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Friday, June 7, 2013 - Flamborough Review
FORCE recipient of Environmentalist of the Year award


Friends of Rural Communities and the Environment (FORCE) is one of two groups being recognized with the Dr. Victor Cecilioni Award for the Environmentalist of the Year for 2012.
Read the Full Article (25 KB)


Wednesday, April 24, 2013 - Hamilton Spectator
Mahoney: Quarry foes set to celebrate holding their ground


Out beyond the last pull of the city, almost at the limits of the known world (just before you fall over the edge into Puslinch), you come to Mountsberg, where LRT stands for Lotsa Room for Trees.

Life was peaceful. From their windows, people could see — I don’t know — languid distances of hollyhock and wooded hills, deer on the greenswards and the happy leaping of market value assessments.
Read the Full Article (105 KB)


Monday, Arpil 08, 2013 - Flamborough Review
Quarry battle over opponents say


The mood was decidedly jubilant and the applause at times deafening as details of the agreement closing the door on a quarry proposed for northeast Flamborough were presented last Tuesday at a community information meeting in Carlisle.
Read the Full Article (65 KB)


Wednesday, March 27, 2013 - Flamborough Review
FORCE ready to celebrate quarry victory


After reviewing details of a recent agreement between the Ontario government and St Marys Cement (SMC), the chair of FORCE (Friends of Rural Communities and the Environment) is now convinced the battle against the establishment of a quarry in northeast Flamborough is over. And the community can celebrate victory.
Read the Full Article (21 KB)


Thursday, March 14, 2013 - Flamborough Review - Dianne Cornish, Review reporter
My View: The community that could


One of my favourite books as a child was about a little steam engine that pulls a long train over a mountain while bolstering its confidence by repeating, “I think I can…I think I can.” The Little Engine That Could is a heartwarming story that shows that hard work and determination pays off.
Read the Full Article (67 KB)


Thursday, March 14, 2013 - Flamborough Review
A FORCE to be reckoned with


From the moment the community was alerted to St Marys Cement’s plans to build a 158-hectare quarry on the 11th Concession Road East and Milburough Line, Carlisle and area residents rallied to fight the proposal.
Read the Full Article (27 KB)


Thursday, Mar 14, 2013 - Flamborough Review
Future of proposed quarry site unknown


The proposal for a quarry in northeast Flamborough is dead. But questions remain about what St Marys Cement (SMC) will do with the land on 11th Concession Road East near Milburough Line.
Read the Full Article (101 KB)


Saturday, Mar 9, 2013 - Hamilton Spectator
Carlisle quarry proposal is dead


A controversial Carlisle quarry is no more.

The Ontario government and St. Mary’s Cement have reached an agreement that will ensure a huge quarry near Carlisle will not be built and protect local wetlands and water supply.

Read the Full Article (129 KB)


Friday, Mar 8, 2013 - Flamborough Review
Province pays SMC $15M to quash quarry proposal


The quarry plan for northeast Flamborough is dead.

A bulletin released by the Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs around 3 p.m. this afternoon ( March 8 ) reported that the Ontario government and St Marys Cement (SMC) have reached an agreement to ensure that the quarry planned for 11th Concession Road East and Milburough Line will not be built.
Read the Full Article (105 KB)


Friday, March 8, 2013 - Flamborough Review
Flamborough Quarry proposal nixed


The government is expected to make a ground-breaking announcement at 3 p.m. Friday about the proposed Flamborough Quarry.
Read the Full Article (93 KB)


Wednesday, Nov 7, 2012 - Flamborough Review
Prorogation heats up quarry battle


St Marys Cement (SMC) says it will subpoena Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty and cabinet ministers Jim Bradley and Rick Bartolucci to show that the Liberal government’s move to kill the proposed Flamborough Quarry was politically motivated.
Read the Full Article (175 KB)


Thursday, Nov 1, 2012 - Hamilton Spectator
Premier to be subpoenaed in Flamborough quarry case


