Expressing outrage and feelings of betrayal, members of a local advocacy group took to Queen’s Park this week to protest plans to fast-track the reopening of a dormant landfill near Dresden.
Dresden C.A.R.E.D., alongside members of Walpole Island First Nation and former provincial NDP candidate Kathryn Shailer, held a news conference in Toronto Tuesday morning, urging the Ford government to change its course of action. They were also joined by NDP Environment Critic Peter Tabuns, as well as MPPs from the Liberal and Green parties.
“Our community of Dresden and the surrounding area is absolutely outraged and betrayed by the Ford government and our own Lambton-Kent-Middlesex [MPP] Steve Pinsonneault for attempting to fast-track the York1 landfill expansion,” said Stefan Premdas, chair of Dresden C.A.R.E.D.
The Ontario government announced legislation last month, which proposes removing comprehensive environmental assessment (EA) requirements for a property at 29831 Irish School Rd. to allow Mississauga-based company York1 Waste Solutions to move forward with the expansion and development of the landfill.
York1’s initial plans to reopen the dormant landfill site were made public in early 2024 and were met with significant public backlash. Chatham-Kent Council and municipal administration have unanimously opposed the project.
Premdas urged the premier to revoke the current landfill status of the site outside of Dresden, which has not been active for more than 40 years.
“We call upon this government to halt the additional constitutional overreach in Bill 5 that takes away the voices of our First Nations community,” said Premdas. “Our community has sent us here today to let you know that this will impact not just our historical community and the archeology of the First Nations, which is so rich around the Sydenham [River] and Molly’s Creek, but more than 88 species at risk just in our little town of Dresden.”
The province’s decision to fast-track landfill development one year after initially ordering a comprehensive EA for the site has also been called into question by the Ontario Liberal Party.
Ted Hsu, the Liberal Critic for Rural and Agricultural Affairs and MPP for Kingston and the Islands, sent a letter to Ontario’s Integrity Commissioner on Friday requesting an investigation into political donations made to the Ford government by the owners of the Dresden landfill site.
Hsu said developers Andrew and Daniel Guizzetti, who acquired the Dresden-area property in 2022, along with their family members and business partners, have donated over $200,000 to the Progressive Conservative Party since 2018, including numerous contributions clustered around key regulatory decisions affecting the landfill site.
When asked about the Dresden landfill site during a press conference on Tuesday, Premier Doug Ford said he doesn’t know the developer.
“Someone said their names, but again, I don’t look at who owns it, who doesn’t, what I look at is the capacity issue that we’re facing,” he said.
In the proposed legislation, the government cites the need to provide additional waste capacity in Ontario due to the threat of US tariffs impacting the province’s waste sector.
Premdas said he questions why the York1 project was singled out by the provincial government in Bill 5.
“If the premier thinks ignorance is a defence, he’s the wrong person to be leading our province,” said Premdas.
Area residents can provide their comments on the proposed provincial legislation as part of the public consultation process. Comments will be accepted until May 17.
