County role questioned in protection of Simcoe’s forests

Letter from Cindy Mercer, Springwater

I am writing this letter in regards to the recent press release by the County of Simcoe on June 16, 2016. The article indicates there has been two recent incidents of hazardous waste dumped in the Hendrie Tract near Anten Mills. Our County Forests are very valuable resources and cherished by a great number of Simcoe County residents and tourists to our area. It is our responsibility to protect our County Forest Tracts for future generations to come. Dumping hazardous waste and garbage in our forests is in my opinion, a completely inexcusable act.

County of Simcoe Warden, Gerry Marshall was quoted in this press release as saying “more than 30 tons of garbage is collected annually in the County Forest, not including the refuse gathered through the efforts of volunteers”.

“Illegal dumping is a selfish act that not only has the potential to create long-term environmental issues, it takes valuable resources away from other services”.

I read this, then struggled to understand how the County of Simcoe appears to innocently portray themselves when it comes to tarnishing our County Forest. Recent potential land use plans for our County Forest Tracts are questionable to say the least and appear to have very little respect for our pristine Forests and our environment as a whole.

If I’m not mistaken, this particular Tract (Hendrie Tract) was on the long list of sites to be turned into Industrial use for the development of an OPF (Organics Processing Facility) / MMF (Materials Management Facility). It appears as though the Hendrie Tract remained on the list of potential sites under the referenced names of Site C145 and Site C146 for the duration of two full screening processes. The Hendrie Tract did not appear on the short list of sites but five other County Forest Tracts did. The “preferred site” chosen by County Council for their Solid Waste Management Infrastructure Projects was indeed a County Forest Tract, named the Freele Tract and known as Site C136.

I would like to be very clear and assure you that I am in no way excusing the ignorant acts of those that dump garbage and waste material in our County Forest.

I do however, strongly question whether the County of Simcoe is doing their part “for the greater good” and leading with positive examples when it comes to how we treat and respect our irreplaceable County Forest Tracts.

Hazardous waste dumped in County Forest

Simcoe County news release

There are many things you expect to find in a County forest—hazardous waste is not one of them.

Although valued by the majority of residents and visitors, the County Forest is being used as a dumping ground for a wide range of unwanted material, from household garbage and renovation debris to shingles and appliances.

Two recent incidents, however, consisted of substantial quantities of hazardous waste dumped in the Hendrie Tract near Anten Mills. Twelve 45-gallon drums were unloaded in one location, followed by another 32 five-gallon pails at another. The waste appears to be used oil and petroleum.

“More than 30 tons of garbage is collected annually in the County Forest, not including the refuse gathered through the efforts of volunteers,” said County of Simcoe Warden Gerry Marshall. “Illegal dumping is a selfish act that not only has the potential to create long-term environmental issues, it takes valuable resources away from other services.”

If you witness illegal dumping, the County encourages you to contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477. Please do not approach or attempt to stop anyone in the process of illegal dumping.

“We also see a lot of yard waste being dumped in the forest,” said County of Simcoe Forester Graeme Davis. “Although organic and compostable, these clippings often contain weeds and pruning that can be the starting point of a number of unwanted invasive exotic plants.”

According to Davis, dumping yard waste can be more problematic than household garbage.

“With the County collecting yard waste curbside,” he said, “there’s no reason for anyone to resort to this kind of behaviour.”