Bedford Township Showcases its past and present
On Family Day, February 17, residents of Bedford Township had a chance to show off both their past and present at an event that was held at the Bedford Historical Research Centre, located at the Glendower Hall on the Westport Road. The event, which was organized by Gerald Stinson, chair of the Bedford District Historical Research Committee, included displays by the Bedford District and Portland District historical groups. Included in these displays were a number of local family histories, books, photos, tools and more. Township resident Wayne Shepherd had on display his personal collection of historical glass and oil lamps and Lois Webster also brought a number of historical artifacts from her own personal collection.
The event included a number of residents in the area who are involved in the arts. Scott White had an assortment of his paintings, many of them based on buildings and landscapes from the area, and Raphael Kerem, of Radiance of the Ordinary Studio in Burridge, displayed his hand-crafted brooms and brushes. Wolfe Erlichman of the Wintergreen Renewable Energy Co-operative had a booth set up advertising that group's interests as did representatives from the Wintergreen Studio, the eco-lodge and educational retreat centre located on Canoe Lake Road. There were also representatives from Eco Tree Care, a business that operates out of Burridge.
Stinson said the event, which also ran last year, is a way for the historical groups in the area to open up their collections to the public and for other organizations and businesses to get exposure as well. Stinson said the turnout this year was not as large as he hoped for and that the numbers were significantly down from last year. That being said, Stinson said it does not mean that the event will not run again next year. Stinson said he got involved with the research centre after looking into his family roots and becoming interested in his own family tree.
“The historical society is a great way for local residents to find out more about their roots and about the local history of the area.
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Feature article January 13, 2005
LAND O' LAKES NewsWeb HomeContact Us
Mining rights activists buoyed by meeting with provincial ministers
by Jeff Green
Representatives from the Bedford Mining Alert (BMA) and the Citizens Mining Action Group (CMAG) from Tay Valley Township met with Cabinet Ministers Rick Bartolucci (Mines and Northern Development) and Leona Dombrowsky (Environment) in Toronto in December.
It was an opportunity for John McKillop, the Bedford Mining Alerts President, to present a brief to the ministers dealing with three major concerns: the rights of property owners who dont own the mineral rights to their property; the environmental impacts of mining; and mineral extraction vs. other land use activities.
In a letter to the ministers that accompanied the brief, McKillop alluded to the broadening of scope that has taken place among Bedford Mining Alert members in the past few years when he wrote, It would be easy to call us NIMBYs [Not In My Backyard] and perhaps at the beginning we were, but knowledge is a powerful thing.
McKillop, like many others in the BMA first got involved when he found that prospectors from Graphite Mountain Inc. had staked his vacation property. Until then he did not know that he only owned rights to the surface of his land, and that the mining rights were open to prospecting. The initial shock of finding out that he did not have exclusive rights to enjoy his land certainly piqued McKillops interest in the Ontario Mining Act.
We are still very much concerned about our property and our region, but are also concerned about mining practices generally. Mining is by nature an invasive activity. If not carried out to strict standards of accountability, it can and has been harmful to people and to the environment, McKillop wrote to the ministers.
In the first section of the brief to the ministers, surface rights owners concerns were outlined. The brief acknowledges that an advisory committee to the Ministry of Mines and Northern Development has put forward proposals to reform section 32, the section of the mining act dealing with the rights of surface owners. These changes would require less intrusive staking, better notification, and clearer definitions of what is regarded as land improvements. However, it says We are concerned that this may be just window dressing. The brief makes reference to a decision made by the Mining Commissioner, working in Minister Bartoluccis department, in the case of Ron and Elva Price of Olden vs. Wollasco Inc. Even though Wollasco was found to have breached the Mining Act, Wollasco was given the option, apparently in perpetuity, to acquire the entire Price farm, not just the portion permitted to be staked, if Wollasco made a production decision. This demonstrates, according to the brief, then limitations of reforming section 32 of the mining act so long as mining commissioners have such sweeping powers, and a bias towards promoting mining exploration over the interests of surface owners.
[Ed. note: there have been new developments in the Price vs. Wollasco case. Through the Office of the Ontario Ombudsman, the Mining Commissioners decision is being revisited.]
Mining and the Environment: The Environmental impact of mining was discussed as well with Ministers Dombrowsky and Bartolucci. After outlining the budget cuts of the past 15 years in the three ministries that are charged with monitoring the environmental impacts of mining, members of the BMA and CMAG made reference to some expensive rehabilitation projects that have been left to Ontario taxpayers after mines were closed. Among a broad range of concerns, they concentrated on Eastern Ontario, which they described as an interconnected and vulnerable water system, where tourism and recreation predominate, and claimed that mining is a threat to Eastern Ontarios water. Their brief also expressed the concern that seepage is not being included in surface water monitoring by the Ministry of Mines.
