Chatham-Kent’s mayor and the riding’s MPP are expressing their disappointment over the Ontario government’s plan to push through the development of a dormant landfill in Dresden without an environmental review.
Steve Pinsonneault, the member of provincial parliament for Lambton-Kent-Middlesex, issued a statement on Tuesday after the province announced plans to remove environmental assessment (EA) requirements for the property at 29831 Irish School Rd.
“I understand that our community is upset and am myself disappointed in this decision,” he said in the emailed statement.
In its announcement on Thursday, the Ontario government said it will allow Mississauga-based company York1 Waste Solutions to re-establish and expand waste processing and transfer operations at the site, citing the need to provide additional waste capacity in Ontario due to the threat of US tariffs.
“To stand up for Lambton-Kent-Middlesex and our province, we must ensure we have the tools and resources to respond to any unpredictable decisions from the Trump administration,” said Pinsonneault.
York1’s 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 also unanimously opposed the project, leading to the province initially mandating that the site would have to undergo a full environmental assessment.
If the newly proposed legislation passes, that will no longer be the case.
“I have spoken with the mayors from Chatham Kent and Dawn Euphemia to make them aware of what has happened,” said Pinsonneault. “They have expressed their displeasure to me in this decision.”
CK Mayor Darrin Canniff said he was notified about the province’s decision to push through the landfill on Thursday, calling it “very disappointing.”
“We are going to fighting this as hard as we possibly can,” said Canniff. “This is completely unacceptable to the entire community.”
The municipality said it has already retained expert lawyers and engineers to develop a strategy to oppose the waste facility proposal.
“We will be putting together plans starting this week as far what we are going to be doing and then going from there,” said Canniff.
