As a concerned member of…

As a concerned member of Chatham-Kent, I strongly oppose the proposed landfill site near the town of Dresden. While our emotional connection to this community drives much of our opposition, there is also overwhelming evidence-based research showing that landfills this close to a populated town pose serious health, environmental, and social risks.

Health Risks:
• Studies show increased risks of low birth weight, birth defects, and some cancers for people living near landfills.
Source: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA):
https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2014-03/documents/health_effect…
• Research indicates higher rates of lung disease, cancer, and respiratory symptoms near landfills.
Source: National Institutes of Health (NIH), PubMed Central:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5005946/

Environmental Risks:
• Landfills emit methane, which is 84 times more powerful than carbon dioxide in warming the planet over a 20-year span.
Source: University of Colorado Environmental Center:
https://www.colorado.edu/ecenter/2021/04/15/hidden-damage-landfills
• Leachate from landfills can contaminate groundwater and drinking supplies, especially dangerous for rural and agricultural communities.
Source: ScienceDirect – Science of the Total Environment Journal:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969724018102

Community & Economic Impact:
• Property values within two miles of a landfill often drop significantly, and homes become harder to sell.
Source: JSTOR – The Appraisal Journal:
https://www.jstor.org/stable/24888348
• Living near landfills is linked to poor quality of life, including noise, odor, dust, and heavy truck traffic.
Source: ClinMed Journals:
https://clinmedjournals.org/articles/iaphcm/international-archives-of-p…

Proximity and Policy Concerns:
• The proposed site is just 800 meters from Dresden, including two schools and family homes — far too close for a facility like this.
• Ontario’s own Bill 197 was introduced to prevent landfills from being placed within 3.5 km of towns for safety and environmental reasons.
• This proposal is now being pushed through using Bill 5, attempting to bypass modern environmental oversight by using outdated 1960s approvals that never anticipated this scale of operation.

We were previously granted a full Environmental Assessment under Ontario Regulation 284/24 — and now the government may remove that protection. The only reason to do that is because the proposal likely wouldn’t pass a proper assessment. That is unacceptable.

Chatham-Kent already hosts one of Ontario’s largest landfills (Ridge), and we have done our part. Now we ask the province to do theirs and protect the people of Dresden and all of Chatham-Kent.

Please do not proceed with this proposal. Maintain the requirement for a full Environmental Assessment, and reject any plan to build this landfill near Dresden.