Site 41 property declared surplus, to be offered for sale

By Kate Harries AWARE News Network November 28 2012

After an in-camera discussion, Simcoe County Council voted on Tuesday to declare surplus the Site 41 property.

The land on the north side of Tiny Concession 2 was to be a landfill site. In fact the project was under construction in 2009 when it was terminated at the 11th hour because of massive public opposition. 

In 2006, water expert Dr. Bill Shotyk, then at the University of Heidelberg, revealed he had been testing the underlying aquifer (the testing continues) and found the water to be more pure than 5,000-year-old Arctic ice cores. 

The site is the last of three adjacent county-owned properties where the county was planning waste management-related activities. When county council reversed those plans, conservation easement were put in place to ensure that the lands remain agricultural. 

For some, Site 41 is a historic location, site of an unprecedented coalition of farmers, cottagers and First Nations. A protest camp on private property across the road from the proposed dump attracted supporters from across the province and beyond. 

Signs with the slogan ‘Stop Dump Site 41 – Protect our Water ‘ still dot the surrounding countryside.

In 2011, Shotyk – who is now Bocock Chair of Sustainable Agriculture at the University of Alberta – proposed to Simcoe County Council that the site become an innovation centre for agricultural, energy and environmental research – particularly into the natural process that resulted in the exceptionally clean water.

Unfortunately, the county did not support Shotyk’s request that it retain ownership of the land for two years to allow him to finetune the concept and produce a business plan.