Milton, Escarpment Country™ and the Ontario Greenbelt

Ontario’s Greenbelt is an area of permanently protected green space, farmland, vibrant communities, forests, wetlands and watersheds.  The Greenbelt comprises 1.8 million acres (728,000 hectares) of land, wrapping around the Golden Horseshoe. It encompasses the Niagara Escarpment, the Oak Ridges Moraine, Rouge Park, agricultural land, pristine environment and hundreds of rural towns and villages. 

Milton is one of just three provincially-designated growth areas within the Ontario Greenbelt and is surrounded by the lush Niagara Escarpment and the watersheds of the 12 Mile and 16 Mile Creeks. Milton is blessed with abundant farmland and a traditional agricultural heritage. At the same time, the lifestyle offered by our unique combination of Escarpment location and proximity to major urban centres has resulted in Milton becoming Canada’s fastest growing community. Since 2000, Milton has grown from a rural town of 33,000 to a bustling urban centre of nearly 80,000… and still growing. 

Escarpment Country™ and its tourism partners share with the Ontario Greenbelt many of the same goals and objectives:

To increase public awareness, public engagement and participation in the Greenbelt — through:

• Leisure and Recreation (skiing, swimming, hiking, caving, mountain climbing, camping, fishing, birdwatching and horseback riding through Conservation Halton and Milton parks, Region Agreement Forests and commercial destinations);
• Attractions (fairs and festivals, museums and heritage); Accommodations (bed & breakfasts, hotels, campgrounds);
• Shopping (antiques, art galleries, arts & crafts); and
• Educational Programs (hosted by Conservation Halton, Halton Regional Museum, Country Heritage Park and Halton County Radial Railway and area farms).

To promote and support a strong rural community and working rural landscape — Escarpment Country™ members include three of southern Ontario’s largest pick-your-own farms, an award-winning winery, a trout fishing farm and the very successful and long-running Milton Farmers’ Market open every Saturday from May to October on Main Street in Downtown Milton. 

To protect and restore the natural environment — Escarpment Country™’s partners depend upon the health of our natural environment for their livelihood and their future.  Education programs for school children and families, hosted by Conservation Halton, local heritage parks and museums, and pick-your-own farms, all help build awareness of the essential role of farming in our lives, our precious natural environment and the need to preserve it for future generations. 

For more information about the Ontario Greenbelt, visit www.greenbelt.ca.