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2006 Annual Report

Message from Chair - Environmental Defence - The Proponent - The Application - The Case - Natural Environment - Transportation - Community - Hydrogeology - Financials - Public Activity Report - References - Volunteer Committee


The Application

St Marys Cement CBM must acquire three major approvals before they can extract and sell aggregate. These approvals are: (1) Official Plan Amendment, (2) Zoning Bylaw Change, both from the city of Hamilton and (3) Class A Licence under the Ontario Aggregate Resources Act from the Provincial Ministry of Natural Resources.

St Marys Official Plan and Zoning Bylaw request is to change the zoning of the property from Agricultural and Conservation Management to Extractive Industrial. This stage began in September 2004. As a result of the city's technical peer review, St Marys has been asked by the city of Hamilton to effectively return to square one and re-do substantial portions of their technical reports. That work, to date, has not been submitted.

For those of us who have been living with the spectre of a quarry since May 2004, we find the pace to be glacial. Unfortunately, the city has no authority to accelerate it, and any attempt by the city to do so could be enough for the proponent to declare "foul play". That would increase the risk of a favourable hearing at the Ontario Municipal Board. We do not want that.

St Marys Cement CBM has not yet applied for a Class A Licence to extract aggregate. That application process is expensive and rigorous. Were it to be granted, the proponent would also require a Permit To Take Water from the Ministry of the Environment. Their recent application for a permit to take water for a pilot test may be an early barometer of the challenges ahead in seeking provincial approvals. Our Community, along with Conservation Halton and the city of Hamilton submitted over 600 letters of objection to the Ministry of the Environment.

The pending status of the proponent's revisions means that St Marys is extending the period of uncertainty for our Community - they do control the speed of this process. We will continue to monitor and report on their progress.

 


Together We Will Succeed!