PUSLINCH – CBM wants to expand its Lanci pit by another 10 hectares to extract 3 million to 4 million tonnes of sand and aggregate from the site and is seeking zoning and official plan amendments to allow it to happen.
The company explained its case at a public meeting on April 13 and met with resistance from residents and some councillors.
Neal DeRuyter, a planner for MHBC speaking on behalf of CBM, said he expects it will take five to 10 years to extract the aggregate and then the pit will be rehabilitated.
Four monitoring wells will be installed, and he said the company will check local wells to monitor water levels.
The significant woodland on the property won’t be touched he said, and 1.3 hectares of the property will be planted with trees.
There are two homes on Sideroad 25 that will come down and likely become a berm during aggregate operations. But three new homes could be built when the work is done, DeRuyter said, allowing for a tax benefit to the township.
“There’s opportunity beyond extraction and a water feature,” he said.
“I know there are concerns with how the lands are left. We want to find a way to create a benefit after extraction.”
Local resident Cathy White said far from expansion, CBM should be applying for a new license, and that license should not be granted.
She said the land is zoned prime Class 2 farmland and is in a wellhead protection area and these reasons alone should be enough to keep aggregate mining from spreading into areas not zoned for that purpose.
But if it does get approved, White said there should be a larger buffer between the significant woodland and the extraction site because there are endangered species on site.
“Is this good planning?” she asked. “I’ve been doing this for 20 years and I’m tired. But I’m not stopping.”
Councillor Matthew Bulmer said the rehabilitation plan looks good on paper, but he knows it could change without subsequent approval from the township.
He worries that if the entire property is zoned extractive, as has been requested, CBM could side-step the township and extract more or deeper or change the rehabilitation plan with only input from the Ministry of Natural Resources required.
“If it’s all zoned extractive, then it will be entirely under site plan control,” Bulmer said, adding in the past CBM had a rehabilitation plan that was not followed.
“I try to make decisions based on that reality.”
Mayor James Seeley echoed Bulmer’s skepticism and referred to DeRuyter’s presentation depicting three homes, a pristine water feature, and a newly forested area when the land is restored.
“I would love this to the be the poster child for end-use aggregate,” Seeley said.
“But if it’s all zoned extractive, there’s nothing binding you to those slide decks. We’ve experienced every work-around.”
DeRuyter said the company is keen to work with the township on a rehabilitation plan that’s mutually acceptable.
Seeley said the industry has plenty of black eyes when it comes to following through on rehabilitation plans and it would be well-served to follow through on this one.
“My hope is this comes to fruition,” he said.
“I’ll be an optimist on this. If it is as presented, I think it’s something the community could get behind.”
No decision was made at the meeting. It will return to council at a future date.
