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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Times Advocate, 2006-06-21, Page 22 Exeter Times -Advocate Wednesday, June 21, 2006 All -terrain vehicles a hot topic at meeting By Scott Nixon TIMES -ADVOCATE STAFF DASHWOOD — Those concerned about all -terrain vehicles (ATVs) and the use of them in the area had the chance to air their concerns at a public meeting last week. On hand were officials from the municipalities of South Huron and Bluewater, the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority, members of local ATV clubs and the OPP. Of particular interest was a proposed ATV trail through ABCA land in the Hay Swamp area and whether or not ATVs should be allowed on area roads. As was explained at last week's meeting at the Dashwood Community Centre, South Huron has passed a bylaw allowing ATVs on its roads, while Bluewater has not and doesn't intend to. Area property owner Bert Visscher presented some of his concerns about an ATV trail in Hay Swamp, explaining that he is opposed to it. He said an ATV trail could be a risk to some of the expensive equipment he has in the area for irrigation. He said he isn't opposed to ATV clubs or trails for them, but not in the Hay Swamp area as proposed. Visscher acknowledged that there is already a snowmobile trail in the area, but use of that trail occurs in the "off season" for agriculture. Visscher said he realizes an ATV can be a blessing for some people, but he doesn't want hundreds of peo- ple driving ATVs around his property. He then read a list of about 20 landowners in the area opposed to the trail. ABCA general manager Tom Prout explained that Conservation Authority land is different than Crown land, in that the local Conservation Authority can decide what its land is used for. The ABCA has agree- ments with a horseback group, the Parkhill Conservation Riders, and with a dirt bike and ATV group, the Ausable River Riders, that they can ride on Conservation Authority land in the Parkhill area. Regarding the proposed trail in the Hay Swamp area, Prout said no decision has been made yet. Maitland ATV Club vice-president James de Jong said it's 110 secret the issue of ATVs is "a hot topic" in Canada and the U.S. He said sales of ATVs have exploded, with 90,000 sold last year in Canada, out- selling snowmobiles five to one. Unfortunately, he said, there are issues of trespassing and crop damage because there aren't many places for riders to take their ATVs. Education and enforcement are key issues, de Jong said, adding ATV clubs provide education, maintain trails and provide municipalities with a per- manent contact with whom they can address any ATV concerns. The Maitland ATV Club, formed in March 2005, has a positive working relationship with the OPP, the Ministry of Transportation and local municipalities, de Jong said, adding a legal trail system will protect the environment. With a legal trail system, ATVs can be restricted to the trail system and eliminate many prob- lems such as trespassing and crop damage. He said most of the damage done to trails by ATVs is largely because of a lack of maintenance. Referring to comparisons to snowmobiles, de Jong said there were many complaints about snowmobiles in the 1970s, but then snowmobile clubs were formed and gained credibility. de Jong said ATV clubs promote safe riding and trial etiquette, working with the municipalities and other clubs. Bluewater Mayor Bill Dowson spoke of his municipal- ity's decision to not allow ATVs on its roads. He said Bluewater has "tremendous" respect for the Maitland ATV club, which he said is trying to do the right thing. Dowson said Bluewater is being pressured to allow ATVs on its roads, but "the municipality is not going to allow it." He later said he is concerned about the municipali- ty's liability if there is an accident, explaining he does- n't want taxpayers to be hit if the municipality is sued. Bluewater clerk -administrator Janisse Zimmerman said the municipality's insurance company has told Bluewater to be "very cautious" about passing a bylaw allowing ATVs on roads. "Once you permit them on the road, you've opened yourself up to liability," Dowson said, adding he had five phone calls at home in the previous week from people telling him not to allow ATVs on the roads. He said he gets numerous calls about problems with ATVs. He said the province has downloaded the deci- sion of whether or not to allow ATVs on the roads to the municipalities and it shouldn't be the municipali- ties' decision. He encouraged ATV supporters to lobby the province to get the same legislation snowmobiles have to travel on roads. He said if the province gave such permission to ATVs, Bluewater would have no problem with it. South Huron chief administrative officer Larry Brown, whose municipality allows ATVs on its roads, explained that ATVs must have four wheels (not six or three), must have steering, handle bars, working brakes, lights and carry one driver with no passengers. ATVs are not allowed on Ontario's 400 series high- ways. They must operate on the shoulder, or if the shoulder is unsuitable for travelling, an ATV can temporarily go on the road and then back onto the shoulder. The speed limit for ATVs is 20 km/h if the road's limit is 50 km/h, or 50 km/h if the road's limit is more than 50 km/h. ATVs must travel in the same direction as Major investment for Hensall Continued from front page water upgrades are required to accommo- date the plant, which Bluewater is working on. He added this will be the most significant industrial investment in Huron since the Wescast plant at Wingham about 10 years ago. Baker added the Hensall plant will pro- duce twice as much as the company's ethanol plant in Chatham, with output expected to be around 200 million litres a year. At South Huron's council meeting Monday night, Mayor and Huron County Warden Rob Morley called the new ethanol plant a "win- win" for the whole county. "It's a boost for all of us," he said, adding South Huron is pleased its neighbour to the north is getting the plant. The funding is part of the $520 -million Ontario Ethanol Growth Fund, which will also provide operating grants worth up to $60 million annually. Commercial Alcohols Inc. Hensall was award- ed operating assistance