Melancthon mayor pleased at response from ARA review committee

By Wes Keller 2012-05-24 / News

Melancthon Mayor Bill Hill said he got a positive response to his concise, 1,500- word presentation on the Aggregate Resources Act review in Toronto last Monday. The committee, I believe, liked the fact our comments were direct and specific for the most part, while others were more general. Only time will tell, he said in an e-mailed response to a bid for his reaction. The mayor had laid out his rationale for commenting periods of as much as a year for mega-quarries, imposition of rules for pre-consultation on zoning applications, time constraints for mining as an interim use and a host of other, evidently well-considered, points. Although he did not prioritize the points, he prefaced them with a comment that Melancthon is dealing with an application for the rezoning of 2,316 acres of prime agriculture land for aggregate extraction below the water table. It is not my desire or intent to discuss that project in this forum, but to focus on the subject at hand. This was followed by a comment that the current 45-day commenting period is unrealistic, and suggested that the minimum should be 180 days, as allowed in the Planning Act. The 180-day period would be for routine applications.

In the case of a mega-quarry, that time frame could/should be extended. It is difficult to examine the mounds of data we were given (more than 3,100 pages) and formulate a meaningful opinion in 45 days, he observed. In those cases a negotiated time frame of up to one year may be required. Hill quoted from the SAROS (State of Aggregate Resources Ontario Study), a document saying the province will need 186-million tonnes of aggregate annually over the next 20 years, in support of requiring a full Environmental Assessment for any quarry of in excess of 250 acres or beneath the water table. Overall, based on the constraints analysis, the conclusion is that there is a large overlap of prime agricultural land, wetlands and significant woodlands with selected bedrock resource areas, the study states. In addition to the 20 constraints, there are numerous other factors that must be considered to determine whether the deposit area can be assembled and made available to supply mineral aggregate needs. Without an integrated and balanced approach, it is unlikely that an aggregate deposit could be licensed, since there is a high probability of on-site and adjacent natural features, agriculture, water resources and social factors to consider. In SAROS, he said, rehabilitation is noted as a concern. He quoted the document as saying it is a concern to ensure aggregate extraction is an interim land use and rehabilitation is carried out to return the lands to previous use, or one that is compatible with adjacent land uses. But, Hill said, the term interim needs a definition. Citing the Melancthon application, he questioned how a 50-to- 100-year lifespan, as stated by The Highland Companies, could be considered interim. Instead, Hill suggested that the lifespan should be based on a business plan over a fixed licensing period, such as 20 years, and the extraction clocked as has been suggested by the Town of Caledon.

By clocking, a 20-year extractive lifespan would be based upon the growth rate in the quarrys market area. The expectation would be for a standard rate of extraction based on the growth rate. A swing upwards in the growth rate would shorten the permitted mining time, and vice versa, on a prorated basis. Hill also told the committee that the fee structure for aggregates is unfair. Currently a municipality receives about six cents per tonne for the aggregate extracted. In the case of a megaquarry, which by definition is to be able to produce 10-million tonnes per year, the proponent would realize between $80- $120-million per year, while the host Municipality would receive $600,000. He said even to increase the six cents to 50 cents, would still not be adequate for the disruption and destruction a mega-quarry has the potential to inflict on a municipality and its citizens. Among other changes that would happen if Hills recommendations are accepted, there would be more transparency to industry affairs, and a closer relationship amongst the industry, municipalities and the province with respect to aggregate extractive permitting and operations.