The Huron County Planning Department hosted its first public information session this week regarding the Natural Heritage Plan.
Senior Planner Denise Van Amersfoort says the plan is not a document that is passed under the Planning Act, it is strictly a background document that maps the areas that are ecologically significant in Huron County and then makes recommendations in terms of how to plan for those areas moving forward.
Van Amersfoort adds the goal of the project is to have an accurate representation of the features that exist on the landscape. It is not intended to restrict what people can do with their land, and if it's land that is being farmed they can continue to farm it.
The information will be used as a resource when a municipality is updating the official plan, but it does not mean that the areas that are identified will necessarily be designated natural environment.
Future information meetings are scheduled for June 6 from 3pm-8pm at the Alice Munro Library in Wingham, and June 14 from 3pm-8pm at the Exeter Public Library.