The Ayr News Residents voice objections to North Dumfries council about proposed Edworthy West Pit

By Irene Schmidt-Adeney

It was a familiar atmosphere in the North Dumfries Council chamber at a Public Meeting held during the North Dumfries Planning Committee meeting held on Tuesday, May 30. The chamber was filled with residents, mostly neighbours opposed to an expansion of an existing aggregate operation in North Dumfries.

A total of 13 delegations spoke in opposition to the proposed pit. Their concerns are similar to those that have been raised over most aggregate applications that come before North Dumfries Council – noise, dust and its cumulative effects, water quality, traffic, vibration, and the environmental impact (including wildlife, and the Carolinian Forest).

The 58-hectare (143.3-acre) site is comprised of three separate parcels of land – 1262 Greenfield Road is owned by Andrew Carberry, contains a single detached home and is being farmed; 1354 Spragues Road is owned by Jan Gorter, contains a single detached home and is being farmed; and an unnumbered parcel (Assessment Roll Number 300103000414600) is owned by Timothy Edworthy, and is current a vacant farm parcel.

Shouldice Side Road, Greenfield Road and Spragues Road border the proposed extraction area and truck traffic would be restricted to Spragues Road, where two new truck entrances will be built.

Cambridge Aggregates currently leases the Edworthy Main Pit at 1182 Alps Road and the new Edworthy West Pit would be adjacent to this operation. There would be no increase in the one-million tonne annual extraction limit as the new Edworthy West pit is meant to replace the Main Pit, which is expected to close within three years. The aggregate lifespan of the proposed Edworthy West Pit is up to 12 years. ties have been completed. Agricultural activities will also continue during pit operations in phases that have not been extracted; and in phases that have been progressively rehabilitated.”

Once the extraction is complete, Cambridge Aggregates proposes to rehabilitate 66% of the Prime Agricultural land back to an “agricultural condition”. The remaining land would contain “ecological enhancements” – native trees, shrubs and grasses.

“Not all areas of the extraction can be rehabilitated back to an agricultural condition due to side-sloping requirements resulting from the depth of extraction,” according to the Planning Justification Report.

There would be no processing of materials on site. The materials would be hauled to the Main Pit for processing. The rezoning application applies only to the extraction area, which is 44.3-hectares (109.47-acres). Of the proposed extraction area, 89.8% is considered Prime Agricultural Soil with the breakdown as: Class 1 (20.1-hectares); Class 2 (18.7-hectares); and Class 3 (2.2-hectares); the remainder was not rated because it is Class 4 to 7 soil and contains some hedgerows that separate the farm fields.

“No below water table extraction is proposed,” said MHBC planner Caitlin Port.

According to the Planning Justification Report, “All three property owners currently farm their land and were closely involved with the development of the Rehabilitation Plan for the Edworthy West Pit as they will continue to farm the land once extraction and rehabilitation activi-

With the exception of Mark Reusser, Ontario Federation of Agriculture Vice President, the delegations were neighbours of the proposed pit, including several members of the North Dumfries Conservation Alliance.

“Farmland is a non-renewable natural resource,” said Reusser. “Aggregate is not an interim use. It is a– permanent land use change. No sites have ever been rehabilitated back to their original agricultural ability.”

Reusser told council that they are “unfairly burdened with the responsibility to both represent the interest of your constituents and to abide by the legislation that applies to aggregate extraction.”

“The deck is stacked against you and us,” said Reusser. “You will be dealing with it again and again until everything is gone.”

“To see it pillaged makes me sick,” he said.