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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance Times, 1995-07-26, Page 3Y JULY Z6 1885 Development moratorium under appeal County hoping to have 1990 bill lifted The Huron County Department of Planning and Development is working to have the "development moratorium" imposed by the Min- i.try of Environment and Energy ( OEE) on Lower Town in Turn - berry Township repealed. The .moratorium was placed on Flan 410 Lower Town in 1990 by the Ministry of Environment and Energy. Ruth Knight of the Huron County Planning and Develop- ment Department said the effect of the moratorium is to curb all new development which required a per- mit for private sewage disposal or septic systems. She added that the moratorium does not affect.per- mits for replacement systems. •` She said that the moratorium would be in place until sufficient data on the environmental condi- tions are gathered and analyzed. Several grants in 1993 and 1994 made it possible to gather informa- tion that was sufficient to propose the amendment and to increase the probability of successfully get- ting the moratorium lifted. She said that when the moratori- um is lifted the authority for grant- ing permits goes back to the Hu- ron County Health Unit. "Right now it is very frustrat- ing," she said. Knight said the goal of the Lower Town study was to assess the environmental impact of devel- opment based on private water wells and sewage disposal sys- tems. She said that the objectives of the study were to provide carto- graphic documentation of signifi- cant background, information, pro- vide a database and direction for further detailed analysis, assess the ensironmental impact of the present development, and to iden- tify potential areas for develop- ment. Knight said that the results of the studyindicated that Lower . Town has a shallow aquifer and a deeper aquifer. "Most drilled wells are located in the deeper aquifer and less sus- ceptible to contamination by septic seepage," she said. Knight added that most dug wells are located in the shallow aquifer and as the results of the water quality testing from these' wells clarifies, dug wells in this area are at a high risk of being contaminated. Lower Town...lifting development moratorium. She said that there is no identifi- able pattern to the location of wells which did not meet the Canadian Drinking Water Standards. "There is also no apparent rela- tionship between the type of well, drilled or dug, and water quality," said Knight. "Wells, however, can be contaminated due to poor con- struction and maintenance." She added that improperly aban- doned wells are also a point by which contamination can enter the ground water. "Bacteria levels in the streams exceeded levels for safe swimming but did not exceed levels which' would indicate a severe sewage problem," she said. "The nitrate levels were within the allowable limits indicating again that there not a severe sewage problem." Knight said that the soils of Lower Town are highly sporadic and variable between lots and with- in. lots. She added that the results of soil tests pit analyses indicate that there is a high incidence of very porous soils. "These soil conditions indicate a fairly high potential for septic ef- fluent to contaminate the ground water and/or surface water," she said. - She noted that the study did not provide sufficient data to actually identify where development should and/or should not take occur. Al- ternatively, the focus has become to create policies that wo'fild identi- fy criteria by which development proposals can proceed. Knight said that many of the ur- ban areas in. the township, includ- ing Lower Town, have developed as urban communities based on small lots and private services. , Testing in the Low,pr Town area indicates the need for both an edu- cation and monitoring program for existing services.- Turnberry Township will devel- op an educational program for all residents of the urban areas of the township regarding the proper de- sign, use and maintenance of septic systems, and the importance of well inspections, procedures for abandoning wells and water saving measures. The township will also develop a regular maintenance and moni- toring program for all on-site sew- age disposal systems and insure that this program is carried out by all property owners in the urban ar- eas of the township. Knight said that these policies also apply to any development that requires the installation of • new private water and sewage disposal systems, the expansion of existing private water and sewage disposal systems, or the placement of buildings or structures on lands re- quired for private water and sew- age disposal systems. Where new developments are permitted based on private septic systems, such developments will only be permitted where it has been demonstrated that impacts to ground and surface water will be within acceptable limits as deter- mined by the MOEE. Applications will be accompa- nied by appropriate hydrogeologi- cal studies which assess the im- pacts .to groundwater from the proposed septic systems to the sat- isfaction of MOEE. New develop- ments which are serviced by indi- vidual sub -surface sewage systems wilt be subject to a Qpality Assu- rance Program for the'monitiSring andmaintenance of septic systems to the satisfaction of the munici- pality. She said that limited in -fill de- velopment will'be permitted With- in existing developed urban areas based on private septic systems subject to the approval of the Hu - Council closer to removing heritage designation from hotel Kinsmen planning to create landscaped park By JIM BROWN The Advance -Times Morris Township council moved one step closer in removing the Heritage designation from the for- mer Belgrave Hotel at its regular meeting last Tuesday evening. Chief building official Paul Jo - sling said that he inspected the building and deemed the structure to be unsafe. In a letter to the Belgrave Kins- men Club, and read at council, Jo - sling said that many "band aid" re- pairs had been attempted over the years to overcome problems, but these repairs have left the structure in had shape. "The interior is in bad shape, and is not worth trying to repair," he told -council. J®sling stated that a septic sys- tem for the building cannot he in- stalled. He noted that the foundation un- der the east one -storey structure wing has been replaced but not properly protected and has started to fail. Josling added that the foun- dation under the main two-storey structure appears to have settled on the northeast corner and is letting the brick sag on the wall. At a special Kinsmen Club meet- ing last Monday, the club decided -to demolish the old hotel and and make the property into a land- scaped park. In a letter to council, the Kins- men Club stated that the Heritage designation should be removed be- cause the building looks unsafe, it interferes with the sitelines for Hwy. 4 and the hamlet's streets, and the people of the hamlet feel it's an eyesore. Anyone who feels the Heritage designation should not be removed have until Aug. 28 to submit their objection to township clerk - treasurer Nancy Michie. If there are no objections, coun- cil will be able to repeal the Heri- tage Designation by-law at its first meeting in September, and then the Kinsmen Club will be able to have the building demolished. Council also approved a MDS (minimum distance separation) by- law for the township at its Tuesday meeting, but the by-law was re- scinded at last Wednesday's meet- ing. The by-law was deferred until the first meeting in January. Council deferred the by-law un- til January, because they felt it would he better to start using the new measurements in the new year. The chief building official said under this new by-law some separ- ation distances are shorter, while others are longer. "All municipalities in Ontario are required to have this MDS by- law as part of their own zoning by-law within the next five years," said Josling. He added that the Ontario Min • - istry of Agriculture, Food and Ru- ral Affairs (OMAFRA) and con- servation authorities are already using the new by-law. The township's chief building official said it's a lot easier work- ing with this by -taw than it is working with the old system. it KNOW WPCt TIMES ron County Health. Unit. "All new development will re- quire a lot grading plan to the sat- isfactio.n of the municipality," said Knight. She added that storm water management plans must take into account the drainage requirements of the proposed development and drainage conditions of adjacent lands. She said that all new develop- ment or extension to existing de- velopment will not displace the area required for sub -surface sew- age systems or contingency tile beds. "Dug wells will not be permit- ted for any new development in . the designated urban areas," said Knight. "Industrial development in Lower Town shall be limited to dry industries." 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