A Big Win for the Freele Forest
By Friends of Simcoe Forests Inc.
It is with great pride that we deliver some well-deserved, positive news.
On Monday April 26th and Tuesday April 27th we were in Divisional Court arguing the law passed by the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing exempting the proposed site location (Freele Forest) for the Environmental Resource Recovery Centre (ERRC) from the natural heritage protections afforded by the Growth Plan.
Our expectations were that it would take a couple of months for a decision to be made in this case. The decision came down hard and fast…WE WON!
We are extremely fortunate to have such an amazing legal team representing the interests of the Friends of Simcoe Forests and the concerned citizens of Simcoe County. Thank you CELA (Canadian Environmental Law Association) from the bottom of our hearts for your valiant efforts so far which continue to keep us steadily progressing forward.
Click here to review the decision.
It’s astonishing how much time, money, effort and perseverance has been demanded to simply reinstate the Natural Heritage protections that were stripped from the Freele Forest in a joint effort by The County of Simcoe and The Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing to assist with paving the path forward to build the Environmental Resource Recovery Centre (ERRC).
Now that we have this BIG WIN behind us, we continue to focus on the upcoming LPAT hearing scheduled for September 2021. Finally, our experts will have the opportunity to present evidence supporting the importance of this ‘Significant Woodlot’ designated by the County of Simcoe as ‘Greenland’s’.
Fund Raising…
Fundraising is challenging at the best of times. As you can imagine, COVID has made fundraising efforts almost impossible. We ran a series of online raffles which helped generate some funds for the cause. Depending on the COVID situation, we hope to be able to put on a garage sale this year. It sure has been a long journey but we are finally coming into the homestretch. We could use some financial assistance to help cover expenses associated with the upcoming hearing in September. Please consider making a donation in any denomination. Every little bit helps and is greatly appreciated.
E-transfer donation through your bank to:
treasurer.fsf@gmail.com (make security answer ‘forests’)
PayPal donation through FSF website https://www.friendsofsimcoeforests.com/how-can-you-help
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