St Marys Cement is capitalizing on a parliamentary loophole to subpoena Premier Dalton McGuinty and other senior cabinet members over their decision to kill the controversial Carlisle quarry project — a decision the company suggests was made to "save the seat" of Liberal MPP Ted McMeekin.
Read the Full Article (51 KB)


Wednesday, October 31, 2012 - Hamilton Spectator
St. Mary’s may subpoena Dalton McGuinty in Flamborough quarry case


A parliamentary loophole could force Premier Dalton McGuinty and other senior cabinet ministers to testify in a judicial review of the Liberal government’s decision to kill the controversial Flamborough quarry project.
Read the Full Article (39 KB)


Wednesday, October 24, 2012 - Hamilton Spectator
Quashed bid bolsters anti-quarry lobby


A regulatory body’s decision to quash a proposed quarry on the Niagara Escarpment earlier this month is giving hope to a group opposing one in northeast Flamborough.

But that battle is far from over, says Graham Flint, chair of the anti-quarry citizens' group, FORCE (Friends of Rural Communities and the Environment).
Read the Full Article (39 KB)


Monday, September 10, 2012 - Flamborough Review
Legal skirmishes on quarry under way


The first of many legal confrontations between St Marys Cement (SMC) and those opposed to the aggregate company’s plans to establish a quarry in northeast Flamborough resulted last month in a provincial court upholding another body’s earlier decision supporting the Ministry of Environment’s (MOE’s) refusal last year to grant a permit to take water (PTTW) to the company. But, for the second time, the loss of the appeal has led to yet another legal action by SMC, this time to the Ontario Court of Appeal
Read the Full Article (164 KB)


Tuesday, May 15, 2012 - Flamborough Review
St Marys, FORCE present on Aggregate Resources Act


St Marys Cement and the local organization that opposes the aggregate company’s plans to build a limestone quarry in northeast Flamborough have appeared before the legislative committee struck to evaluate the Aggregate Resources Act (ARA)
Read the Full Article (145 KB)


Thursday, April 19, 2012 - Flamborough Review
FORCE continues to dig in for battles with SMC


Even though it’s been almost eight years since residents in northeast Flamborough learned that a large limestone quarry was being proposed on the 11th Concession near Milburough Line, the community’s resolve to defeat the proposal hasn’t waned. Proof of their continued commitment was evident last Tuesday as close to 300 residents gathered for a meeting at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic Elementary School in Carlisle to voice their opposition to the longstanding proposal and hear from local politicians that they are not alone in their battle.
Read the Full Article (27 KB)


Thursday, March 15, 2012 - Flamborough Review
Cabinet minister may testify at quarry’s judicial review


Ontario’s Minister of Environment Jim Bradley could be called as a witness atSt Marys Cement’s upcoming judicial review of the Ontario government’s decision to freeze the zoning on a proposed quarry site in northeast Flamborough.
Read the Full Article (97 KB)


Thursday, March 8, 2012 - Hamilton Spectator
Carlisle quarry spurs new legal battle


St. Marys Cement has opened yet another legal front in the battle over a proposed limestone quarry in Flamborough.

The cement company is asking the provincial divisional court to set aside a decision by the Environmental Review Tribunal that prevents it from taking water at the would-be quarry location at 11th Concession and Milburough Line.
Read the Full Article (23 KB)


Friday, February 24, 2012 - Flamborough Review
SMC continues to seek permit


St Marys Cement (SMC), which is proposing to establish a large limestone quarry at 11th Concession Road East and Milburough Line, is appealing to Ontario’s divisional court to set aside a recent decision by the Environmental Review Tribunal (ERT) that denied its application for a Permit to Take Water (PTTW). The aggregate company is seeking the permit to conduct pump tests at the site, it said, to show a groundwater recirculation system proposed for the quarry will significantly mitigate any negative impacts that it could have on the local groundwater system.
Read the Full Article (21 KB)


Thursday, January 19, 2012 - Flamborough Review
Tribunal upholds St Marys PTTW decision


