To the Environmental Review…

To the Environmental Review Office,

I am writing with deep concern and strong opposition to the proposed landfill, recycling, and waste facility at 29831 Irish School Road.

This site is located just over 800 metres from the town of Dresden — a vibrant, historic, and family-centered community. That distance is shockingly close. In fact, there are two schools — Dresden Area Central School and Lambton-Kent Composite School — located within just over 1 kilometre of this site. We are talking about hundreds of children who would be exposed daily to potential dust, truck traffic, air pollutants, and the long-term health risks of living next to a landfill.

There is a reason provincial and international planning standards recommend that landfills be located no closer than 3.5 kilometres from residential communities. This buffer exists to protect public health, air quality, groundwater, and overall community safety. Yet this proposal disregards those standards entirely — putting a massive industrial operation right at our doorstep.

How can this be acceptable?

On top of this, the company behind the proposal — York1 Environmental Services — has a history of environmental violations, regulatory breaches, and even a workplace fatality under their watch. They’ve also failed to comply with excess soil tracking regulations, which poses a real threat to soil and water safety — and they are now seeking to repeal Ontario Regulation 284/24, which would remove the requirement for a full Environmental Assessment.

We know why they want it gone — because this proposal would never survive a thorough environmental and community impact review.

This project is far too close to where people live, learn, and grow. It’s a direct threat to the safety of our children, our farmland, and our entire way of life. Dresden is a town where people have chosen to raise families, where generations of farmers work the land, and where the community is fiercely protective of its health and future.

I urge you to keep Ontario Regulation 284/24 in place and require a full Environmental Assessment of this proposal. Anything less would be a betrayal of the trust and safety of the people of Dresden.