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The Citizen, 1994-05-25, Page 6PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, MAY 25,1994. Colborne residents say selection process wrong Continued from page 1 input is important," Mr. Camochan said, adding that the committee would be considering all the details in the report. 'Based on the facts presented tonight do you people not agree that C4 should be eliminated?" asked Mr. Marquis. Mr. Camochan said that as they had only seen the brief, he felt it was unfair to be asked for a yes or no answer. Mr. Metzger said that the com­ mittee will be making its decision based on two things — the suitabil­ ity of the site and nearby proper­ ties, determined after visiting and drilling, then on more general items through a ranking process. "I com­ mend you for all the work you did in such a short period of time," he said, assuring Mr. Marquis that the brief would be given consideration. Mr. Marquis expressed dissatis­ faction with the response saying that his group had reached their conclusions by simply visiting the sites. "Hanging people in limbo when clearly it should be eliminat­ ed....It's a flawed process." Mr. Metzger said that the process must be consistent for all 11 sites, but when he said that none of them had been visited as yet, Mr. Mar­ quis said, "The process can change." Others were equally displeased with the process. Jim Love, who noted that the county had eliminat­ ed 11 sites through roadside inspec­ tions, said, "The process is unacceptable. Don't insult us. Don't say you have to drill." C4 landowner Anne Roy said she felt the county had treated landowners unfairly. The guide­ lines outlined by the Environmental Assessment Act stress consultation be fair and extensive, she said, adding that she felt the committee had been remiss in adhering to these guidelines, by following the letter of the law and by not consid­ ering the effect the timing would have on the farming community. The notification process, she said, was inadequate and "open to accusation of intimidation and manipulation." The remarks to Mr. Marquis were "condescending", she said, and the kitchen table meetings were flawed. The information and comments were delivered in tones that "made people feel small". Mrs. Roy said she left the C1 and C2 on May 9 meeting feeling there were three objectives — to get peo­ ple to sign the access permission forms, to make them feel as though there was nothing they could do and to isolate the residents of each site. She asked the county to consider other methods and cited an exam­ ple documented by a professor at the University of Western Ontario. "Other methods are practised else­ where," she said. Her analysis of the current method, she said, "places the bur­ den of proof on the shoulders of the affected parties. The county is looking for a needle in a haystack and asking us to prove we have no needle." Jim Love said, "There is no way I'm not going to get emotional. I am one of the city people who escaped here because it's beautiful and we love it." The process is a waste of money, he said, and the committee would have to be "blind or fools" to not be able to look and see it isn't suitable land for a land­ fill. "I am not going to sit in tears because everything I have worked for is lost because it is an inconve­ nience for you. I protest. I will oppose this with my last breath because environmentally it's wrong." He urged them to change the pro­ cess. "If the province won't agree just say no." Mr. Camochan responded saying the committee was comprised of elected officials, who were simply getting information and trying to do the best job they could. "I don't think I'm blind or a fool. "We're just trying to do our best. Mark Marquis, right, made a presentation on behalf of a group of Colborne Twp. residents whose properties are part of the C4 candidate landfill site, at a public meeting Thursday evening. The group had prepared a brief outlining reasons why the site should be eliminated from the list of 11 candidate sites. At the table are, from left: chairperson Bill Carnochan, reeve of Tuckersmith and Craig Metzger, project co-ordinator. Residents say C4 unsuitable At the information meeting in Colborne Twp on May 19, Mark Marquis presented a brief to members of the committee for the Huron County Waste Management Plan on reasons to eliminate Part Lots 9 and 10 of Cone. 4 as from the list of candidate landfill sites. Points raised by Mr. Marquis, who represented a committee of concerned landowners in the township included environmental, tourism and cultural impacts. The Maitland Trail, which passes over Ball's Bridge, past the Little