Latest News
- Fri. Jun. 7, 2013
Flamborough Review
FORCE recipient of Environmentalist of the Year award - Wed., Apr. 24, 2013
Hamilton Spectator
Mahoney: Quarry foes set to celebrate holding their ground - Mon., Apr. 8, 2013
Flamborough Review
Quarry battle over opponents say - Wed.,Mar. 27, 2013
Flamborough Review
FORCE ready to celebrate quarry victory - Thurs., Mar. 14, 2013
Flamborough Review
My View: The community that could
News Archives
Friday, August 25, 2006 - Flamborough Review
Quarry haul routes top residents concerns
"It's terrifying."
Carlisle resident Greg Kochuk couldn't think of any other words to describe how he felt when he looked at a
map of potential haul routes for the proposed St. Mary's Flamborough Quarry on 11th Concession Road East
near the Milburough Line.
The map, which drew a lot of attention and spirited reactions from neighbouring residents, was displayed
at a community open house hosted last Thursday night by St. Mary's Cement Group.
Read the Full Article (177 KB)
Monday, August
21, 2006 - Halton Compass
Quarry opts for door-to-door campaign
Despite repeated requests from Flamborough Councillor Margaret McCarthy, St. Mary's Cement won't be attending a scheduled
September 19 public meeting on the Mountsberg quarry application.
The industry giant has opted instead to wage a low-key door-to-door campaign, talking to Mountsberg, north Carlisle and Campbellville
residents one-on-one about their track record in the industry and how they plan to proceed with the application for a quarry on the 158-hectare on the
northwest corner of Milburough Townline and the 11th Concession East, across the street from Campbellville.
Read the Full Article (150 KB)
Friday, August
18, 2006 - Flamborough Review
City eyes aggregate mapping update
Prompted by Flamborough Councillor Margaret McCarthy, Hamilton city council has taken preliminary steps
toward updating mineral aggregate resource mapping in rural Hamilton. McCarthy recently persuaded fellow
councillors to unanimously back her proposal to direct planning staff to "proceed expeditiously" on
updating the mapping, which dates back to 1984.
Read the Full Article (177 KB)
Monday, August
14, 2006
- Community Alert! - St Marys Cement continues their PR Campaign.
St Marys Cement public relations launch has been so smooth it's been almost imperceptible. That's because
it's operating just below radar. It's a campaign to soothe us as individuals, and to avoid confrontation
with informed opposition. Their recent announcement of a "Community Open House" this Thursday August 17th
is the latest ploy.
When FORCE asked to meet with St Marys' company representatives we were told that they weren't ready yet,
that they needed time to formulate their plans, that there was no new information available to discuss.
Read the full FORCE Newsletter
View the St Marys Notification
Thursday, August
3, 2006 - Halton Compass
Hamilton looks to update MNR aggregate maps
On July 26, Hamilton City Council passed a motion to independently update old aggregate maps still
being used by the Ministry of Natural Resources.
Spurred on by a motion created by Flamborough Councillor Margaret McCarthy, the new maps could
conceivable become a fly in the ointment for proponents of the St. Mary's quarry application at the
corner of 11th Concession and Milburough Townline on the Flamborough-Campbellville border.
Read the Full Article (188 KB)
Wednesday, August
2, 2006
Community Alert! - August 2006 - St Marys Cement Group is making
house calls in our Community.
John Moroz, Vice President and General Manager, St Marys CBM Aggregates, visited several residents over the
past couple of weeks. Their expressed intent was to determine residents' concerns with the proposed quarry.
The house-to-house visits are a public relations effort that fit into a larger strategy to "greenwash" the
effects of the proposed Flamborough Quarry. The St Marys literature is friendly and appealing. It describes
the company favorably making general promises about being a good "neighbour".
Read the full FORCE Newsletter
Friday, July
28, 2006 - Flamborough Review
A cycling FORCE to be reckoned with
Cyclists from across the region, with the organizational support of FORCE (Friends of Rural Communities and
the Environment) are hoping to raise awareness about how a proposed quarry could affect them.
The Tour de FORCE, a 50 and 100 km bike rally, will be held Sunday, September 10, to give cyclists a way to
express their concern over the proposed St. Mary's limestone quarry, which, if approved, would be built on
the 11th Concession.
Read the Full Article (176 KB)
Thursday, July
20, 2006 - Halton Compass
FORCE suspected St. Marys behind Lowndes application
As far as the Friends Of Rural Communities and the Environment (FORCE), the other shoe finally dropped.
The Flamborough group, dedicated to stopping the quarry application of the northwest corner of 11th
Concession East and Milburough Townline, suspected from the beginning that the applicant, David Lowndes,
was simply a frontman for a bigger company.
Read the Full Article (269 KB)
Tuesday, July 4, 2006
St Marys Cement announces the purchase of Lowndes Holdings Corp
Last week many residents in the Freelton and Carlisle area recieved a flyer from St. Marys Cement(CBM) announcing the purchase of Lowndes Holdings Corp.
and the proposed quarry site on the 11th Concession. St. Marys Cement also ran an ad in the June 30th issue of the Flamborough Review.
Initial Press Release(45 KB)
View the Flyer (304 KB)
View the Notification (807 KB)
Friday, June
30, 2006 - Flamborough Review
Communication the key: St Marys
As Ward 15 Councillor Margaret McCarthy pushes for a public meeting with the new owners of the proposed
quarry site in Mountsberg, St. Marys Cement is asking for time to assess the details of the application.
"The community overwhelmingly wants me to conduct a meeting, as opposed to an open house," McCarthy noted, alluding to a dozen or so residents who have emailed her office.
