[Kitchissippi]

Originally Posted by RTWAP

Farming is the lowest intensity industrial use ever. Farms in the city should be intensified and farms outside the urban area should be protected from encroachment.

EDIT: For example, http://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&hq=&ll=45.306768,-75.764122&spn=0.052035,0.110378&t=h&z=13

A lot of those fields are Agriculture Canada's. Much like the Experimental Farm, it is a vital research facility that helps keep the Capital a centre for agricultural technology, the same way the NRC has helped attract the high tech industry here.

The fact that these fields are surrounded by urban areas is actually an advantage, as it isolates conditions and avoids contamination from and to surrounding agricultural areas. As for the Experimental Farm, it has a rich history of developing wheat and Canola strains that were crucial in making the Prairies what they are now. With regards to public use, there is something magical about riding a bicycle through the farm, it's like a micro vacation. Reducing it would also make the Agriculture Museum into a pointless showcase where feed and produce would have to be trucked in. If anything, it should be a reminder of how much land it takes to feed a city.

If the Greenbelt and Experimental Farm were ever to be rethought, it should be because of some important use, not something as banal as more housing.

As an aside, there are so many "hidden" things about the Capital that Ottawans fail to appreciate. For example, how many of us know that the Olympic Medals were all fabricated here with talent and skill from the local colleges? It makes one realize Ottawa is more than just politics and bureaucracy, and it's the little things we take for granted that raises it above the ordinary. Why can't we be proud of the fact that we have a farm in the middle of the city?