The Environmental Review Tribunal (ERT) last Friday dismissed St Marys Cement’s (SMC’s) appeal to overturn the Ministry of the Environment’s (MOE’s) rejection of their Permit to Take Water application to allow them to conduct pump tests at the proposed quarry site on 11th Concession East at Milburough Line. The decision was welcomed by FORCE (Friends of Rural Communities and the Environment), a local grassroots citizen’s group opposed to the quarry, but a spokesperson for the aggregate company expressed disappointment with the ruling and said the company will review its legal options.
Read the Full Article (23 KB)


Friday, September 23, 2011 - Flamborough Review
SMC files NAFTA claim suit


St Marys Cement (SMC) filed an application for arbitration last week, bringing its Flamborough Quarry battle to the international stage and following through on plans it made public last month to file a $275-million (US) arbitration claim against the Canadian government under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
Read the Full Article (17 KB)


Monday, August 15, 2011 - FORCE Response to NAFTA Claim filed by St Marys VCNA, LLC

We are disappointed, but not surprised, by St Marys Cement's decisions to challenge two of the Province's decisions regarding the proposed St Marys Cement Flamborough quarry. Those decisions are a Ministerial Zoning Order to freeze the current zoning on the property, issued in April 2010, and a Declaration of Provincial Interest before the Ontario Municipal Board, in April 2011. We understand now that the company has filed a NAFTA suit. It has also filed a notice of application for judicial review in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.

Our Communities disagree with the company's interpretation of events and suggestions that the provincial government's decisions were made inappropriately or for improper purposes:

To make an accusation that the reasons for the provincial decisions was for other than the fact and science based concerns related to the project appears disrespectful to all the private and public professionals who have evaluated the project, to date, and have made a professional decision to recommend that the project should not proceed.

Our Communities do not believe that the company has exhausted its appeal rights before the OMB.

St Marys Cement has chosen, however, to adjourn the OMB hearing and to escalate the situation. The company has moved the matter to the courts and a NAFTA tribunal for consideration.

The clear message to our Communities is that it's not over...yet.

We must stay engaged and continue to represent our communities’ interests until this proposed quarry is stopped.

Our Communities feel that it is important to set the record straight. FORCE, its supporters and volunteers, and our Communities have done nothing wrong.

We are disappointed that St Marys Cement has singled out two of FORCE’s hundreds of supporters and volunteers. It is inappropriate for SMC to be targeting these volunteers due to their past and current public service. We are concerned that SMC has chosen to make allegations based on incorrect facts and information. These allegations affect the reputations and credibility of FORCE, its volunteers, and our Communities.

We believe citizens should be encouraged to volunteer, to engage in public discussion and to contribute in the countless ways necessary to create a civil society that is alive to the interests and rights of its members.

We categorically state that FORCE has not received and does not receive:

  • Any funds from Environmental Defence (ED) itself or any other coalition in which Environmental Defence is involved
  • Any funds from the Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation, either directly or indirectly through Environmental Defence or any other organization

FORCE is funded 100% by individual and business donations from supporters in our Communities. Individual FORCE supporters in the community have the choice to donate directly to FORCE or to Environmental Defence, specifying that the donation be directed to the FORCE case. FORCE supporters’ donations to ED, directed to the FORCE case, are segregated and legal and technical expert invoices can be paid from these segregated community funds.

  • FORCE is a community case partner with Environmental Defence under the terms of a legal assistance agreement. This is the same approach used by ED for numerous community groups for decades.
  • The FORCE case and application were reviewed by an external case advisory committee to Environmental Defence to ensure the case was significant and consistent with ED's charitable mandate and approved on recommendation by the ED Board
  • ED provides contribution processing, credit card and tax receipting services for individuals and businesses who are concerned about the proposed Flamborough quarry and choose to donate to the case through Environmental Defence
  • ED assesses a small administrative fee for providing these services
  • Both organizations retain their full independence under this agreement

These transactions are all reflected, and have been each year, in the annual FORCE audited financial statements posted on our website at www.StopTheQuarry.ca. No funds have ever been received, assigned, transferred or directed to FORCE from Environmental Defence or the Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation, directly or indirectly.

