Public meeting on proposed updates to aggregate policies happening September 17

Forks of the Credit Preservation Group encouraging residents to attend meeting

By ZACHARY ROMAN

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Caledon will soon have new policies on aggregate extraction.

At 7 p.m. on September 17, at Caledon Town Hall, a public meeting on proposed updates to Caledon's aggregate policies will be held. 

No Council decisions or recommendations are made at public meetings; Caledon Council will vote on the policies at a later date. 

The local non-profit Forks of the Credit Preservation Group (FCPG) is encouraging residents to come to the September 17 meeting and advocate for strong aggregate policies.

The group says some of the new aggregate policies proposed still need work.

The FCPG has been working with professionals in the fields of biology, hydrogeology, air quality and more to provide recommendations backed by science to Caledon.

According to a Town of Caledon staff report, staff plan to bring a final version of the updated aggregate policies to Councillors for them to vote on in early October.

Caledon began to think about updating its aggregate policies in 2022 after the FCPG advocated that Caledon implement an Interim Control Bylaw (ICBL) to prevent any new pits and quarries. 

The FCPG had commissioned a report that found Caledon had the weakest aggregate policies out of the top ten aggregate producing municipalities in Ontario.

Caledon implemented its ICBL against new pits and quarries on October 18, 2022 and renewed it for one year — the maximum allowed — in 2023. The ICBL will expire on October 18 of this year. 

The ICBL gave Caledon time to work on updating its aggregate policies, and these are the policies that will be brought to the September 17 public meeting.

CBM Aggregates, a company that is proposing an 800-acre blasting quarry in the Cataract/Alton area, appealed Caledon's ICBL renewal to the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT) on November 14, 2023. 

The appeal was being heard at the OLT last week, and closing arguments in the case will happen on October 2.

The FCPG has hired environmental lawyer David Donnelly to represent it in fighting the appeal. 

At a September 9 FCPG community meeting held at GoodLot Farmstead Brewery, Donnelly said CBM Aggregates' appeal has no merit.

Donnelly said the ICBL was brought forward in good faith as Caledon's aggregate policies are over 20 years old; that there's no need for a new pit or quarry to extract more aggregate in Caledon, or Ontario, as output far exceeds demand; and that ICBLs are a perfectly normal tool for municipalities to use.

He said the defence against the ICBL appeal is critical, as if the ICBL renewal is not upheld, or if Caledon does not pass its updated aggregate policies by October 18, CBM Aggregates' proposal for an 800-acre blasting quarry will be judged against weak aggregate policies that are over 20 years old.

Donnelly explained if Caledon passes any new aggregate policies, they must be sent to the Province's Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (with comment from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry).

The Ministry can then approve, modify, or deny the policy updates.

Donnelly said Caledon residents must advocate to their MPP in addition to their local Council if they want to see strong aggregate policies in their community.