Mining extraction as a preferred land use activity.
According to the BMA and CMAG, the Mining Act makes mining a preferred economic activity in Ontario, taking precedence over other land uses. They quote Minister Bartolucci himself, who wrote in a letter to a BMA member last winter January I would like to point out that mining exploration yields no overnight successes or quick wins. In fact, the likelihood of a claim becoming productive is 1 in 10,000. Developing a mine may take 10-20 years of careful exploration, of data analysis, planning and financing.
But, the brief points out, It only takes one claim to discourage recreational development for a 10 kilometre radius surrounding that claim. The brief went to make specific recommendations about changes to the Mining Act and the rules various government department
When contacted this week, John McKillop said he felt privileged to be able to meet with the ministers, and that he found them both very receptive to our submission. Being able to meet face to face puts a human contact to the communication. The BMA and the CMAG are involved in the formation of an umbrella group of 30 other groups concerned about the future of mining in the province, and they will be seeking to come up with some vehicle where a number of Ministries and stakeholder groups can take part in a plan to give different regions of Ontario more say, rather than having one set of regulations that put mining ahead of other potential land uses throughout the Province.
John McKillop takes the view that the Liberal government is still a new government, and hopes that it is open to addressing some of the concerns that were brought forward last month in Toronto. (For more information visit http://www.bedfordminingalert.ca/)
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Feature Article - August 10, 2006GBCLA prepares to implement LakeStewardshipPlan
by MartinYates
Last Sunday over 100 members and guests attended the annual general meeting of the Greater Bobs and Crow Lakes Association at the Bedford Hall and heard of the excellent progress that has been made with the association’s ambitious lake plan.
Research and planning for the plan is nearly complete. The draft version is now in preparation and by early next year the final plan document will be published. The draft will be available for comment from the public in early September. Copies will be placed at the three local township offices, in public libraries and on-line on the GBCLA web site, www.bobsandcrowlakes.ca.
An additional open workshop will be held on August 19th to enable public input.
As the plan takes shape, the association is preparing for the important task of implementation. Working groups will be set up to prepare detailed recommendations and action plans in the following important areas: Water, Fisheries, Natural environs, Recreational boating, Development, Emergency services, and “Developing a sense of community.” The seven groups will bring forward their recommendations next spring.
A key aspect of implementing the Lake Stewardship Plan will be the raising of funds to support the various programs. While a grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation supported the plans’ development, future work will need to be funded. President Susan announced the formation of The Bobs and Crow Lakes Foundation a foundation with charitable status, which will be able to raise funds to support specific projects. John McCalla is the President of the Foundation and he gave a brief summary of its first few months.
Randy French, the association’s lake planning consultant, was the guest speaker and he emphasised the importance of reaching out to all members of the various lake communities to make sure the plan gains everyone’s support and that it becomes a living plan, guiding everyone’s actions and protecting the lake environment well into the future.
Honoured guests included Mayors Bill Lake and Bill MacDonald of South and Central Frontenac Townships and Reeve Keith Kerr of Tay Valley Township , who gave brief addresses, and Councillors David Hahn, Janet Gutowski and Susan Freeman. The OPP and Bedford Fire Department also attended with displays of their equipment and there were many interesting and informative exhibits.
The new slate of Directors was elected for 2006 2007 and they are now getting ready for yet another busy year!
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Feature Article - August 3, 2006SouthFrontenac Council
by Wilma Kenny
Bedford Bag Tags
Pat Feenstra of Bob’s Lake Co-op came to Council to protest the $20 waste disposal fee levied against each of the trailers in the Co-op. She had originally asked for a refund for the 300 bag tags the group had been issued, on the grounds that they seldom if ever took garbage to the Bedford landfills. However, once it became clear that 34 trailers were located on the five large lots that make up the Co-op, all the trailer owners were charged the same fee as cottages in Bedford . CAO Gord Burns admitted that the Co-op was a unique situation: it has been in existence for many years, and while the land is owned communally, each of the trailers is privately owned. Council’s general consensus, as expressed strongly by Councillor Stowe, was that $20 a year was an extremely cheap landfill fee, much lower than cottagers in other parts of the township were paying.
