The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

NHS showdown looming By Tim Foran OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF 5 · Friday, December 11, 2009 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.oakvillebeaver.com Farmers, developers, and even some of the local municipalities in Halton are expected to make a last ditch appeal Wednesday for regional council to reject or defer new Natural Heritage System (NHS) land use designations that could restrict development around environmentallyprotected areas in Halton. The Greenbelt NHS and Regional NHS designations are included in the Region's update to its Official Plan, ROPA 38, and are intended to connect a vast area of provincially and municipallyprotected lands into a connected swath of green via the use of buffers and linkages. Regional staff argue this systems-based approach to protecting woodlands, wetlands, and wildlife is more beneficial than trying to protect isolated pockets of land and streams. But critics have argued for much of the past year those buffers and linkages cut across existing farms, as well as land already designated or expected to be for urban development. The councils for both the Towns of Halton Hills and Milton have already expressed concern about the impact on local farmers. Despite those concerns, Halton's planning committee endorsed ROPA 38 last week, following a six-hour public meeting at which special interest groups of all stripes lined up to speak out for and against aspects of ROPA 38, with the NHS as the main topic of discussion. o T wn Ser vic Out-ofe & or t p Air OAKVILLE UNITED TAXI Celebrate responsibly this holiday season by appointing a designated driver, or call us for a ride. We're available anytime to get you home safe and sound. See Farmers page 7 Inside Artscene.........................................34 Worship..........................................38 Sports.............................................40 Real Estate.....................................43 Classified........................................44 For home delivery & customer service call (905) 845-9742 Mon., Tues. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Wed., Thu., and Fri. 9 a.m.-7 p.m. (open for calls only after 5 p.m.) Closed Sat. and Sun. NEW SUBSCRIPTIONS call (905) 845-9742 or subscribe online @ www.oakvillebeaver.com Full Delivery: 2001 Audio, The Bay, Vistek, Oliver Pets & Co., Kitchen Stuff Plus, Best Buy, Staples Business, Sears, Shoppers Drug Mart, Walmart, Home Outfitters, Michael's of Canada, Partial Delivery: Bad Boy Furniture, Metro Canada, Timex, Big Al's, Mohamed H. Mazen, Delta Bingo, The Brick, Smart Source, Price Chopper, Food Basics, Sears, Home Hardware, Big Time Murder, Longo's, No Frills, Sobeys, Pharma Plus, Fortino's, Zellers, Rabba Fine Foods, Hooper's Pharmacy, The Cash Store, Bouclair, Staples Business, Future Shop, Super Store, Mark's Work Warehouse, Best Buy, Bad Boy Furniture, Cold FX, Solutions, Wal-Mart, The Source, HMV, Dot Patio, Pier 1 Import, Payless Shoe, Wal-Mart · · · · · · · · · · · · GO GREEN! 905.338.0044 Ê Join our growing team, call 905-338-6106 CALL US 24 HOUR · 7 DAYS A WEEK Ê THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT