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Natural Heritage/Environmental Planning

Natural Heritage/Environmental Planning is an important component of achieving objectives related to maintaining, restoring and enhancing ecosystems and the natural environment. These objectives are often related to the land use policy framework and legislation at the federal, provincial, municipal, or conservation authority level. NSE has in-depth experience and expertise to support natural heritage/environmental planning at scales ranging from landscape-level or watershed scales, through to the property-level or site-scale.  

Our emphasis on strong, science-based advice results in balanced, defensible products that achieve the objectives of relevant natural heritage/environment policies and legislation. Services include: 

  • Official & Secondary Plans

  • Zoning By-law Amendments

  • Subdivisions and severances

  • Site Plans

  • Project management and development of natural environment systems and conservation authority policies and mapping

  • Conservation authority planning & regulatory policy and permits

  • Guidance documents and standards for natural environment policy and mapping implementation

  • Natural heritage assessment and management

  • Environmental Impact Assessments

  • Integrated Watershed Management Planning / Sub-Watershed Studies

  • Land Management Plan / Natural Heritage Strategies 

  • Environmental Assessments 

  • Natural Asset Inventories

  • Peer reviews on behalf of municipalities

  • Public consultation

  • Expert testimony and litigation support

  • Training for natural heritage planning and ecology

 Projects We've Worked On

  • Regional Municipalities of York and Peel Official Plan Amendments

  • Sustainable Halton Natural Heritage System and recent Regional Official Plan review

  • Niagara Region Natural Heritage System

  • Bruce County Natural Heritage System 

  • Northumberland Natural Heritage System

  • Town of the Blue Mountains Natural Asset Inventory & Natural Heritage Study

  • Peer Review Services for Bruce County, Oxford County, Halton Region, Niagara Region, Peel Region, York Region, Waterloo Region and various lower tier or single-tier municipalities, including the Town of Aurora and the City of Toronto

  • Guelph Road Ecology Guideline

  • Environmental Impact Assessment Guidelines for Halton Region and Niagara Region

  • City of Toronto Environmentally Significant Areas Study

  • Woodland Mapping for York Region

  • Carlow Pit Peer Review (Huron County)

  • North Maple Regional Park

  • Trent Lands Plan

  • Natural heritage training for Planners (Halton Region)

  • Yonge Street South Secondary Plan (Town of Aurora)

  • Nichol Drain Sub-watershed Study (Township of Centre Wellington)

 

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