for 190 million litres of ethanol production annually. Ontario's Renewable Fuels Standard requires that all gasoline sold in the province contain an average of five per cent ethanol by 2007. When added to gaso- line, ethanol helps to mitigate climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions, results in cleaner vehicle exhaust and reduces our depen- dency on non-renew- able fossil fuels. Construction dates for the Hensall plant, which will be built at the northwest corner of the town have not been confirmed yet, accord- ing to Baker. Local students enjoy OSSLT success By Stew Slater SPECIAL TO THE TIMES -ADVOCATE SEAFORTH — Compared to the provincewide aver- age, a greater proportion of Grade 10 students across Huron and Perth counties were successful in the 2006 Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT), administered in March. That was particularly true in the Huron -Perth Catholic District School Board, which was second only to the Halton Catholic board in terms of the percent- age of students achieving success on their first attempt. Results from the OSSLT, which is a required achieve- ment for high school graduation, were released last week. Consistently over the past few years, a greater percentage of students from both boards in this dis- trict have passed the test, compared to the provincial average. That has continued through a couple of major overhauls to the OSSLT, mainly to give boards more flexibility in administering the test to students who aren't comfortable in traditional testing environ- ments. This year, as a provincial average, 84 per cent of Grade lOs passed the test. The corresponding results for the Huron -Perth Catholic and Avon Maitland District School Boards were 91 per cent and 87 per cent, respectively. Success rates were highest among Academic -level students, approaching 100 per cent for both boards and 96 per cent across the province. In the Applied -level OSSLT, 79 per cent of Avon Maitland Grade 10s were successful — one percentage point higher than the Huron -Perth board. Across the province, 65 per cent of Applied -level Grade lOs passed. traffic, drivers must wear helmets and have a licence. Farmers, emergency workers, hydro workers and municipal employees are exempt from the bylaw. South Huron has restricted the use of ATVs on its roads to between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. in urban areas, Brown explained. In the case of an accident, Brown said ATVs are treated the same as cars. He said South Huron's regu- lations promote the safe operation of ATVs and ATV travel is safer with a bylaw. He added the bylaw does- n't mean South Huron's roads are trails, but allows ATV riders to move between trails and discourages trespassing. The ABCA's Kate Monk read a letter from Roger MacPherson of the Ausable River Riders Club. MacPherson, who was unable to attend the meeting, said his club cleans the trails it uses once a month, has work days and a safety awareness day during which it teaches riding safety skills. ATVs in the club have to be plated, have liability insurance and drivers must sign a waiver. The club also pays a fee to use the land it uses and pays for its maintenance. All riders have numbers so they can be identified if there are any problems; in five years, MacPherson wrote he has never received a complaint from a neigh- bouring landowner about a member rider. Huron OPP Const. Scott Root also spoke, explaining that before 2003, ATVs were prohibited from the road- ways, but in 2003, legislation was passed by the province letting municipalities allow ATVs on the roads. He said ATVs are governed by the Highway Traffic Act and can't trespass. More information can be found at www.laws.gov.on.ca Prout said agreements won't solve all the problems with ATVs and there will always be those who don't follow rules. Members of the audience expressed several con- cerns, such as a difficulty getting OPP to charge tres- passing ATV riders and the fact the ABCA has only one trail enforcer, who doesn't have an ATV. Prout said the ABCA wants to hear everyone's con- cerns so they can be addressed. He said the interested groups need to work together as it is a complex issue. Regarding private land, Prout said the ABCA won't be granting permission to clubs to ride on private land — those decisions will be left up to the landowners. He said the ABCA will probably decide sometime this year whether or not to allow the proposed trail. Monk said if there is a trail network through Hay Swamp, it will have to be through an area where there is minimal damage to the environment. "Hay Swamp will not become a playground," she said. REGIONAL WRAP Salt mine strike done GODERICH — The 350 unionized members at the Goderich salt mine have accepted a collective bar- gaining agreement by a 65 per cent margin ending a seven -week strike, reports the Goderich Signal - Star. Media spokesperson for the Communications, Energy and Paperworks Union Local 16-0 Glen Sonier says, "The parties have continually met and basically it came to the point where we were able to create some understanding and resolve the issues that were outlying. The major one being the assign- ment of mandatory overtime." Details on the contract were not announced, except for the end of mandatory overtime. Grey marks 50th ETHEL — Grey firefighters are celebrating its 50th anniversary with its annual breakfast in the fire hall in Ethel Sunday, according to The Citizen. The 21 members are inviting former members in celebrating the department's achievements as well as community members.Anniversary hats and a 2007 calendar will be for sale with proceeds from the items and breakfast supporting the purchase of additional equipment for the department. Cash for splash SEAFORTH — The Cash for Splash Sit-a-thon, a 24-hour event that saw participants lined up in chairs and couches on Main Street in Seaforth raised close to $15,000 for the Seaforth Lions Pool, reports The Huron Expositor. "It was a small town lazy person's version of a big city corporate challenge," says Tony Arts,a co-ordi- nator for the fundraiser.Only 25 per cent of the 130 businesses and organizations actually took part but Arts is hoping if the event runs next year for anoth- er cause that this year's success will convince oth- ers to join.