Gone, but not forgotten

Simcoe.com June 3 2010 MIDLAND – It’s done. Finished.
A few months before voters head to the polls in a municipal election that seems long overdue, the last rites have been read for Site 41.
Once county council made the request on May 25, it took Queen’s Park only a few hours to revoke the certificate of approval for a landfill at the Tiny Township property, proving that government can act quickly.
Site 41 won’t soon be forgotten, though.
Certainly not by the legions of residents who fought so hard against the proposed dump, once destined to be constructed on top of a pristine water source. Many protested, some camped out, a few were arrested, and lawsuits were threatened.
Environmental champions – Vicki Monague, Keith and Ina Woods, Steve Ogden, Anne Ritchie-Nahuis and many others – emerged.
Danny Beaton, a Mohawk from the Grand River Six Nations Territory who staged the “Walk for Water” from Tiny Township to Queen’s Park to raise awareness of the issue, was one of 14 Canadians recognized at the 17th annual National Aboriginal Achievement Awards for his environmental advocacy.
All of their contributions will be remembered.
The entire saga also won’t be forgotten by those politicians who stuck by the landfill. They will have to explain themselves when seeking a return to public office.
And it won’t soon be forgotten by county bureaucrats who sought to override public concerns with unconvincing promises and tepid public-relations efforts.
It will be interesting to see how much residual anger lingers over Site 41. Council’s reversal over the issue, no doubt, has some hoping for a forgiving electorate.
“This final chapter is written, and the county and its residents should move forward positively together on solutions,” Warden Cal Patterson stated in a press release.
He is to be applauded for taking a less adversarial approach to waste management than his predecessor, Tony Guergis. However, when it comes to Site 41, we suspect the final chapter will truly be written at the polls on Oct. 25.