FORCE intends to stay engaged and continue to represent our communities' interests until the proposed quarry is stopped.

Our Communities view the JR and NAFTA applications like SLAPP – a strategic lawsuit against public participation - by another name.

Participation by members of the community in matters of public interest is fundamental to our democratic society.

Given the universal and documented opposition to this proposed quarry by staff and elected officials in Hamilton, Burlington, Milton and Halton, as well as other public agencies, we view this as an attempt by St Marys Cement to silence its critics.

We are now being forced to direct our energies (and finances) into responding to these applications and away from the real issues which are the inappropriateness of this massive development and its potential adverse impacts in our Communities.

We will not be bullied and intimidated from advocating to protect our Communities. There is too much at stake: our drinking water, precious natural features, local farms and food production, road safety, schools, and our way of life.

Together, We Will Succeed!

Read the Full Response (23KB)


Sunday, August 14, 2011 - Hamilton Spectator
The Carlisle quarry and NAFTA


The controversy over the Carlisle quarry has gone global, illustrating how Ontario and Ontarians can be the victims of flaws in a trade deal.

St. Mary’s Cement is threatening Canada under NAFTA Chapter 11 because Ontario took steps to reconsider the aggregate quarry it wanted to excavate on about 67 hectares at the 11th Concession and Milburough Line. The company is represented by Canadian lawyer Barry Appleton, one of the pioneers of Chapter 11 lawsuits against Canada.
Read the Full Article (26 KB)


Friday, August 12, 2011 - Hamilton Spectator
St Marys tosses another rock


At one time Graham Flint was convinced his quest to kill the Carlisle quarry would end at the city council.

Seven years later, a cement company is asking an international trade tribunal to weigh in on a controversial plan to dig up limestone in the Flamborough resident's backyard.
Read the Full Article (300 KB)


Thursday, August 11, 2011 - Hamilton Spectator
St. Marys seeks $275M over scuttled quarry


A Brazilian-owned corporation is alleging its bid to build a massive quarry outside Hamilton was scuttled by the Liberal government for political reasons.

St. Mary’s Cement has served notice it plans to file a $275-million arbitration claim against the federal government under the North American Free Trade Agreement, charging the province intervened last year to help Grits living nearby.
Read the Full Article (64 KB)


Wednesday, August 10, 2011
IN RESPONSE TO TORONTO STAR ARTICLE - "Cement company seeks $275M in compensation over scuttled quarry"

FORCE learned today in a Toronto Star article that St Marys Cement has filed a NAFTA suit. We are disappointed, but not surprised, by St Marys Cement’s decisions to challenge two of the Province’s decisions regarding the proposed St Marys Cement Flamborough quarry. Those decisions are a Ministerial Zoning Order to freeze the current zoning on the property, issued in April 2010, and a Declaration of Provincial Interest before the Ontario Municipal Board, in April 2011. We understand now that the company has filed a NAFTA suit in addition to a filing of a notice of application for judicial review in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.

Our Communities obviously disagree with the company’s interpretation of events and suggestions that the provincial government’s decisions were made inappropriately or for improper purposes.

  • It is clear that this proposed development has been under review for over 7 years.
  • Staff and elected officials in Hamilton, Burlington, Milton and the Region of Halton, as well as their Officers of Medical Health, objected to the proposed quarry, as did other public agencies such as Conservation Halton, the Niagara Escarpment Commission, the Hamilton Wentworth District School Board, MNR and MOE. Indeed, they have all recently reconfirmed their objections.
  • More than 1200 area residents formally objected to the proposal.
  • Opposition to the development crosses all political parties, including MPP Ted Chudleigh (PC - Halton), MPP Andrea Horwath (Hamilton Centre/Leader of the NDP), MPP Ted McMeekin (Liberal - Ancaster-Dundas-Flamborough-Westdale), and MP David Sweet (PC - Ancaster-Dundas-Flamborough-Westdale)
  • The Province made a decision to freeze the zoning on the property that appears to, in part, reflect on those stakeholders’ positions.
  • As the company pursued its interests before the Ontario Municipal Board, Hamilton, Milton and Halton made decisions to participate formally as parties in the hearing to represent their concerns. They requested that the Province declare a Provincial Interest in the proceedings. The Province made a decision to declare a Provincial Interest to the Board.