Acrimonious and noisy debate arose over the question of lowering the fee for additional bag tags in Bedford [to allow homeowners to put out more than 2 bags of garbage a week], on the grounds that there was no garbage pick-up service in that district. Underlying this seemed to be the lack of an arrangement with small businesses in Bedford , which would allow them to dispose of a household-equivalent amount of waste. The motion to change the additional bag tag fee was defeated, but one of the onlookers scolded Council for squabbling between districts and failing to work together as an amalgamated group.
Trailer Troubles
Petrus Van Vliet, a resident of Belgium , asked permission to store a trailer on his Bob’s Lake lot, so he could use it two weeks a year, while visiting his elderly parents in Kingston . He had purchased the property in November sight unseen: it had had a trailer which the former owner removed. Mr Van Vliet had bought another trailer, only to receive a letter from the township asking him to remove it, because the Township by-laws do not permit the use or storage of a trailer on vacant land. CAO Burns pointed out that this had been a controversial by-law, because a number of people had had to remove trailers from vacant properties. He said that making an exception as requested would be unfair to many other trailer owners.
Sydenham Lake Septic Re-inspection Program
The KFL&A Public Health Department is in the process of inventorying all the sewage disposal systems on Sydenham Lake which are over 10 years old, ranking them in terms of risk presented. Their mid-project report showed that 101 inspections have been completed out of a targeted 231. Of these, only 8 have been classified as high risk, and will be further investigated by the Health Unit. Inspections will continue throughout the summer.
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Feature Article - March 8, 2007Big changes proposed for waste management in South FrontenacbyJeff Green
Gary Davison was elected as Mayor of South Frontenac last fall after campaigning for the gradual amalgamation of services in the township.
Now, five months later, a proposal from the township’s Sustainability Committee would see the amalgamation of one of the most diverse services in the township: waste management.
A motion was brought forward to Tuesday night’s meeting from the township’s sustainability committee which entailed that “all Landfill Sites should fall under the responsibility of the township as a whole.”
This proposal came about in the wake of an Organizational Review of township services that was completed earlier this winter.
Currently, each of the four districts does different things with garbage. In Portland and Loughborough, there is curb-side pickup and the garbage is dumped in district managed landfill sites. Bedford residents bring their own garbage to one of four different sites. In Storrington, there is curb-side pickup but the waste goes into external landfills and tipping fees are paid.
Of the three districts that have landfill sites, there is a slight variation in the amount of life remaining in the sites and the projected closure costs for those sites. For example, Loughborough has 15 years of life remaining in its site, with a projected closure cost of $420,000 and a $346,000 sanitation reserve fund in place.
Portland , on the other hand, has a dump site with 40 years of capacity, a projected closure cost of $1.1 million, and $442,000 in a sanitation reserve fund in place.
Residents in each of the four districts pay waste disposal fees as part of their property tax bills. In Loughborough, residents paid $145 per household in 2005, while in Bedford the charge is only $20. Residents in each district can only use their own landfill sites currently.
The proposal from the sustainability committee would change everything. A waste management master plan study is being proposed to look into a unified system, equally funded by all South Frontenac taxpayers, making equal use of all combined assets within the township.
As Public Works Manager Bill Blum explained, “There may be some significant changes to how waste is handled if this goes through. Some Bedford residents live closer to the Loughborough site than any of the Bedford sites, but they can’t use the Loughborough site now. This would change. Perhaps some of the Storrington waste, which we pay to have hauled away, will end up in one of our own sites.”
The proposal to amalgamate all landfill sites provoked much debate at council on Tuesday night,
The Sustainability Committee made several other proposals to council this week.
One of them was to keep a bag tag system in place, whereby each resident receives 100 bag tags each year, but to establish a single colour bag tag for all residents in place of system whereby each district has a different coloured tag.
As well, it was proposed that the Public Works Manager study the possibility of establishing a permanent hazardous waste disposal site in the township. Last year, two hazardous waste days were run, at significant cost to the township.
Finally, it was proposed that the township proceed with a salt/site management study. All road salt in the township is stored under cover, but in handling the salt and mixing it with sand, there is potential and actual run off from the township works’ yards. This study will examine these problems and provide costs for improving the situation.
All of the costs associated with the studies that were proposed by the sustainability committee will be covered using money from federal gas tax funds that have been received by the township, and will not directly affect municipal property taxes.
