Mega Quarry Rally at Queen’s Park tomorrow

News release from Stop the Quarry – September 25, 2011

Toronto, ON – The grassroots movement opposed to a proposed mega quarry north of Toronto is holding a rally at Queen’s Park this Friday at 3:30 pm.

In just six months, the Stop the Mega Quarry movement has blossomed from a core group of farmers and residents from Melancthon Township in Dufferin County to downtown Toronto, as a growing number of Ontarians raise concerns about the impact the proposed mega quarry would have on water, farmland and the environment.

 “Tens of thousands of Ontarians made history when the province’s Minister of the Environment announced an unprecedented Environmental Assessment for the proposed mega quarry,” says rancher Carl Cosack, vice-chairman of NDACT. “We’ve also united country and city on this critical issue. This is a big issue, now backed by a big movement.”

Friday’s rally will celebrate how far the Stop the Mega Quarry organization has come in the six months since the application for the proposed mega quarry was filed, but it will also draw people together for the long fight ahead. And, with one week before Ontario votes, it will remind all parties the campaign to stop the proposed mega quarry will continue.

On March 11, 2011, the Highland Companies—backed by Boston hedge fund Baupost Group – applied for a license to excavate the largest quarry in the country. It would span 2,316 acres north of Orangeville, destroying Class 1 farmland. The quarry would plunge 200 feet below the water table in a recharge area for the headwaters of five rivers. 600-million-litres of water would need to be pumped from the mega quarry each day in perpetuity.

“If you care about the food you eat, the farmland that produces it, or what happens to our clean, pure water, come join us on Friday,” says Sandi Wong, an artist involved in the movement.

Broadcaster Dale Goldhawk will act as Master of Ceremonies for the event, welcoming a diverse line-up of speakers: Rancher Carl Cosack, Bernard Pope of the Ontario Farmland Preservation Organization, Brent Preston of the New Farm, Danny Beaton of the Mohawk Turtle Clan, Mark Calzavara of the Council of Canadians, Toronto Councillor Josh Matlow, Toronto chef Donna Dooher and Paul deCampo of Slow Food Toronto. Hobo Wally will also be performing.

This rally will occur simultaneously with one held by Ontario Farmland Preservation.