To make an accusation that the reasons for the provincial decisions was for other than the fact and science based concerns related to the project appears to be disrespectful to all the private and public professionals who have evaluated the project, to date, and have made a professional decision to recommend that the project should not proceed.

We do not believe that the company has exhausted its appeal rights before the OMB.

St Marys Cement has chosen, however, to adjourn the OMB hearing and to escalate the situation moving the matter to the courts and now to a NAFTA tribunal for consideration. This is not the first time that the company has not respected and listened to the positions and decisions of involved governments and stakeholders. St Marys Cement is continuing to act in its own self interests.

The clear message to our Communities is that it’s not over...yet.

Our legal team will review the recent filings and provide our Communities with their best advice.

We will not be bullied and intimidated from advocating to protect our communities. There is too much at stake: our drinking water, precious natural features, local farms and food production, road safety, schools, and our way of life.

We must stay engaged and continue to represent our communities’ interests until this proposed quarry is stopped!
Read the Full Toronto Star Article (75 KB)


Thursday, July 21, 2011 - Flamborough Review
Dates set on SMC's water permit appeal


As the Ontario government and St Marys Cement (SMC) prepare to square off on the aggregate company's court challenge to have the zoning freeze lifted from the proposed Flamborough quarry, SMC continues to proceed with other activities aimed at clearing the way to receiving an aggregate licence.

One such activity is the company's renewed attempt to obtain a Permit to Take Water (PTTW) from the Ministry of the Environment (MOE) to do pump tests on the site located on 11th Concession East and Milburough Line.
Read the Full Article (42 KB)


Thursday, June 2, 2011 - Flamborough Review
MPP's seat doesn't need to be 'saved'


RE: Quarry move a "seat saver": Hudak, Review, May 5

Why does PC leader Tim Hudak feel the need to indicate that the future of our elected M.P.P needs to be 'saved' by the provincial government?

Where has he been during the almost eight years that FORCE and this community have been fighting the giant, foreign-owned corporation, St Marys Cement?
Read the Full Article (40 KB)


Monday, May 30, 2011 - Flamborough Review
St Marys seeks judicial review of Ministerial Zoning Order


St Marys Cement has abandoned its appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB), deciding instead to take its quest for a quarry in Flamborough to court.

The aggregate company, which wants to establish a 150-hectare limestone quarry on 11 Concession Road East and Milburough Line, announced last Thursday that it will submit an application for a judicial review to the divisional court of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in an effort to quash the Ontario government's ministerial zoning order of April 2010 and the government's recently announced provincial declaration of interest.
Read the Full Article (44 KB)


Monday, May 30, 2011 - Flamborough Review
Statement reveals true colours


Re: Quarry move a 'seat saver': Hudak, Review, May 5

Thank you Mr. Hudak, leader of the Ontario PC Party, for showing us your true colours.

We now know, beyond all shadow of a doubt, that it is your party's intention to support the interests of a Brazilian multi-billion dollar conglomerate (St Marys Cement is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Votorantim Cimentos) which seeks to exploit precious Canadian natural resources for profit and to bleed this community dry (both financially and hydrogeologically) through a protracted and unnecessary legal battle.
Read the Full Article (27 KB)


Friday, May 13, 2011 - Flamborough Review
Quarry is not a partisan issue


Regarding the article published on May 5 by Kevin Werner on the topic of the proposed Flamborough Quarry by St. Marys Cement, the decision by the Ontario government to declare a provincial interest in the matter is justified.