Lakes, up the highest point of elevation and down to the wetlands is, Mr. Marquis said, within the 500 metre buffer area. The site would cause increased traffic on County Road 15, which passes through Colborne to Benmiller, a tourist area. " How much money would we have to spend studying the C4 site before we would conclude that it just doesn't make sense to put a dump within such close proximity to this important tourist area?" he asked. The access route to the site passes adjacent to the Little Lakes, an environmentally sensitive area identified and mapped by the Maitland Valley Conservation Authority. The zoning around the lakes is Natural Environment-1, Mr. Marquis said. "Little is known about the Little Lakes, their origin or the underground waterways which come and go from the lakes. As a result the potential impact to the lakes would most likely require more than an Environmental Impact Study be carried out prior to locating a landfill on C4," he said. Mr. Marquis said as well that the C4 site violates the principle of protecting environmentally sensitive areas and providing a 120 metre buffer around wetlands. The elevation and gradient surrounding the site also make it unsuitable, Mr. Marquis said. The wetland and the river are over 200 feet below the candidate site. Mr. Marquis said that in examining the map in the Stage 2C report which identifies areas screened out by exclusionary criteria it revealed a very important consideration with respect to the C4 site. Every route from the site to a paved road passes through areas which are unsuitable for a landfill site and for dump traffic and road improvements that would be necessary to accommodate a landfill site, he said. Finally, Mr. Marquis noted the importance of family farms saying his committee would be remiss if they didn't point out that the C4 site is owned by a family that has been farming the land in this area since 1848. "It is simply unconscionable to think that the people in the county would support the expropriation of this land for the purposes of locating a landfill site when other more palatable options are likely available." In closing Mr. Marquis said, "The above points represent only the most obvious concerns. We have had very little time to review the situation and although we expect more concerns to surface, we are confident that those listed above eliminate C4 as a potential landfill site in Huron County." Auburn Lions begin creation of new parkland Auburn Lions Club President Doug Chamney and his dog Rowdy enjoy a game of catch at what will soon be Manchester Riverside Park along the Maitland River at Auburn. The club and community plan to spend the next two to three years fixing up to two acre stretch of land. The residents of Auburn and area will soon have a park where a walk with the dog, a game of frisbee or a leisurely stroll along the Maitland River can be enjoyed. The Auburn Lions Club recently began cleaning up a two acres stretch of land along the river next to County Road 8 to Clinton. The land includes property owned by Hulletl Township and a couple of lots belonging to the county. It is situated near the old dam. Doug Chamney, president of the Lions Club says the plan for Manchester Riverside Park was first mentioned a few years ago but, was initiated in April. "A couple of weeks ago we had a clean up day and there was enthusiastic support from the community. They are thrilled to have a park. Community spirit is alive and well in Auburn." "The land was once used as a dump and for an auto wrecker so there is a considerable amount of work to do but, the Lions plan to stretch the project over two or three years," says Mr. Chamney. "It is a project which will benefit the community and is a benefit to the environment," he says. The Lions plan to issue a cqm- munity event and birthday calendar to raise funds for the park and they hope to get lots of volunteer labour for the work. "There isn't a lot of money for Frank Foran, Lucknow 528-3824 Lyons & Mulhern, Goderich 524-2664 Donald R. Simpson, Ripley 395-5362 Delmar Sproul, Auburn 529-7273 Clinton 482-3434 P.A. Roy Insurance Broker Inc. Clinton 482-9357 Banter, MacEwan, Feagan Insurance Brokers Limited, Goderich 524-8376 Kenneth MacLean, Paisley 368-7537 McMaster Siemon Insurance Brokers Inc. Mitchell 348-9150 John Nixon, Brussels887-9417 Chapman Graham Lawrence Insurance Brokers Walkerton 881-0611 INSURANCE FOR FARM, RESIDENTIAL, COMMERCIAL AND AUTO" Chapman-Graham & Assoc. Insurance Brokers Inc. Owen Sound 376-1774 City Insurance Offices Limited Kincardine 396-9513 "i the project but, time and labour are what is needed to establish and maintain the park," Mr. Chamney says.