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Feature Article - April 12, 2007NorthFrontenac mining group plannedby Jeff Green
It was a full house at the Snow Road Snowmobile clubhouse on Good Friday morning as a group of local residents and municipal politicians from Lanark and Frontenac Counties gathered to hear from Maureen Towaij of the Citizen’s Mining Action Group (CMAG) of Tay Valley, and Marilyn Crawford from the Bedford Mining Alert (BMA).
The two women recounted their experiences dealing with the Ministry of Mines and Northern Development (MMND) over mining claims on properties in their own regions.
They recommended that people whose properties have been staked by the uranium exploration company Frontenac Venture Corporation, and others in recent months, should form their own citizens’ group. This group could pool information and plan a co-ordinated response to the staking that has taken place, and the exploration that is planned for the coming years.
Maureen Towaij, from CMAG, talked about the attempts her group has made to influence provincial politicians on the matter of surface and subsurface property rights. In Tay Valley, as in Bedford and North Frontenac townships, prospectors have only been able to proceed with unimpeded claims staking because many of the landowners do not own the subsurface, or mining rights, to their own properties. Those rights are held by the Crown.
“Our high order solution, and this is one we have been promoting at all levels of the provincial government, even as far as the premier’s office, is to give landowners the right to buy back the subsurface rights to their properties,” said Maureen Towaij.
Towaij also talked about the hazards of abandoned mines in Tay Valley, saying that the government has been unwilling or unable to persuade mining companies to remediate the land after mining has been completed.
Marilyn Crawford talked more directly about strategies that people in North Frontenac might take in disputing some of the mining claims that have been made in recent months.
“Keep records of all the information you have, of all conversations you’ve had, everything,” she said, “but don’t forget that the mechanisms in the mining act are really about protecting claims from other prospectors, not protecting landowners from claims.”
Participants at the meeting were full of questions for the two speakers, and for Mark Burnham, the Chair of the Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority, who also took questions.
Reeve Keith Kerr from Tay Valley, and Mayors Bob Fletcher and Ron Maguire from Lanark Highlands and North Frontenac respectively, were present. Several township councillors were also present, along with Randy Hillier, who is seeking the Conservative party nomination in this October’s upcoming election.
Municipalities have no jurisdiction when it comes to the Mining Act, which supersedes the municipal act in many cases.
On the provincial level, Mark Burnham said that when the political parties are out of power, they tend to listen to the landowners, but that changes when they get in government.
John Kittle and Robert Quigley, the North Frontenac residents who organized the meeting, encouraged everyone to sign a contact list, and are planning to form a concerned citizens’ group.
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Feature Article - June 28, 2007Letters to the Editor
It's right in my backyardGeorge White is misinformed on two main things: the legitimacy and position of local Native people AND the harmful effects of uranium mining. He appears to live in his own little world though he is quick to point out Randy Cota's conflict of interest as an OPP officer. He tells us he has sought legal advice but there's one big problem here that overrides this specific situation and the whole picture of Native land claims. Let me put it metaphorically. Suppose someone steals some goods and sells them to you.Then the rightful owner comes forward to claim the goods.Who gets the goods? What's more, who gets to decide who gets the goods?Is it the person who sold the stolen goods, the person who bought the stolen goods or the person who rightfully and originally owned the goods?
George White is not telling the truth about his deal with the “Sharbot Lake group”, as he calls them, and Doreen Davis, at least not according to Bob Lovelace, Harold Perry, Frank Morrison and others who were at the council meeting on Sunday.There the two Algonquin factions agreed to work together to oppose the uranium mine, period. George even has the nerve to say that he is working with the Algonquins to protect sacred burial grounds and to provide employment for local Natives.Which is all such total rubbish as to be unworthy of response.Yet he got to say so on national CBC radio! The only thing I agree with George on is the part about Randy Cota's conflict of interest as chief of AAFNA and OPP officer.I don't think it's right and I don't understand why Bob and Harold go along with this. An OPP should not be a Native chief in the first place, plain and simple.The OPP takes an oath to the Crown just like the lawyer does and therefore cannot serve two masters. Bob Lovelace is a very knowledgeable Algonquin historian. He was able to tell me that the uranium seam which runs from Kaladar to Snow Road does affect the watershed that flows into Tyendinaga territory. As far as I am concerned this matter does also concern the Mohawk people as well. George White is also in dreamland when he talks about the 50's.Is he not aware of the great struggle in northern Saskatchewan over uranium mining, the devastation to the people and the land and the recent flooding of the Cigar Lake Mine, October 2006? This mine was the largest single, most concentrated deposit of uranium in the world which Cameco (and shareholders, Cogema Resources Inc (37%)[fr], Idemitsu Uranium Exploration Canada Ltd. (8%)andTEPCO Resources Inc.) saw fit to mine with expensive robots since they know how very toxic radiation is. Scott Gemmill of Gemmill Sand and Gravel, says only 20 people oppose the mine but he doesn't know how many are for it in this community.I wish he'd pay for a good survey; he'd be in for a surprise. I'll bet I can name 20 off the top of my forgetful head who oppose uranium mining. I don't think we have time to wait for people who doubt the effects of radiation to get the picture.Don't we all have enough folks dying of cancer? Neither do we have time to wait for the resolution of Native land claims.The Ontario Algonquin land claim is a recently filed claim so it would be near the end of the line of over 800 claims before the Canadian courts, who of course have no real authority to settle these disputes in the first place.Meanwhile the ravaging of the land goes on and the media are as complicit as ever.That includes CBC, the best of the bad but still not good. Jenn TsunMore on Uranium
I am writing in response to an article in your paper on June 21 entitled “Frontenac Ventures Corporation Outlines Exploration Plans”. Statements attributed to George White, founder of FVC, in your article and some of those he made in a CBC radio interview on the morning of June 25 have given rise to some confusion in my mind.
