Dear Editor:
Recently, when I was in Orangeville, I took the Townline back to Erin. The Townline is where the Orangeville WWTP is located. Every time I have taken this route the stench has permeated into my car, with the windows closed. I was glad to clear the area and open my windows and purge my car of the awful odor of the WWTP. This treated waste flows into the Headwaters Orangeville branch of the Credit River.
Predominantly, the winds in Erin are from the West. I feel for our friends and neighbors in Belfountain and surrounding areas that will be the recipient of potentially foul smelling air. Belfountain and Caledon are already going to be the recipients of Erin’s proposed sewage effluent, complete with microplastics, endotoxins and medicinal ingredients that are apparently not removed in the treatment process. This on top of a tremendous amount of new traffic heading south on Mississauga Road to get to their jobs south in to Peel Region and beyond. So much for quaint Belfountain.
To Erin residents, sometimes there is a good south easterly breeze that has the potential to bring any stench right into the village, especially in the summer months, when winds are low. Who knows how long it will linger. What a recipe for ruining small town country living. Just wondering if affected residents are going to be compensated for loss of property value and enjoyment of their property. I sincerely hope Erin/Hillsburgh residents make themselves aware of the costs associated with this project, be it in your annual sewage charges, taxes, and your costs to hookup. I had another contractor at my home for an estimate and I am now on the threshold of $100,000-plus, in my 1956 built 800 square foot bungalow. I strongly suggest residents get their own estimates.
I can see younger families refinancing their mortgages, and hopefully this financial burden will not put a hold on their children’s education and tuition plans. For us seniors, I guess this is why they came up with reverse mortgages on our homes, to pay bills and pay for somebody else’s growth plans.
In regards to growth plans, it was initially 1,500 homes and the CVC hydrologist suggested 500 homes due to the capacity of the river. Is it true that number is now 5,000 homes? If so, how did it happen? The West Credit River has not grown by 10 times to my knowledge.
Looking ahead, maybe, after the proposed development is completed we need new signs as you drive in to our (once) beautiful village. We merely have to change the word “charm” to “stench”.
Ken Cowling,
Erin