Three municipalities (City of Hamilton, Region of Halton and Town of Milton) all requested that the province declare a provincial interest. The requests came after seven years of fact-based opposition to the proposed quarry. The medical officers of health for Hamilton and Halton have both expressed concerns with the proposed quarry. The local conservation authority, school board, Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry of Natural Resources have all objected to the proposed quarry.
Read the Full Article (27 KB)


Friday, May 13, 2011 - Flamborough Review
OMB not the answer


Mr. Tim Hudak implies that the OMB is a better forum for area planning than elected officials. That should raise some questions as to whose best interest the provincial Conservatives are looking out for.
Read the Full Article (25 KB)


Friday, May 6, 2011 - Flamborough Reviewr
Quarry move a ‘seat saver’: Hudak


Ontario Progressive Conservative leader Tim Hudak accused the Liberals of trying to save Ancaster-Dundas-Flamborough-Westdale Liberal MPP Ted McMeekin’s political future by intervening in the Mountsberg quarry controversy.

“This looks like a seat saver,” said Hudak. “It’s important we respect the process that is under way through the OMB (Ontario Municipal Board).”
Read the Full Article (28 KB)


Thursday, April 21, 2011 - Hamilton Spectator
Province steps in to Carlisle quarry fight


The Ontario government has invoked a rarely used procedural tool to prevent a controversial quarry project from going ahead in Carlisle.

Rick Bartolucci, the provincial Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, has sent the Ontario Municipal Board a letter stating the government has declared a "provincial interest" in the Flamborough quarry proposed by St. Marys Cement.
Read the Full Article (112 KB)


Thursday, April 21, 2011 - Flamborough Review
Province declares interest in quarry land


One year after the provincial government issued a zoning freeze on a proposed quarry site in north Flamborough, Ontario's Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing declared a provincial interest in the matter, posing another potential challenge for St Marys Cement and its plans to build a 150-hectare quarry.
Read the Full Article (43 KB)


Thursday, March 24, 2011 - Flamborough Review
St Marys proceeds with quarry application


As a prehearing conference about an OMB appeal on the zoning freeze of the proposed Flamborough Quarry site approaches, St Marys Cement (SMC) continues to move forward with is quarry application.

On Friday, April 1, representatives of the aggregate company will meet with parties opposed to the application and in favour of the retention of a zoning freeze on the quarry lands to try to resolve issues before the matter goes to a full OMB hearing.
Read the Full Article (45 KB)


Friday, February 4, 2011 - Flamborough Review
City to back quarry fight at OMB


Pending council approval, the City of Hamilton will seek party status in opposition to the proposed Flamborough Quarry at the upcoming Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) hearing and pre-hearings. Hamilton's planning committee, chaired by Ward 14 councillor Robert Pasuta, endorsed the move during an in camera session last Tuesday.
Read the Full Article (42 KB)


Wednesday, January 19, 2011 - Hamilton Spectator - News Brief
City committee decides to fight quarry appeal


The city's planning committee has agreed to jump into a fight over a proposed quarry in Flamborough at the Ontario Municipal Board.
Read the Full Article (17 KB)
MZO OMB First Pre-hearing Notice - April 1st 2011 (196 KB)
Hamilton Planning Committee Jan18th 2011 - Council Report (116 KB)


Monday, November 8, 2010 - Flamborough Review
Quarry issue goes to OMB


The provincial government averted being the subject of legal action when it referred the St Marys Cement (SMC) appeal of its Ministerial Zoning Order (MZO) to the OMB last week.

The aggregate company had prepared and issued a press release on Friday threatening to force the government's hand by seeking a judicial review of the matter unless the province immediately processed its appeal launched six months ago.
Read the Full Article (29 KB)


Thursday, October 28, 2010 - Flamborough Review
SMC re-evaluates permit position


A spokesperson for St. Marys Cement (SMC) has explained the aggregate company's reason for withdrawing its appeal of the Ministry of Environment's (MOE's) decision on its permit to take water (PTTW) application for the proposed quarry in northeast Flamborough.

