Mega-Quarry Pits Taters Versus Craters

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Published on Thursday, 18 October 2012 02:13

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A billion tonnes of limestone lie beneath the rural countryside in Melancthon Township, 100 kilometres north of Toronto. A plan to remove it spotlights the challenges faced everywhere when the desire to protect valuable and ever-diminishing farmland clashes with efforts to push industrial development.

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By Jode Roberts, Communications Specialist, David Suzuki Foundation

Posted in The Huffington Post, October 17, 2012

Aggregate review reset as McGuinty steps down

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Published on Wednesday, 17 October 2012 20:48

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Review of the Aggregate Resources Act (ARA) will reset in the wake of Premier Dalton McGuinty’s resignation.
On Monday (Oct 15), McGuinty announced he would resign as premier and prorogue provincial parliament until the Liberal Party is able to elect a new leader.

Dufferin-Caledon MPP Sylvia Jones said prorogation equals the death of all committee work and all readings of bills.
“Basically, everything that didn’t get royal assent, we’ll have to start all over again,” Jones said. “It effectively drops everything that was happening legislatively.”

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By Bill Tremblay

Published in the "Orangeville Banner", October 16, 2012

50 march against mega-quarry

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Published on Monday, 01 October 2012 15:44

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COLLINGWOOD — More than 50 people took part in a march against the Melancthon mega-quarry, Saturday.

Environmental activist Danny Beaton led through the group through a sacred circle and a prayer for the earth, water and animals, before leading the group along Hume Street, from Simcoe-Grey MPP Jim Wilson's office to the office of the area's federal representative, Kellie Leitch.

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By Morgan Ian Adams

Posted in the "The Collingwood Enterprise Bulletin", Monday October 1, 2012

Mega-quarry march on Saturday in Collingwood

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Published on Thursday, 27 September 2012 20:52

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The walk to protest the Highland Companies proposed 2,300-acre mine in Melancthon Township will start at MPP Jim Wilson’s Collingwood constituency office and head along Hume Street to finish at MP Kellie Leitch’s office. Other groups that have confirmed their participation are the Mohawk First Nation from Kanekota, The North Dufferin Agricultural and Community Taskforce (NDACT), and the Green Party. NDACT chair Carl Cosack said he is delighted to have the opportunity to address the crowd.

I hope to be able to say to the rally that they owe it to themselves to get informed and make a good decision about the largest open pit mine proposal in Canada, the second largest on this continent,” said Cosack.

....this is a non political party partisan issue because it affects whoever is in government with both the rewrite of the aggregate resource act and the decision of what to do with this mega quarry proposal.

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By Emily Innes

Posted in the Collingwood Enterprise-Bulletin, September 27, 2012

For more details about the walk, please go to: http://www.ndact.com/index.php/events/561-stop-the-mega-quarry-walk-collingwoodsept-29-2012

Farmers and chefs unite for Soupstock

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Published on Friday, 21 September 2012 02:03

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Over 120 chefs cooking up the world’s largest culinary protest

Farmers and chefs unite for Soupstock in Toronto’s Woodbine Park on October 21st

For immediate release                                           September 20, 2012

TORONTO-More than 120 of Canada’s best chefs are preparing for what could be the largest-ever culinary protest in the world. Soupstock is a sequel to 2011’s Foodstock, where dozens of chefs, farmers, musicians and 28,000 supporters gathered to protest against the proposed Mega-Quarry north of Toronto.

“While Foodstock was amazing, it only whet our appetite for something even bigger,” says Chef Michael Stadtlander from the Canadian Chefs’ Congress, which is co-hosting the event with the David Suzuki Foundation. “Soupstock is going to be the culinary celebration of the year; delicious, huge and truly inspiring.”

Joining Chef Stadtlander are well-known culinary champions like Lynn Crawford, Jamie Kennedy, Brad Long and Donna Dooher. Up-and-coming chefs like Jon Pong of Hoof Raw Bar, Craig Harding of Campagnolo, and Calgary’s Connie DeSousa of Charcut, will also showcase their talents.

“By participating in Soupstock we hope to motivate Torontonians to join the inspiring movement to stop the Mega-Quarry and protect our precious headwaters and farmland,” says Chef Jamie Kennedy of Jamie Kennedy Kitchens. Chefs have volunteered to concoct original soup creations for Soupstock that celebrate the Melancthon region’s rich agricultural, cultural and natural history.

In addition to culinary star power, local Ontario producers are donating the produce to be used by the chefs in the soups. “It’s exciting to see our local farmers matching the incredible generosity of the chefs by donating fresh ingredients for Soupstock,” says Dr Faisal Moola from the David Suzuki Foundation. “From beets and bones to potatoes and dairy, these producers are kindly sharing their bounty and making the event a true celebration of local food.”

The mega-culinary event hopes to raise awareness about the need to stop the Highland Companies’ proposed limestone Mega-Quarry in the Township of Melancthon just 100 kilometres northwest of Toronto. The Mega-Quarry would permanently destroy more than 2,300 acres (930 hectares) of the best potato farmland in Ontario. The company is backed by a $25-billion Boston hedge fund and has proposed to blast a pit deeper than Niagara Falls in a landscape of great agricultural, cultural and ecological importance. the Mega-Quarry would require 600-million litres of water to be pumped out of the pit each day in perpetuity. Up to one million Ontarians downstream rely on this water.

Thanks to a growing community of support to stop the Mega-Quarry, last fall the Ontario government ordered the province’s first Environmental Assessment of a quarry application. Funds raised at Soupstock will be used to continue building a community of support to stop the controversial Mega-Quarry and support other environmental and food-related issues.

To see a list of the chefs, click here.

For more information visit www.soupstock.ca  or contact:

Jode Roberts, David Suzuki Foundation 647 456 9752 cell, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.