MEDIA RELEASE
For Immediate Release
June 11, 2009

Council of Canadians demands halt to construction of waste dump

Yesterday, Simcoe County was formally notified of possible legal action if they do not stop construction of a waste dump at Site 41 in Tiny Township. The letter was sent by Sack Goldblatt Mitchell LLP on behalf of its client, the Council of Canadians. The letter is the latest move in a growing campaign led by hundreds of local residents and several provincial organizations to protect the region’s groundwater. That water, deemed by scientists to be among the purest in the world, could be contaminated by the waste dump.

The letter outlines the concerns the Council of Canadians has with the location of the waste dump. It states, “We believe there are compelling public policy reasons for abandoning present plans to dump waste on such an important source of pristine water, and these have been underscored by the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario.”

It further notes that “the province’s foremost authority on the environment, the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario, has expressed repeated concerns about the Site, and as well about the Ministry of Environment’s approach to issuing, and then refusing to review, the Certificate of Approval for its use as a waste dump.”

Steven Shrybman, the public interest lawyer who wrote the letter, states, “Our client’s position is that the construction activity at Site 41 should cease immediately, and it has instructed us to pursue appropriate legal action if required to bring this about.”

Council of Canadians chairperson Maude Barlow, who led a march of 600 people to the site in May, says, “The landfill is being built on top of the Alliston aquifer as well as a number of shallow aquifers which many communities rely on for drinking water and farming. It is unconscionable to destroy such a precious watershed at time when populations around the world are facing the reality of a fresh water crisis.”

The letter concludes, “Fortunately, there is still time for the County to change course, but if it proceeds in a manner that abandons its obligations to steward water as a public trust, and ignores its legal obligations to protect the environment, source waters and species at risk we are instructed to pursue legal recourse to protect the pristine source and groundwater of Tiny Township from the inevitable and irreparable harm that will result if plans to establish a waste dump at Site 41 proceed.”

Copies of the letter are available upon request.

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For more information:

Steven Shrybman, legal counsel for the Council of Canadians, 613-862-4862
Dylan Penner, Media Officer for the Council of Canadians, 613-795-8685, dpenner@canadians.org

Read more about Site 41 at www.canadians.org/water.