This amendment proposal…

This amendment proposal ought to be rejected for the following reasons:
The Amendment was unlawfully changed without due notice and process, and:

1. Proper notice of meeting is to be given to the Public by Newspaper, Radio, Television 20 days prior according to Planning Act Regulation 543-06 Section 17 (Subsection 17).
Only 1 day’s public notice was given for the April 16 Norfolk Council meeting at which 16 oral deputations, and 8 written submissions were given by developers, builders and landowners to the exclusion of the general public who were not informed of the date.

2. On May 22 Council heard 21 oral deputations, and a further 34 written submissions given by the public.

3. The Norfolk County Planning Department had previously proposed 38 hectares (approximately 100 acres) of lands available for development just for Waterford.

4. Norfolk County surplus areas of about 450 acres in Simcoe within the town alone were also identified.
By the end of the May 22 Council meeting the number of acres for development had increased to approximately 1200 acres.

5. Prior to 16th of April, Norfolk Council had opportunity to designate this area as specialty crop area, but they didn’t, regardless of historic and current land use.

This designation is still under review by the Province
Specific concerns:
a. Water Wellheads in Simcoe and Waterford are included in this plan for development which is contrary to environmental protection guidelines. Think Walkerton-scale contamination.

b. Studies on water wellheads in Waterford conclude they are high risk for contamination by irresponsible development.

4. Previously identified flood plains have been ignored or annexed to other allotments in this plan, under-rating the hazard of flood plains.

5. Contaminants from sewage settling ponds into creeks leading to Lake Erie during rains and flooding are a present and expanding problem.

6. Norfolk County has a proud reputation as Canada’s Golden Garden, and Ontario’s Garden. We boast of our specialty crop heritage with very rich and varied soil types, bountiful supplies of rainfall and ground water, and unique Carolinian microclimate. Our area’s stewards of this bounty, our farmers, have developed sophisticated management of farm labour, as well as the most up-to-date application of on-farm production, processing, packaging, shipping and marketing.

7. Once farmland is covered over by concrete and asphalt, it never returns to its previous state in the ecology.

You just don’t kill the goose that lays the golden egg.