In a surprise announcement, Ontario’s Environment Minister says the proposed regenerative recycling facility project planned north of Dresden will have to undergo a full environmental assessment.
Minister Andrea Khanjin said she has heard the concerns from the local community and the municipality of Chatham-Kent regarding York1’s plans to reopen and expand a dormant landfill.
York1 has admitted in public meetings that part of the reason why they bought the property was that it had environmental compliance approvals and wouldn’t need an environmental assessment, which would be costly and take a large amount of time to complete.
Khanjin said she will be taking steps to require the project to complete a comprehensive environmental assessment under the Environmental Assessment Act.
She said it would require York1 to address community concerns and mitigate potential impacts before it could open.
York1 did not reply to CKXS News asking for comment on the Minister’s announcement.
Meantime, municipal officials are urging local residents to continue making their voices heard.
“I would like to make it patently clear that I stand with the people of Dresden, with the people of Chatham-Kent, and with our neighbours in the County of Lambton,” said Mayor Darrin Canniff in a news release. “We all have serious concerns with this proposal from York1, and together with Council, we are taking action. I encourage everyone to visit the Let’s Talk page to get their information and to send comments on the Ontario Environmental Registry website.”
The Municipality has created a Let’s Talk page with information about the proposed facility, including FAQs about the process and information received about the applications submitted by York1 Environmental Waste Solutions to the province.
Comments can be submitted by the public to the Province on the applications. The first is for the recycling proposal, which closes on March 16, 2024 and the second is for the landfill proposal, which closes on April 11, 2024. These can be found at: https://ero.ontario.ca/notice/019-8205 and https://ero.ontario.ca/notice/019-8313 respectively.