Read the Full Article (26 KB)


Friday, October 15, 2010 - Hamilton Spectator
St. Marys Cement drops water-permit appeal


A multinational company fighting to build a limestone quarry in Flamborough has dropped its appeal of the provincial environment ministry's refusal to issue a permit to take water.

Read the Full Article (22 KB)


Thursday, October 14, 2010 - Flamborough Review
FORCE drives home message: 'It's not over yet'


It's not over yet.

That's the message the anti-quarry group FORCE is hoping to drive home to residents of northeast Flamborough who may believe the battle against the proposed St Marys Quarry is finished.

Read the Full Article (33 KB)


 

Thursday, October 14, 2010
Muncipal Election 2010 – Inform Yourself and Vote Smart

What happens at our city and town councils directly impacts our air and water quality and determines the liveability of our communities. Environmental Defence, our case sponsor, and the Ontario Greenbelt Alliance, of which FORCE is a member, surveyed candidates throughout the Greater Toronto Area, including Hamilton and Halton Region, to ask for input on some key quality of life issues.

You can find their unedited answers to help you vote smart in the 2010 municipal election.

FORCE does not support or endorse individual candidates running for office. We are providing this information as a resource to our Communities to assist voters as they gather information from a range of sources to make their important electoral choices.

To explore go to VoteSmart2010.ca.

To view a sampling of area candidates' responses from our Communities, click on their name below:
(note: All sample responses are in PDF format with an approximate file size of 100KB)

Hamilton Mayor
Hamilton Ward 15
Milton Mayor
Local & Milton Regional Councillor for Wards 2,3,4,5
Milton - Ward 3
Burlington Mayor
Burlington – Ward 3


Wednesday, October 13, 2010
St Marys Cement Withdraws PTTW Appeal to Environmental Review Tribunal
FORCE Motion Delivers Results for our Communities

St Marys Cement (SMC) has withdrawn its appeal to the Environmental Review Tribunal (ERT). SMC had appealed the decision by the Ministry of the Environment (MOE) to refuse to issue a Permit to Take Water (PTTW) to the company in June 2010. MOE refused the permit on the basis that a Ministerial Zoning Order is in place on the proposed quarry site, freezing the zoning as Agricultural and Conservation Management, effectively stopping a quarry. The PTTW permit application was in support of a establishing a quarry. So what happened? Here’s what we know:

On August 26, 2010, the ERT held a preliminary hearing in Waterdown. The tribunal member identified some of the issues in the appeal, decided which groups and individuals would have party, participant and presenter status, and established that the main hearing would be held during the week of December 6, 2010. Lawyers for FORCE indicated to the other lawyers and to the tribunal member that our Communities intended to bring forward a motion that the appeal was premature.

On September 28, 2010, FORCE presented a 714 page submission to the ERT, on behalf of our Communities. It was also delivered to the lawyers for the other parties, including SMC, the MOE, and the City of Hamilton. The FORCE submission included a motion for adjournment sine die (an adjournment without prejudice), an affidavit signed by FORCE Chair and Spokesperson, Graham Flint, and many supporting documents. The FORCE submission made the argument that SMC’s appeal to the ERT was premature. Lawyers for FORCE wrote that the appeal should be adjourned, until the OMB considers SMC’s request that the Ministerial Zoning Order be revoked or cancelled. Read the final FORCE motion (148 KB) and affidavit (677 KB).

Lawyers for the other parties were scheduled to respond to FORCE’s motion, in writing, by October 13, 2010. The FORCE motion was to be argued by lawyers for all parties at a hearing before the ERT on October 20, 2010. On October 12, just one day before response materials were due, lawyers for SMC wrote to the ERT and withdrew the company’s appeal. Read the SMC letter (33 KB).

While we may never know all the reasons behind SMC’s withdrawal of its appeal, our Communities’ intervention before the ERT was solid and substantive.

