[All] If at first you don't succeed...

Tue Jun 28 09:45:02 EDT 2011

Hi folks
After a good night's sleep, compassion and basic human understanding refilled my heart again. In good faith, the Highland Quarry issue is overwhelming so I've crafted the letter below to help radically simplify the approach in seeking the City's support for an EA process. It is included below for your reference.
At this time I would like to ask GREN Executives if we can quickly send a letter via email to Waterloo City Council to encourage them to support the requests for an EA process. If individual GREN members can do likewise and spread the word on this it would be beneficial to help establish a bona fide paper trail to show there is public support. Below is the email addresses of Waterloo Council members to send your concerns to. 
Review the document and please give comment in support. 
Lulu :0)
--- On Tue, 6/28/11, Louisette Lanteigne <butterflybluelu at rogers.com> wrote:

From: Louisette Lanteigne <butterflybluelu at rogers.com>
Subject: MPP Pendergast and Highland Quarry Information
To: scott.witmer at waterloo.ca, karen.scian at waterloo.ca, angela.vieth at waterloo.ca, diane.freeman at waterloo.ca, mark.whaley at waterloo.ca, jeff.henry at waterloo.ca, melissa.durrell at waterloo.ca, brenda.halloran at waterloo.ca
Date: Tuesday, June 28, 2011, 9:38 AM

Dear Council Members
In the attachments is a press release created by MPP Leeanna Pendergast regarding her request for support on three issues:
1. A revision of the Aggregate Act2. An Ontario Aggregate Plan3. The protection of Prime Farmland in Ontario.
Ms. Pendergast was at the press release with former
 Transportation and MNR minister, Donna Cansfield. It was agreed by everyone that our society needs aggregate resources but that reasonable measures should be taken to prevent the loss of  prime farmlands and adverse impacts for our communities and economic systems. The ministers encouraged support for these proposals and I would like to provide this information to City Council for consideration.
In regards to the Highland Quarry, it is an overwhelming topic but I would like to present to council members a simplified explanation of what citizens were requesting of City Council.
Here is a document produced by the Province of Ontario outlining Environmental Assessments (EA) that illustrates the fact that the Minister of Environment has the ability to ask Cabinet for an EA Process on projects that normally do not require one. This is noted in the last half of this report under the term:
Designation Regulations and Voluntary Agreements - for projects not subject to the EAA.
You can view the document online here:http://www.ene.gov.on.ca/stdprodconsume/groups/lr/@ene/@resources/documents/resource/stdprod_082300.pdf
In order to effectively make a request for an EA this document states it takes three components:
1. the nature of the project 2. potential for significant environmental effects  3. level of public interest.  
The GRCA currently has jurisdiction over two of these three issues, specifically sections 1. and 2. and these matters have already been reasonably addressed by the GRCA staff in their own submission to the EBR process. That document can be seen in the attachments and if city staff would like to use this letter as an addendum to any city correspondences to reflect sections 1 and 2 it would be a reasonable approach. 
What the GRCA does not have jurisdiction over is the ability to simply prove public interest. The City of
 Waterloo can fulfill that criteria by simply sending an official letter to the Minister from the City of Waterloo stating that there there is local public interest regarding the Highland project, that the GRCA has already supported the fact that more data would be beneficial to the process that residents of our municipality are supportive of taking a precautionary approach and would like to supports the implementation an EA process to better assess the situation. That is basically all we require from the city staff in order to support the establishment of the EA. 
If council would like to revisit the existing motion I could attend next council meeting to present this information formally if that would help to simplify things. It would be my pleasure to be of assistance.
If you have any questions or comments on this process or in regards to the Highland Quarry please feel free to contact me. 
Thanks kindly for your time.
Louisette Lanteigne700 Star Flower Ave.Waterloo Ontario
N2V 2L2519-885-7619
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