In his radio interview he stated, to the best of my recollection, that seepage had leached uranium out of Precambrian rock (the type we have here) to a depth of 6 feet (2 metres) over the past 10,000 years. This presumably contributes to normal background radiation and is deemed “natural”. He is planning to dig up, crush and expose this rock. Information I have suggests that the average lifespan of a uranium mine is 12-15 years, lets be generous and say 20. He will do in 20 years to a 200-400 metre layer of rock what mother nature did to 2 metres in 10,000 years. This would be exposing the environment, according to my rather elementary math, to potentially 400 [m]/20[yr] divided by 2[m]/10,000[yr]=100,000 times the normal background radiation from this source. This seems like rather a lot. Perhaps it is not all released at once. We do know these tailings ponds remain strongly radioactive for many, many years after the mine closes. Help me out, here, George, what happens to all this radioactivity?
Core drilling, now. This is to be done with a 9/8 inch bit, which I assume will make a hole a bit over 1 inch wide, and 200-400 metres (roughly 600-1200 feet) deep. This will presumably go through aquifers as well as strata containing uranium and its highly radioactive decay products. Many of these are soluble. Water can move through a 1 inch hole, I’ve seen it happen. We live in an area of fractured bedrock. Up is not the only way for water and dissolved radioactive compounds to get out of these holes. Can you explain to me how capping is going to reliably keep these things in, and out of our ground water and our wells?
Tailings ponds, again. You indicated that tailings would be safely contained. How long are we talking about, here, George- 77,000 years, the half life of thorium, the principal radioactive isotope left after the uranium is taken away? Were you aware that these tailings containments have a rather discouraging tendency to release their contents by leaching, leaking or outright breach?
And did you tell us about radioactive dust, from rock crushing operations, and radioactive radon gas, released as ore is broken up, and quietly forever as thorium decays in tailings? And lung cancer rates from this? I personally think the people living around here might want to know about these things.
That company Cameco, which you described in your radio interview as having safe, world class mines- according to information I have, as recently as 1975 they and/or their parent company Eldorado were dumping tailings directly into Lake Wollaston in Saskatchewan, and in 1989 a spill occurred which released 2 million litres of radioactive, heavy metal containing fluid into this same lake. If these are environmentally “safe” mining practices, would you like to define “safe” for me, I don’t quite understand how you justify this term. Or perhaps this is as safe as it gets.
I’m really left wondering, George, whether we’re getting the whole story on this uranium mining thing. Perhaps you could set me straight.
Linda Harvey
Credit to othersThank You for the article entitled “Volunteers of the Year Honored in South Frontenac”. I'd like to give credit to others who deserve to be honored as much as me.
Preserving the history of Bedford and establishingan historical society could not become a reality without the help of others. Betty O'Connor's internet research is an inspiration and Bill's stories give a glimpse into the vastness of local history stored in the minds of settlers’ descendents. Nancy Jenkins, with Bedford roots, travels the roads of Bedford gathering photos and records of schools, etc. and Marty Humphrey and Sheila Simsstep in wherever there is a need.
Thanks gotoa multitude of others too large to list for their many contributions.
Recently the Bedford Historical Society established a research centre in the Bedford Community Hall at Glendower. It is open on Tuesdays,1pm 7pm June, July, and August. There is no charge.