Read the Full Article (173 KB)
Friday, June 30, 2006 - Flamborough Review
Rural Official Plan delayed
Hamilton's proposed new rural official plan received a lukewarm reception from politicians and residents
this week.
Despite assurances from city planning staff that the harmonized ROP will protect Hamilton's farmland,
politicians wanted more time to review the impact such a document will have on the rural community.
Members of the planning and economic development committee agreed to delay approving the document until
September, so that further research can be conducted on a number of issues.
Councillors wanted city planning staff to investigate:
- establishing precise boundaries in the Winona area;
- allowing some development in the Greensville area;
- allowing property on the mountain to be included in the urban area rather than the rural area;
- including more diversification of businesses in the rural areas
- preventing any quarry expansion until proper aggregate mapping is done.
Read the Full Article (178 KB)
Friday, June
30, 2006 - Flamborough Review
Both sides of quarry battle set to dig in for the long haul
"It's business as usual," said the chair of the grassroots citizen's group protesting plans for a quarry in
northeast Flamborough.
Graham Flint of Friends of Rural Communities and the Environment (FORCE) was responding to news that the
proposed quarry site on the corner of 11th Concession Road East and Milburough Line is no longer owned by
Lowndes Holdings Corp. but is now in the hands of a major player in the aggregate industry, St. Marys
Cement Group. Read the Full Article (178 KB)
Tuesday, June 27, 2006 - Canadian Champion
Lowndes under new ownership
In a startling move last Tuesday, St. Marys Cement Group announced the purchase of Lowndes Holdings Corp.,
including the site proposed to be a limestone quarry in Flamborough. Read the Full Article (169 KB)
Saturday, June 24, 2006 - Hamilton Spectator
Citizens gear up to meet Goliath in quarry battle
One of Canada's biggest cement and building materials companies has taken on the task of developing a
controversial limestone quarry north of Carlisle.
The St. Marys Cement Group has bought Lowndes Holding Corp., which aimed to establish the huge quarry at
Milburough Line and 11th Concession and had run into fierce opposition from a community group and
Councillor Margaret McCarthy.
Read the Full Article
Friday, June 23, 2006 - Flamborough Review
Proposed quarry site sold
St. Marys Cement Group this week announced the purchase - effective June 15 - of Lowndes Holding Corp.,
which owns the site of a proposed quarry located at 11th Concession Road East at Milburough Line in
northeast Flamborough.
According to a press release issued on behalf of the company, St. Marys, which manufactures construction
products, plans to extract dolostone, a high quality construction aggregate, from the 158-hectare
site. Read the Full Article (170 KB)
Friday, June 23, 2006 - Flamborough Review
Extreme heat, delays result in year's first watering ban
Timetable delays and an unexpected heat wave forced city officials to impose the first watering ban of the
season on the hamlet of Carlisle last Sunday.
Jim Harnum, Director of water and wastewater for the city of Hamilton, made the call to ban outdoor water
use for 10 days - until June 27 - after the community nearly ran out of water. Water pressure for many
homeowners would have been minimal, for about a half-hour span, Saturday night, he said.
Read the Full Article (176 KB)
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Lowndes' Holdings Corp. and Proposed Quarry Property Sold! Name on the Proposed Quarry Gate Changes; Community Case Remains Strong
On June 20, 2006, St. Marys Cement Group announced it has purchased Lowndes Holdings Corp. which owns the
site of the proposed quarry on the 11th Concession East in the former Township of Flamborough, now part of
the City of Hamilton. St. Marys has also confirmed its intention to proceed with the applications
previously submitted by Lowndes Holdings Corp. for the site. The change in ownership does not change our
opposition to the proposed quarry! read more...
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
City of Hamilton issues a 10 day Temporary Full Outdoor Water Use/Watering Ban for the Community of Carlisle
As the Summer season begins the residents of Carlisle are prohibited from running their lawn watering systems, washing their cars,
sidewalks and driveways and filling their pools. On June 18, 2006 the Community of Carlisle received notice of a 10 day full water
ban. The City plans to use this time to complete the final upgrades to the Carlisle water system. The City will review the ban after
the 10 day period.
Read the full Public Notice (80 KB)
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Halton Hamilton Source Protection Region Receives Funding to Protect Drinking Water Sources
Conservation Halton, Halton Region, the City of Hamilton and Hamilton Conservation Authority have formed a
partnership to protect drinking water sources in this area, with Conservation Halton acting as the Planning
Study Coordinator. The partnership received a $91,000 grant from the Ministry of the Environment as part
of a series of grants made by the Province to advance the work of source water protection planning. To
learn more, visit www.ene.gov.on.ca/envision/news/2006/042101.pdf and www.ene.gov.on.ca/envision/news/2006/042101mb2.pdf.
This funding has been provided to assess and inventory threats to municipal drinking water supplies. On
behalf of the community, FORCE will monitor these efforts closely.
Water protection plans are the implementation backbone of the proposed Clean Water Act. The Act was introduced
following broad consultations with municipalities; conservation authorities; agriculture, industry and
non-governmental organizations; public health officials; water experts; and the public. When passed, it would
ensure that communities are able to identify potential risks to their supply of drinking water and to take
action to reduce or eliminate these risks. The Clean Water Act remains before MPPs in the Ontario Legislature
for consideration - it is currently at the stage of Second Reading debate.
Thursday, June 1, 2006 - Halton Compass
Chudleigh sides with residents over Lowndes
The fight against the Lowndes quarry proposal on the border of Flamborough and Campbellville got some
Provincial support when Halton MPP Ted Chudleigh said on May 26, he would fight on the side of the citizens
opposing it. Read the Full Article (73 KB)