOE, Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA), Ganaraska Region Conservation Authority (GRCA), Conservation Council of Ontario (CCO), Urban Development Institute (UDI), Aggregate Producers Association of Ontario (APAO), and Federation of Ontario Naturalists (FON). The committee operated from 1991 - 1994. Its task was to develop a long-term preservation strategy for the moraine. The committee's final report, submitted to the province in 1994, was never implemented. Instead, the province expanded the powers of the municipalities in administration of the lands that were the subject of the committee's report.