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Mono Council maintains stand against bid to dig Craig Pit below water table

June 16, 2017   ·   0 Comments

By Jasen Obermeyer

Mono Council is maintaining its opposition a proposal for aggregate extraction below the water table on the Craig Pit lands at 5 Sideroad and Hurontario Street.

The proposed deepening would be by the current owner, Votorantim Cimentos (formerly CBM Aggregates). The pit is immediately north of Island Lake, and the Town has previously provided detailed hydrogeology comments on the proposal in 2014, 2015 and 2016 to the owners and the Ministry of Natural Resources.

The Town of Orangeville, Island Lake Rowing Club and the Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority have all strongly opposed the proposal during the same time period, voicing their concern with the threat the extraction poses to the lake’s water level. The majority of Island Lake’s water source comes from surface water (rain, snow, creeks flowing from the west side) and a large aquifer, which flows from the west and south.   

Dwight Smikle, Mono’s hydro geologist, submitted a letter to Council regarding his report on the Craig Pit, concluding that “the completion of the water study for the Craig Pit area is the appropriate method to evaluate the proposal,” and the study should “evaluate both surface and groundwater input and output, evaluate the cumulative impacts of extraction,” and “develop appropriate mitigation and monitoring plans that recognize the sensitivity of the environment and the local importance of the lake.”

Councillor Ralph Manktelow left Council Chambers during the discussion due to a conflict of interest, as he is a member of Island Lake Rowing Club.

Council unanimously objected to the proposal. “I appreciate the diligence that staff are doing on this item,” commented Deputy Mayor Ken McGhee. “To allow something to proceed half-way is like you’re halfway sick. I’d rather stop before we get that far.”

Council also announced their intent to support the Mono Hiking Challenge, which runs from June 4 to October 31, mainly in celebrating Canada’s 150th anniversary. The challenge is to hike one or all of the 20 designated hikes that are part of the program. For each hike completed, a participant will receive an entry into the Grand Prize draw, a one-week stay for two people at Canoe North Adventure Lodge, in Norman Wells, Northwest Territories, courtesy of Mono’s Canoe North Adventures.

Each time one of the designated trails is completed, the person will receive an entry into the draw. Hike one trail, get one entry, hike five, get five entries, etc. During each hike, a selfie must be taken at a specially designated sign post on the trail, then post the image to social media using the hash tag “#monohikingchallenge.”

Mono Mayor Laura Ryan says the hike is a great opportunity to showcase the trails, and get good exercise and activity. “It also gives them a chance to just see going through the forested area, getting a good sense of what the topography of Mono is all about.”

To register for the challenge, or for additional information such as where the trails are located, visit www.monohikingchallenge.ca.


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