Anyone wanting to visit or want a visit, contribute, or help preserve the history of Bedford can call 613- 273-7241. Photos are copied while you wait. - June Quinn
Do you ever wonder?
Do you ever wonder, do you ever ponder, why most folks never go to church except for weddings, baby dedications, and funerals? Some folks also go at Christmas time, and Easter.
Did you know - that God provides, food, clothes, housing, that new skidoo, four wheeler, 350 Ford truck, fishing tackle, sunflowers, Bell towers, chocolate, and everything else you can think of! All of these things come from God's green earth, the good earth God created because he loves us - that is, you and me. I see churches poorly attended and not supported - in this Denbigh area, for one; we have five churches in the area, churches that would love to have a lot more people show up for Sunday services. How about You? Do you think you could come out to one of these churches, next Sunday morning? The New Apostolic, Catholic, Free Methodist, Luthern, and United Churches around here need you to come and support them with your presence. You will be SURPRISED how your life will change for the better all round - mentally, physically, spiritually. Give God, and the Church itself, a chance. God can change your attiutude from “woe to me” to “THANK YOU, LORD” for what you have given to me and mine. God bless you all.
Donna Carr
A note from Dwain
A friend of mine was readin' in the paper that scientists have beenexperamentin' on jelly fishes - the big ones in the ocean that glows in the dark. The scientists took the gene that makes 'em glow an' put it into pigs. Now they've got pigs that glows in the dark.
But you just wait awhile folks, 'cause pretty soon we're all gonna be glowin'up here in the Frontenacs,if that uranium mine gets goin'.
Jeffy, I'm respondin' to yer recent interview with George White of Frontenac Ventures regardin’ the proposed exploration work for his uranium mine. Ya quotes'ol Georgeyas saying there are no environmental impacts fromdrilling andextractingcore samples. I'd like ta put in my two cents about one thing Georgey had ta say. Diamond drillin', as White said, goes into the earth for hundreds of meters. When it's finished yer left with a hole, hundredsof meters deep. They don't fill the hole in, they cap it. But there's stilla hole down there, under the cap - hundreds of meters deep. Now, when they drill a water well, they put in a casing ‘cause earth and fractured rock from drillin'the wellcould fall into the well and contaminate yer drinking water?
Now, if it's true you need a casing ta protect the water, would it not stand to reason that, when your drillin' fer uranium, and you leaves a hole, that dirt and fractured rock would fall into the hole? And, if there is uraniumin that dirt and fractured rock, is that not going to contaminate the water that's down there?Also, somewhere down those holes, is the water table. Would that dirtand fractured rock not pollute the water table?
I've heard that specialists who areinto uranium say that it has a unique effect on the water table. It can cause the water table to move up and down. So, now we've got holes, and I understand not just a few holes, but a dump truck load of holes, hundreds of meters deep. And, we have the water table, maybe moving up and down. Now, have you ever used a bottle brush? It seems to me that the water table could act just like a bottle brush. That same water would also move through the cracksand fishers in the rock,possibly carrying radiation - that is if there is uranium, down those holes. And Georgey seems ta think there is, or else why's he spendin' all that money drillin' holes that could be goin' into our water table?
Those same specialistssay it takes from four to six days for the water up here to reach theOttawa River. Now, that could be a good thing. Cause if it end up comin' out of the taps of the politicians in Ottawa, we might get rid of some of them.
The problem here is folks,that, on it's way to Ottawa, that water could end up in our wells. And, not only could it end up in our wells, it could end up in places like Almonte, CarletonPlace, Pakenhametc., etc.
Now, I'm just an 'ol coot, but I understand 'ol Georgey White is seventy-four. Maybe 'ol Georgey has been hangin' aroud to many uranium mines.
Dwain Scudder, A.K.A. Frank Morrison
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Feature Article - July 26, 2007Candidates express broad agreement over mining issues
by Jeff Green
The Liberal, Conservative, and NDP candidates for the upcoming provincial election in the Lanark, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington riding participated in a forum sponsored by the Bedford Mining Alert (BMA) on July 21 at the Bedford Hall.
The Green Party, which has yet to select a provincial candidate, sent their federal candidate, Chris Walker.
Prior to the meeting, the Bedford Mining Alert had provided each of the candidates with background information about issues related to prospecting on private lands, and the candidates answered a series of questions from BMA member Justin Connidis
The four candidates all agreed on a major issue that has been championed by the Bedford Mining Alert for years - they favoured the uniting of surface and subsurface rights, at least in Eastern Ontario.
