The Niagara Escarpment Commission (french: Commission de l'escarpement du Niagara), founded in June 1973 by the Niagara Escarpment Planning and Development Act (last revised 2012), is an agency of the

Ontario government The government of Ontario (french: Gouvernement de l'Ontario) is the body responsible for the administration of the Canadian province of Ontario. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown—represented in the province by the lieutenant governor— ...

. Its mission is to "conserve the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

-designated

Niagara Escarpment Biosphere Reserve The Niagara Escarpment Biosphere Reserve (french: Réserve de biosphère de l'Escarpement du Niagara) (established 1990) is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve located in Ontario, Canada. The reserve stretches along the Niagara Escarpment from Lake Onta ...

as a continuous natural environment and scenic, working countryside". The Niagara Escarpment Commission published the first Niagara Escarpment Plan in 1985. This plan is reviewed and updated every five years, with the most recent version of the plan published in 2017. The Niagara Escarpment Commission has essentially the same powers and responsibilities as a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

, including control over

zoning Zoning is a method of urban planning in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into areas called zones, each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for a si ...

and

bylaws A by-law (bye-law, by(e)law, by(e) law), or as it is most commonly known in the United States bylaws, is a set of rules or law established by an organization or community so as to regulate itself, as allowed or provided for by some higher authorit ...

. The Commission staff are split between two geographical offices: * (MTO Complex) Owen Sound,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

- north * (Guelphview Square)

Georgetown, Ontario Georgetown is a large unincorporated community in the town of Halton Hills, Ontario, Canada, in the Regional Municipality of Halton. The town includes several small villages or settlements such as Norval, Limehouse, Stewarttown and Glen William ...

- south

Commission

* 8 Public Members at Large including the Commission Chair * 8 municipal representatives from: **

Bruce County Bruce County is a county in Southwestern Ontario, Canada comprising eight lower-tier municipalities and with a 2016 population of 66,491. It is named for James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin and 12th Earl of Kincardine, sixth Governor General of the P ...

- Escarpment runs on the eastern edge of the county **

Dufferin County Dufferin County is a county and census division located in Central Ontario, Canada. The county seat is Orangeville, and the current Warden is Wade Mills. The current chief administrative officer is Sonya Pritchard. Dufferin covers an area of , ...

- Escarpment runs on the eastern edge of the county **

Grey County Grey County is a county of the Canadian province of Ontario. The county seat is in Owen Sound. It is located in the subregion of Southern Ontario named Southwestern Ontario. Grey County is also a part of the Georgian Triangle. At the time of the ...

- Escarpment runs on the eastern edge of the county **

Simcoe County Simcoe County is located in the central portion of Southern Ontario, Canada. The county is just north of the Greater Toronto Area, stretching from the shores of Lake Simcoe in the east to Georgian Bay in the west. Simcoe County forms part of the ...

- Escarpment runs on the western edge of the county **

Halton Region The Regional Municipality of Halton, or Halton Region, is a regional municipality in Ontario, Canada, located in the Golden Horseshoe of Southern Ontario. It comprises the city of Burlington and the towns of Oakville, Milton, and Halton Hil ...

- Escarpment runs on the western edge of the region ** Peel Region - Escarpment runs on the western edge of the region **

Niagara Region The Regional Municipality of Niagara, also colloquially known as the Niagara Region or Region of Niagara, is a regional municipality comprising twelve municipalities of Southern Ontario, Canada. The regional seat is in Thorold. It is the southern ...

- Escarpment runs on the northern edge of the region ** City of Hamilton - Escarpment runs through the city

References

External links

Niagara Escarpment Commission website
Niagara Escarpment Ontario government departments and agencies 1973 establishments in Ontario Government agencies established in 1973 {{WesternOntario-geo-stub