Greenbelt (Golden Horseshoe)

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For other uses of Greenbelt and Green belt, see Green belt (disambiguation).

The Government of Ontario created logo to promote the GTA Greenbelt

The Ontario Greenbelt (not to be confused with the Ottawa Greenbelt in the same province) is a permanently protected area of green space, farmland, forests, wetlands, and watersheds, located in Southern Ontario, Canada. It encompasses a significant portion of Canada's most populated and fastest-growing area - The Golden Horseshoe.

Created by legislation passed by the Ontario Liberal Government in 2005, the Greenbelt is considered a major step in the prevention of urban development and sprawl on environmentally-sensitive land in the province. At over 1.8 million acres, the Greenbelt is larger than Canada's smallest province, Prince Edward Island. Its most prominent land features include the Niagara Escarpment, the Oak Ridges Moraine, and the Rouge Park.

Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation is a not-for-profit organization that was created to promote the greenbelt in Southern Ontario. A series of ads touting the benefits of the greenbelt to the environment were aired on local radio stations in the Spring of 2006. Signs featuring the greenbelt's promotional logo, designed by artist Bruce Mau, are found along highways and regional roads where the greenbelt is prominent.