Melancthon Mega Quarry Proposal (Withdrawn)
In 2011 the Highland Companies, a subsidiary of U.S. hedge fund Baupost Group, applied to the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) for a Class "A" licence to remove more than 20,000 tonnes of aggregate annually from a pit or a quarry (EBR #011-2864) under the Aggregate Resources Act. At the same time the company applied to the Township of Melancthon for official plan and zoning by-law amendments.
The quarry would have been:
- the largest quarry in Canada and second largest in North America
- expecting to extract one billion tonnes of amabel dolostone (limestone)2 with six billion tonnes in reserves
- 2,316 acres consisting of 4 extraction areas and 1 central processing area
- 237 feet deep, below the water table
- responsible for management of 600 million litres of water per day in perpetuity (capacity of the Collingwood water tower is 2.3 million litres)
- expecting to blast explosives 6 days per week (video)
- expecting to run 7,200 truck trips in/out per day (2-3 trucks per minute)
The company also investigated reviving rail service to the area.
Opposition
There was strong opposition to the proposal starting with local farmers and joined by members from neighbouring communities, First Nations, environmentalists, artists, and the local food movement. The plateau of prime farmland, of which the mega quarry site proposal was central, sources a significant amount of Toronto’s potatoes and other vegetables. The proposal literally sparked a fight between two necessary industries: food vs aggregate.
Additionally, Opponents noted that the site properties were adjacent to the Niagara Escarpment and part of the headwaters for five major rivers (Grand, Beaver, Pine, Nottawasaga, Saugeen) that flow to Lake Erie, Lake Huron and the Georgian Bay. The proposal was a possible risk of contamination to a source water area for one million people downstream.
Broad concerns were: loss of water quality, loss of prime farmland, food security, community impact, health impact, loss of long-term jobs, blasting impact (flyrock, accidents), explosives transportation and storage, additional heavy traffic, dust, loss of air quality, noise pollution, Niagara Escarpment impact, environmental impact, impact on fish, potential to take water, water ownership, potential to export, rehabilitation and site after-use.
The above mock up was used in the fight against the mega-quarry proposal.
Key Articles and Links
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Excellent Overviews |
Media |
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Sep-09 In the Hills |
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Nov-09 Torontoist |
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Mar-11 Highland Companies |
Video – Proposed Melancthon Quarry |
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Apr-11 Dyson Forbes |
Video – PitStop |
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May-11 Wayne Roberts |
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May-11 Kathryn Heming & Andrew Sheppard |
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Jun-11 In the Hills |
Birth of a Protest - Melancthon Mega Quarry by the Numbers by Tim Shuff |
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Infographic |
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Aug-11 ON Nature Magazine |
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Sep-11 Jason van Bruggen |
Video – Water |
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Oct. 16, 2011 Foodstock |
Foodstock draws thousands against mega quarry by Emily Burke (article) |
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Oct-11 Wellington Water Watchers |
Melancthon Update – letter from Cam MacKinnon, CAUSE |
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Nov-11 Toronto Sun |
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Jan-12 Toronto Star |
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Feb-12 Highland Companies |
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Jul-12 Hobo Wally |
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Aug-12 Toronto Life |
How a small group of farmers and wealthy weekenders made the Melancthon mega-quarry protest a cause célèbre (old link) |
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Oct. 21, 2012 Soupstock |
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Nov-12 |
Press Release (.pdf) – Highland Companies withdraws aggregate application |
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Nov. 23, 2012 Toronto Star |
Victory over ‘mega quarry’ bittersweet for the farmers of Melancthon |
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Mar-13 |
The Battle Shifts Gear by Tim Shuff |
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Jul-13 |
Highland Companies sells to Bonnefield (www.bonnefield.com) – Wall Street Journal, Orangeville Banner |
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Nov-13 |
Carl Cosack by Tim Shuff |
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Mar-14 |
Dufferin’s New Landlord (Bonnefield) by Tim Shuff |
Videos
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Video File Location |
Content |
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Mar-11 Highland Companies |
Video – Proposed Melancthon Quarry |
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2011 dailymotion / David Waters |
Video – David Waters, Stop the Melancthon Mega Quarry |
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April 25, 2011 Dyson Forbes |
Video – PitStop |
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May-11 Kathryn Heming & Andrew Sheppard |
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July 15, 2011 Canadian Chefs Congress |
Video – Stop the Mega Quarry – Michael Stadtländer on the loss of vital farmland / Foodstock |
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July 19, 2011 David Waters |
Video – David Waters, Stop the Melanchton {sic} Mega Quarry – My Story |
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Sep-11 BillStMaxx |
Video - The Protest Against the Mega Quarry Part 1 |
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Sep-11 BillStMaxx |
Video – The Protest Against the Mega Quarry Part 2 |
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Sep-11 Jason van Bruggen |
Video – Water |
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Oct. 10, 2011 CBC |
Video – The National Covers the Mega Quarry & Foodstock |
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Oct. 28, 2011 The Agenda with Steve Paikin |
Video – Mega Quarry, Mega Worry (42 mins) |
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Feb-12 |
Video – Hellmans – Buy Canadian Local Food Commercial |
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Jul-12 Hobo Wally |
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2012-Oct-21 Soupstock |
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Nov-16 Beth Brass |
Video – Site 41, Inspiration and Action |
For more information:
List of Ontario’s Issues
Disclaimer: This information has been compiled through private amateur research for the purpose of allowing the reader to make an informed and educated decision. However, while the information is believed to be reliable, accuracy cannot be guaranteed.
APPENDICES
APPENDIX A
https://awareontario.nfshost.com/AWARE-Ontario/Issues/Aggregate_Misc/Melancthon%20Mega%20Quarry.htm
APPENDIX B
Hill & Knowlton worked on the Highland Companies public relations campaigns. The company is famous for representing tobacco companies and for modern atrocity propaganda. (Nayirah testimony)