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The Rural Voice, 1979-07, Page 501 NEWSLETTER, Huron County Federation of Agriculture Area Office: Vanastra, Box 429, Clinton OFA meets environment minister BY JJM McINTOSH, Chairman, Pollution & Pesticides Com. Dr. Harry Parrott, Minisiter of the Environment offered to meet with repre- sentatives of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (O.F.A.), as a result of issues which the OFA raised in their brief which was presented to the Ontario Cabinet on May 2. On June 4, Peter Hannam, Ralph Barrie, Delby Bucknall, Jack Hale, Dale Ferns and myself met with Dr. Parrott and two of his aides at Queens Park, Toronto. The establishment of I and -fill sites in rural areas was one of the major topics discussed. O.F.A. had requested that the Minister of the Environment make it mandatory for any Municipality seeking permission to establish a sanitary land -fill site in a rural area to give a binding guarantee that, if any or all water supplies become poisoned or fouled by the oper- ation of such a site, alternative supplies of water would be made available at the expense of the Municipality operating the site. Dr. Parrott stated that it is his expressed desire to have all land fill sites owned by the municipality, so that if there is any future damage to the environment from chemicals dumped in the site, the Munic- ipality would be legally liable. The Ministry of the Environment is working towards reducing the needs for land fill sites. The Minister is developing policy to encourage Municipalities to separate garbage at the source or in the home. The ideal situation would be to separate it into 4 classifications, being paper, glass, metal and decomposable matter. To this end, the Ministry is bringing out a program to recycle all glass, whether it is ketchup bottles or whisky bottles. Some European countries, Switzerland, for example, are many years ahead of Canada in garbage handling systems such as separation, reduction of packaging materials, more returnable containers etc. The O.F.A. stated their support for the Government's program to encourage glass recovery, and garbage separation at the PG. 48 THE RURAL VOICE/JULY 1979 source, and indicated the program should be pushed with all means available to the government. The OFA stated that the senior levels of government must give leadership in the field of recycling and alternate use of waste. Money must be provided for research and assistance to municipalities and private enterprise in adopting alternate methods of making use of waste. This action must be accompanied by stronger efforts to reduce urban wastes. Sanitary land -fill sites may be the cheapest system at the present time, however, they can become quite expensive over the years if the sites start causing environmental damage as a result of leakage of poisonous or polluting wastes into the ground water system as has happened in some U.S. areas. Then the legal liability of the damage when charged to the Municipality could prove quite costly. Of great importance to the farming community is the disposal of industrial waste. The O.F.A. feels the Ministry of the Environment should direct all present and future hazardous industrial waste handling and disposal facilities to areas where they could not be detrimental to agriculture. Dr. Parrott indicated that it was going to be Government policy that the Ontario government was going to take charge of industrial waste disposal. The O.F.A. also raised the issue that farmers working near urban centres are having their operations curtailed by the Ministry of the Environment's sponsored noise limiting by-law. Some grain dryer operation and the running of large tractors adjacent to urban areas have been restrict- ed by the anti -noise by-laws. The O.F.A has asked the Ministry to make "normal farming operations" exempt from the noise regulations. The O.F.A. as yet has not been promised this exemption for normal farming operations. Finally, with more and more city people moving into farming areas, with thoughts that the country is almost a "park -like atmosphere", and when they discover some of the noise, odours and dust of normal farming operations, become con- cerned in legislating away these apparent problems. The O.F.A. wants the Ministry of the Environment to enunciate clear policies for the protection of the "Farmer's Right to Farm." No decision yet on Bogie's Beach No final decision has been reached on the proposed 19 unit Bogies Beach cottage development in Colborne Township which has been opposed on the grounds it will mean the loss of good agricultural land. Both the Huron County Federation of Agriculture and the Bogies Beach Association, a ratepayers' group representing most of 40 cottage owners in the area, went before the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) to oppose the proposed development. The ratepayers group said allowing Goderich businessman Pat Whelan to build 19 cottages in the area would mean loss of farmland, and cause further erosion to the Lakeshore and neighbouring gully. While most of the 20 acres is presently (Cont. on page 47) Huron County Federation of Agriculture MONTHLY MEMBERSHIP MEETING July 5, 1979 8:30 p.m. SHARP HURON CENTENNIAL SCHOOL, BRUCEFIELD The excellent Oxford County Federation film on farming in the urban shadow will be presented at this meeting. Bring your neighbour!