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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 1984-11-30, Page 1e 24 ✓ was she rs, in on race •part. naire visit turas ed to ;ham ve a cem- d single copy 35c SEN Printed in Lucknow, Ontario, Wednesday, November 30,1984 120 Pages Raise major issues about proposed sewage treatment facility 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 An information meeting to describe the .proposed Lucknow sewage treatment facil- ity and tile bed system which is to be located in West Wawanosh Township just south of the village has identified several major contentious issues. -, Misunderstanding A misunderstanding appears to be .de velopingbetween the reeve of Lucknow and Lucknow council and the owner of the property where the treatment facility is -to be located». Chester Finnigan who owns the property and has contracted an option ;to purchase with the village council is of the understanding that the sludge from . the facility will be hauled from the site along an access road to be built by the village entering the site from Canning Street in Lucknow. According to Finnigan's son, Jim , who attended the information meeting, there is no way his father would agree to the laneway running along the south side of the Finnigan barn being used to haul away the sludge, Thislaneway accesses the property from Huron County Road ,1 to the west. Jim Finnigan told the meetinghis father did not .agree to the Finnigan laneway as he access to the treatment facility, because young children - play in the area and because the neighbours would not agree to that road being used to haul away the sludge. Jim Finnigantold the meeting Reeve George Joynt agreed to this limitation. George Brophy, solicitor for the village of Lucknow and Burns Ross of B. M. Ross and. Associates, engineers for the village of Lucknow, told the .meeting they were not aware of the 'limitation and such a limita- tion is not written up, in the contract the. village has with Chester Finnigan. Jim Finnigan also told the meeting that they' Lucknow .reeve George Joynt told his father specifically, he would be able to work the land as he wishes. The 'reeve told Chester Finnigan there would be no buildings, 'on the site, said Jim Finnigan. Glen Walden of West Wawanosh, a concerned township resident in the area, told the meeting Chester Finnigan advised him the day previous to the meeting, 'he understood 'there would be no access road to the site from Huron County Road 1 across his property and that he would .be able to crop over the top of the sewage tile bed system. Lucknow Village Council has understood from the beginning there is to be no cropping over. the tile bed system because heavy ,machinery is not permitted to drive across it and animals are not allowed to graze over the tile bed system -either, -Walden told the' meeting Chester Finni- gan also said the blueprint shown,to him by the .engineer Burns Ross was notthe same blueprint shown to Walden. A similar disagreementarose between the Lucknow reeve and council and Floyd Milne when, council~ took an option to purchase : property " from Milne ,for the proposed 'sewage treatment facility.. When the option' expired and council attempted to renew the option, Milne indicated he was unaware he could not crop the land over the tile bed system or graze animals on it and he refused to renew the option. Subsequently, council took an option to purchase property from Chester Finnigan° in West Wawanosh for the facility. System Includes Open Tanks Members , of : Lucknow Village Council assumed a subsurface treatment system meant all the components of the system were below grown surface and were closed in. ' A description 'of the system :,at .the November .•22 information-; meeting by engineer Steve Burns of B., M. Ross and 1 CONTROL BUILDING,/ TR-ATMENT• FAC ILI? PUMPING CHAM©ER ; ' 'IN.LETWORKS 9 8 9 9 9 8 20 ria 1 ewa avas . Associates indicated as many as three and possibly six of the tanks in the system will be open, • - . Thefacility will be surrounded by a chain link fence topped 'with barbed wire but only handrails will surround the tanks, ' some measuring 12 feet by 12 feet by 10 feet deep. Residents in the area are concerned • about odour from the site if untreated . sewage and treated sludge arestored in - open concrete holding tanks. The residents also raise safety concerns because young children live in the area. Steve Burns told the meeting open tanks are standard practiee in such a system and meet Ministry of the Environment guide- lines. Lucknow Village Council members have consistently . told the publicthere would be no open tanks on the site and that the. only thing visible above the surface would be a small, building to house 'a blower to 'provide the air supply to the treatment system. Considered Alternate Site' Alternate sites sites were 'considered when the Milne property became unavailable and they were turned down when aerial photographs 'and topographical maps indi- Turn to page 2• lproposal, a inchidc's open: septic tanks • The description of the sewage treatment facility to be located in West Wawanosh Township presented . at an information meeting November 22, shows three tanks, and possibly, as many as six willbe open. This fact surprised even some members of Lucknow Village Council, who up to ,this point believed` a subsurface treatment system system implied all of the treatment chain • bers and tanks were below the ground surface and were closed in. Steve • Burns of B. M. Ross and Associates of Goderich, engineers for the Village, of Lucknow told The Sentinel. Monday he, had avoided -being specific about the actual design components until a site was chosen, because the design of the components usually depends on the site chosen for the facility. Burns said Lucknow Village Council has been shown a plan for' • the design and received a diagram, of the proposed system which was also submitted to the Ministry of the Environtnent for their consideration. Burns .said unless someone asked specifically whether a . particular component of the system had a cover, he would not think to provide that information, because traditionally, the tanks being open ; is a standard accepted practice. Burnsadded that he wishes to empha- size that covering the tanks could lead to problems which will produce the results .. residents in the area fear. Closed in tanks Will not permit the simple detection of a problem which could produce 'odour. If the tanks -are allowed to , remain open, it is easier. to see a problem . and correct it -before ''odour results in complaints from residents in the . area. _ If Lucknow Village Council ' or the Ontario Municipal Board insists the 'tanks can be enclosed, it can be done, said Burns but he believes it will cause the type of problem ' the residents - are concerned' about. Turn to page 7' Priority is protection of environment not residents' concerns:. Page A Ministry of Environment official told concerned residents who live in the area of- the fthe proposed site for Lucknow's sewage treatment facility, that ',the ministry's priority in approving the site ,.will be 'protection of the environment and the technical aspect : ahead • of residents' concerns, when he answered questions at an• • information meeting. in Lucknow November 22. When asked by Warren Zinn, who is to become a resident in the area in ,the near future, what the ministry's priorities are when making their decision, land or people, Willard Page, district officer, ,the Ministry of Environment said that, while the ministry guidelines must be met regarding the proximity ..of residences in the area, the protection of the environment and the technical aspects of the facility, are more pertinent to the ministry decision than the concerns of residents in the area. Page said the ministry tnust consider the rights of the applicanti.e. the village of Lucknow. Guidelines are not in place for the ministry to address the concerns of land use planning and residents in .the adjacent area, Those concerns are heard by the Ontario Municipal Board, said Page. The Environment Act procedure does not weigh one site against ,another. The ministry is asked to judge one application or another application. It cannot judge two applications for the same facility • and choose the best one in its, opinion. Glen Walden, a West Wawanosh Town- ship resident, commented that the ministry ' had quite a problem with the Huron Heights facility in .Kincardine. Page • answered there certainly were problems. with the, technical aspect of that tile system and a large sumof money was spent to rectify it. That was in 1975, he said, and singe then designs have improved and the ministry Turn to page 5•