This is a key example of why our Communities need to stay engaged, until St Marys Cement has exhausted all of its appeals. Decisions to intervene before tribunals, like the ERT, cost a significant amount of money. Legal costs alone for the ERT preliminary hearing and preparations for the motion for adjournment approached almost $40,000. Our proactive motion has, however, helped to save many more tens of thousands of dollars that we would have had to spend had the entire appeal hearing proceeded. Sometimes, a strategic investment can help save a large investment, like the one we all have in our communities!

We need to keep doing what we have shown works – pooling our resources, bringing our Communities’ unique perspectives and strong case arguments to the table, and ensuring we are represented by the best legal and technical expert teams.

Together We Will Succeed!

Read the FORCE Motion (148 KB)
Read the FORCE Affidavit without Exhibits- Graham Flint (677 KB)


Thursday, October 14, 2010 - Flamborough Review
SMC withdraws permit appeal


St Marys Cement (SMC) has dropped its appeal of the Ministry of Environment’s refusal four months ago to approve its permit to take water (PTTW) application.

Read the Full Article (31 KB)


Wednesday, October 13, 2010
St Marys Cement Withdraws PTTW Appeal to Environmental Review Tribunal
FORCE Motion Delivers Results for our Communities

St Marys Cement (SMC) has withdrawn its appeal to the Environmental Review Tribunal (ERT). SMC had appealed the decision by the Ministry of the Environment (MOE) to refuse to issue a Permit to Take Water (PTTW) to the company in June 2010. MOE refused the permit on the basis that a Ministerial Zoning Order is in place on the proposed quarry site, freezing the zoning as Agricultural and Conservation Management, effectively stopping a quarry. The PTTW permit application was in support of a establishing a quarry. So what happened? Here’s what we know:

On August 26, 2010, the ERT held a preliminary hearing in Waterdown. The tribunal member identified some of the issues in the appeal, decided which groups and individuals would have party, participant and presenter status, and established that the main hearing would be held during the week of December 6, 2010. Lawyers for FORCE indicated to the other lawyers and to the tribunal member that our Communities intended to bring forward a motion that the appeal was premature.

On September 28, 2010, FORCE presented a 714 page submission to the ERT, on behalf of our Communities. It was also delivered to the lawyers for the other parties, including SMC, the MOE, and the City of Hamilton. The FORCE submission included a motion for adjournment sine die (an adjournment without prejudice), an affidavit signed by FORCE Chair and Spokesperson, Graham Flint, and many supporting documents. The FORCE submission made the argument that SMC’s appeal to the ERT was premature. Lawyers for FORCE wrote that the appeal should be adjourned, until the OMB considers SMC’s request that the Ministerial Zoning Order be revoked or cancelled. Read the final FORCE motion (148 KB) and affidavit (677 KB).

Lawyers for the other parties were scheduled to respond to FORCE’s motion, in writing, by October 13, 2010. The FORCE motion was to be argued by lawyers for all parties at a hearing before the ERT on October 20, 2010. On October 12, just one day before response materials were due, lawyers for SMC wrote to the ERT and withdrew the company’s appeal. Read the SMC letter (33 KB).

While we may never know all the reasons behind SMC’s withdrawal of its appeal, our Communities’ intervention before the ERT was solid and substantive.

This is a key example of why our Communities need to stay engaged, until St Marys Cement has exhausted all of its appeals. Decisions to intervene before tribunals, like the ERT, cost a significant amount of money. Legal costs alone for the ERT preliminary hearing and preparations for the motion for adjournment approached almost $40,000. Our proactive motion has, however, helped to save many more tens of thousands of dollars that we would have had to spend had the entire appeal hearing proceeded. Sometimes, a strategic investment can help save a large investment, like the one we all have in our communities!

We need to keep doing what we have shown works – pooling our resources, bringing our Communities’ unique perspectives and strong case arguments to the table, and ensuring we are represented by the best legal and technical expert teams.

Together We Will Succeed!

Read the FORCE Motion (148 KB)
Read the FORCE Affidavit without Exhibits- Graham Flint (677 KB)

 


Together We Will Succeed!