Throughout Ontario, a small percentage of landowners do not own the subsurface rights to their property, and these properties are available for staking by prospectors. Prospectors are exempt from normal trespass laws in pursuing their interests on these lands, and they are allowed to clear brush, cut trees, and do trenching on the properties without the consent of the landowners.
Ian Wilson, the Liberal candidate, pointed to proposed legislation that has just been posted for review, legislation that would see changes to how the Mining Act is implemented in the future. (see “A way forward or half a loaf?”) The changes do not include uniting surface and subsurface rights, however. Wilson was willing to go further, “I do support uniting surface and subsurface rights in Eastern Ontario,” he said.
Although Randy Hillier said, “Surface and subsurface rights must be united”, he also posed the issue against the context of the broader agenda of property rights, which he champions.
Chris Walker, from the Green Party, posed the issue in terms of sustainable growth, seeing the drive to extract resources as a symptom of an economy that is causing a host of environmental problems.
He also pointed out that he has researched the Conservative party policy on the Mining Act, and reported that he was told there are no plans to change the mining act.
“That could change,” Randy Hiller responded.
“The key issue is not uniting surface and subsurface rights, which I do support” said Ross Sutherland from the NDP, “it is broader than that. There should also be more controls on exploration on Crown lands, and Natives need to be consulted when their lands are being affected.”
Before the discussion concerning surface and sub-surface rights got underway, Frank Morrison and John Kittle made presentations. Frank Morrison told the kind of story that is familiar to Bedford Mining Alert members: that of finding his land disturbed and stakes in the ground, and through research realising that prospectors have extensive rights on his land.
In his case, however, it was not a graphite or wollastonite deposit that is being explored, as is common on Bedford. Morrison lives in North Frontenac Township, and the company that has staked his property is Frontenac Ventures Corporation.
John Kittle spoke specifically about uranium and the consequences of uranium mining and exploration.
The candidates were not asked directly about their response to the uranium exploration in North and Central Frontenac until the tail end of the meeting, when the public had their chance to ask questions.
Norm Guntensperger asked them if they support the activities of the Algonquin protesters who have occupied the site where Frontenac Ventures had been located.
Both Randy Hiller and Ian Wilson said they do not support the Algonquins, and Chris Walker and Ross Sutherland said they did.
However, all four candidates said they support a moratorium on uranium exploration in the case.
Although they oppose the occupation, both Ian Wilson and Randy Hiller said they did not favour a heavy-handed approach to the occupation by police or government officials.
“Confrontation does not serve anyone’s interest,” Wilson said.
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Feature Article - January 17 2008 Five year roads plan well received by Jeff GreenIt was quite a send off for South Frontenac Public Works Manager Bill Blum.
First there were sandwiches and cake to celebrate his last day on the job before retirement, and then his proposals for a five-year paving program, a three-year bridge construction schedule, and a ten-year road upgrading plan for Bedford District received universal approval from what is normally a combative group of councilors.
“The game is fair and the plan is already there. If we can’t buy this deal we aren’t going to buy anything,” said Mayor Gary Davison after Blum had completed his presentation.
The road paving plan was broken down by district, since roads are paid for in separate district budgets in South Frontenac, although Blum pointed out that if the township amalgamates its roads budgets in a year’s time, it would make very little difference to the tax rates paid in each of the four districts.
Portland District can maintain its 132 km of paved roads at a cost of $460,000 each year for the next five years.
In Storrington, with 112 km of paved roads, the cost will $522,000 per year.
In Loughborough, with 82 km of road, it will cost only $150,000 to keep the highest paved road standards in the township
Finally, Bedford District can keep its 10 km of paved roads in good shape for $80,000 each year.
For former Frontenac County roads and Road 38, which are the responsibility of the whole township, about 190 km, it will cost about $$,275,000 each year to keep the roads up to snuff.
Bill Blum also presented a 10-year plan to pave some of the major roads in Bedford District, including Canoe Lake Road, Bauder Road, White Lake Road, and parts of Green Bay and Devil Lake Roads.
“Between maintenance and construction, Bedford spends about $300,000 each year on roads. If there is a commitment to doubling that, to $600,000, this paving can be done over 10 years. Each $100,000 will cost the average taxpayer in Bedford $32, so the whole thing would mean an increase of $100 for the average household,” Blum said.
He also proposed budgeting $175,000 in 2008 for some relatively small bridge repairs on Desert Lake Road, Buck Bay Road, Bobs Lake Road, 12th Concession, and Opinicon and McGillvary roads.
