Some members of the Uxbridge…

Some members of the Uxbridge Town Council have suggested that the large-scale importation of fill into the Miller Boyington Pit #3 (approximately 1,000,000 cu. m.) will generate a new revenue stream for the town. What these same voices fail to acknowledge is that these revenues would come at a high price and will be more than off-set by factors including but not limited to:
- reduced tax revenues resulting from the devaluation of nearby properties arising from the stigma of the pit becoming a “dump site” and potentially having a significant negative impact on well water in the surrounding area,
- road improvement costs on Concession 7,
- increased road maintenance costs along the haul routes,
- costs that will be the responsibility of the town to monitor the quality of the material being placed in the site,
Should the town attempt to require that the pit license holder be responsible for the monitoring the quality of the imported material, one cannot help but feel this would be in line with the old saying, “It would be like the fox guarding the henhouse”. Past actions by the license holder in failing to adhere by the terms of the license agreement and failure to undertake directives from MNRF regarding corrective action would appear to indicate that this would be an appropriate analogy.
The Oak Ridges Moraine has long been regarded as a significant groundwater recharge area and was one of the primary reasons for the establishment of the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan and Act. Any perceived financial benefit the town may believe it might realize would also be at the expense of the local natural and human environment being negatively impacted in other non-financial ways and could only occur if the terms and spirit of the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan and Act were being ignored.