Provincially Significant Wetlands

Provincially Significant Wetlands (ROP15_Wetlands) are a component of Map 4 (Greenlands Network) of the Regional Official Plan (ROP), as adopted by Regional Council on June 16, 2009 and approved by the Ontario Municipal Board on June 18, 2015. Wetlands are lands that are seasonally or permanently flooded by shallow water, as well as lands where the water table is close to the surface. In either case, the presence of abundant water has caused the formation of hydric soils and has favoured the dominance of either hydrophytic or water tolerant plants. This dataset identifies wetlands in the Regional of Waterloo that have been classified as "Provincially Significant" by the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) based on their hydrological, biological and social assets.The Wetlands shown in this dataset include "Provincially Significant" wetlands within a 500m buffer of the Region of Waterloo boundaries. Where only a potion of an "Provincially Significant" wetland falls within the 500m buffer, the entire wetland was included in the Wetlands dataset.