Major bridge work on the Perth Road Loughborough Lake Bridge, which will cost $836,000, and the Perth Road Bear Creek Culvert, at a cost of $220,000 is proposed for 2009 and 2010. This will cost about $500,000 each year.
“Until now, each district has done bits and pieces each year, but with this information and this plan, the money can be set aside. It will be relatively easy each year to determine which roads need to be done, and we can guarantee that the roads will stay at the level they are now, which is pretty good,” Bill Blum concluded.
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Feature Article - February 21, 2008 South Frontenac Committee of the Wholeby Wilma KennySouth Frontenac Council agreed to endorse in principle a proposed 5-Year Road and Bridge Reconstruction Plan as presented by Mark Segsworth, the Public Works Manager at a meeting of the Committee of the Whole on February 12.
At that time Council had had a number of questions regarding the plan, and Segsworth agreed that there would be need for ongoing review as the program was developed.
Roads have always been of primary interest at election times, and their maintenance and improvement uses a large portion of tax revenue. The roads departments have remained area rated since amalgamation: i.e. each district has its own road budget, and the Councillors from each district are responsible for deciding how that budget will be used.
Appointment of a Public Works Manager and a Technical Advisor (Randy Ferguson) have been beginning steps toward amalgamation. However, Council has resisted any further steps toward amalgamating the roads departments because although the roads in Portland, Loughborough and Storrington are in reasonably good repair and mostly paved, Bedford lags far behind, with only 8 of its 160 km of roads paved. (Bedford also has a much smaller proportion of township-maintained roads than the other districts.)
Bedford Councillor David Hahn provided an historical background to the bumpy status of Bedford’s roads in a telephone interview this week.
In the past, Bedford had a much smaller population base than the other parts of what is now South Frontenac, and many of its taxpayers were seasonal residents. Hahn said that seven years ago, when he and Del Stowe were elected to represent Bedford as a district in South Frontenac, roads were a priority with their constituents.
The population has increased substantially as cottagers retire to live permanently in the area, bringing with them expectations of better roads and services. Both recent arrivals and long-time residents complain of broken shocks and springs. More emergency services, both fire and medical, are available now and require good access roads.
Hahn said the Bedford Councilors who had been in place before he and Stowe came into office had transferred $100,000 from gravel roads to reconstruction, which although bringing improvements in some areas, led to deterioration in others.
Realizing that they needed both maintenance and improvement, they raised taxes, gradually increasing the Bedford road budget to $300,000. This has paid off: ten years ago, none of the Bedford roads could accommodate a tandem truck on a plough: now three routes are upgraded to accommodate large trucks. 8 km of roads have been paved, and the preliminary work has been done to pave 8 more this year. Hahn said they would like to have 40% of Bedford roads hard-topped in the next 10-15 years.
Although this will mean an increase in taxes for Bedford ratepayers, it should certainly help pave the way toward eventual amalgamation of the township roads department.
McMullen Park Improvements: The Portland District Parks and Recreation Committee has undertaken a project to improve the facilities and park area in Verona. As a first step, Council accepted the tender of Percy Snider (low bidder) for demolition of the cottage at McMullen park. The Recreation Committee plans to construct a new building to include washroom facilities, storage and space for day camp and swim programs. Portland has adequate funds in their parkland reserve funds: the building is to be completed by July 2008, in time for the summer programs.
Playground Inspection Procedures for 2008: Chief Building Official Alan Revill will conduct annual and monthly inspections of Township playgrounds, beginning in April. District parks maintenance staff will make and record brief weekly inspections, reporting any damage or hazards to Revill.
Roadwork Tenders: Council authorized the Public Works Manager, Mark Segsworth, to issue tenders for 2008 line painting, surface treatment and hot mix paving requirements on the understanding that the awarding of tenders is subject to Council and budget approval.
Opinion of Private Planning Consultant Sought: Township Planning Coordinator Lindsay Mills had recommended a zoning by-law amendment for the Czychun property on part of lot 1, concession 1, Bedford, to waive the severance requirement of a 400 foot building setback from the water. Council disagreed, on the grounds that the original severance had been granted allowing the formation of a lot with a very small waterfront only on the condition that any development on that lot would be along the road frontage, not the waterfront. The unusually deep setback had been imposed to ensure this. In the case of Council disagreeing with their Planning Coordinator, there is provision to seek an outside opinion. Meantime, decision on the zoning application has been deferred.
There will be no Committee of the Whole meeting next week.
