Pickering, Ajax © Joe Mabel
The Issue
MZOs allow the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing to unilaterally designate lands for development without public input, even if a local community has already zoned them for conservation, farming or other important purposes.
While previously rarely used, they have become an increasingly common tool for overriding local decisions. In 2024, the Auditor General revealed that the government issued 17 times more MZOs from 2019 to 2023 as compared to the previous two decades.
The government has even altered provincial legislation to make these MZOs more harmful to the environment and less accountable to the public. Since it passed Bill 257 in 2021, MZOs are no longer required to be consistent with the government’s stated land use plan. This creates the potential for decisions which are out of sync with Ontario’s need to protect nature and support healthy communities.
Sprawl seen from Mount Nemo Conservation Area, Halton © Margonaut CC BY 2.0
Why It Matters
MZOs have become a key tool for the Government of Ontario to fast-track development on natural areas and farmland with unprecedented frequency. Forcing these short-sighted developments while keeping Ontarians in the dark does not serve the public interest. It jeopardises the crucial role of nature all around us, for example in flood control, food production, wildlife habitat, carbon sequestration and recreation. And it is undemocratic.
Conservation and agricultural organizations are united in their opposition to this misuse of MZOs which sidestep community consultation and local planning processes. Instead, the government should focus on ensuring local resilience. That requires more public participation in determining the future of our farmlands, forests, wetlands and other natural areas.
Toronto area housing © Yoko Chiyoko CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
What We Are Doing
Ontario Nature continues to raise awareness and collaborate with allies to hold the government accountable when it pursues environmental deregulation and skirts the democratic process.
Sprawl encroaching on Duffins Rouge Agricultural Preserve
What You Can Do
- Sign our Action Alert to curtail the use of MZOs
- Stay informed about potential MZOs in your area and let us know if you need support
- Read our resources on local advocacy
Despite the government’s determination to push through MZOs, grassroots resistance is paying off at the local level.
In early March 2021, following several months of heated protests organized by local groups, Stratford City Council voted to ask the Province to roll back an MZO intended to pave the way for a glass factory on prime farmland. Also in 2021, Pickering Council voted unanimously to ask the provincial government to revoke an MZO that would allow the destruction of a provincially significant wetland.
Your voice matters more than ever!
Stratford MZO protest © Mark McCauley
The Minister’s Zoning Orders Campaign is Generously Funded by:
