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• Editorials • Home & Garden • Obituaries • Senior Care
The
THIS WEEK
Citizen
Huron County’s most trusted independent news source Volume 37 No. 19
Thursday, May 13, 2021
$1.50 GST included
Publications Mail Agreement No. 40050141 Return Undeliverable Items to North Huron Publishing Company Inc., P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, ON N0G 1H0
Huron-Perth back in red after cases rise over weekend By Denny Scott The Citizen
The perfect gift With Mother’s Day in the air, Jackie Glanville submitted this picture to The Citizen from over the weekend as Blake Brand worked to pick out the perfect flower for her mother Melissa at Huron Ridge greenhouse. It was another Mother’s Day under the stay-athome order, but many found ways to celebrate their mothers and grandmothers while keeping safe. Submit your pictures to The Citizen by e-mailing them to Denny Scott at reporter@northhuron.on.ca and they may be included in a future issue. (Photo submitted)
Huron and Perth Counties saw a significant spike in cases over the past week with 70 new cases being reported between May 3 and May 10. The increase in cases pushed Huron Perth Public Health’s COVID-19 statistics to a 51.5 incidence rate (weekly new cases per 100,000) and per cent positivity (over a seven-day average) to 2.9 per cent, which bumps the area out of the yellow band of the province’s COVID-19 response framework, past the orange band and into the red band. The majority of new cases were in Huron County, with 38 of the 70 cases being reported in Huron County municipalities. New cases in Huron were reported in South Huron, which saw an increase of 16 cases to 128 cumulative cases; Huron East, which reported two new cases for a total of 107; Central Huron, which reported four new cases for a total of 65; North Huron, which reported four new cases for a total of 58; Morris-Turnberry, which reported three new cases for a total of 57; Howick, which reported seven new cases for a total of 44 and
Bluewater, which reported two new cases for a total of 44. AshfieldColborne-Wawanosh (29 cases) and Goderich (23) didn’t report any new cases over the past week. In Perth County, Stratford once again became the highest casecount area in the Huron Perth Public Health catchment area, reporting 18 new cases for a cumulative total of 414. North Perth reported four new cases for a total of 401, while Perth East reported five new cases for a total of 149. Perth South reported three new cases for a total of 45, while St. Marys reported two new cases, for a total of 40. West Perth remained at 50 cumulative cases over the past week. As of Monday, there were 70 active cases across Huron and Perth Counties. Active cases in Huron are located in South Huron (16), Howick (five), North Huron (four), Morris-Turnberry (three) and two each in Huron East, Goderich and Bluewater. Active cases in Perth County are in Stratford (20), North Perth (six), Perth East (five), St. Marys (two) and Perth South (one). The number of isolation orders has increased to 152 from 111 last week, with a grand total of 4,757 Continued on page 3
Vanastra cannabis project persists, despite objections By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen A new cannabis production facility in Vanastra is moving ahead, though it’s not yet finally approved, after a lengthy discussion by Huron East Council and notable opposition from Vanastra community members. The Oud brothers - Jason, Stephen and Andrew - are behind the new facility, which is proposed to be housed at the Radome, a heritage structure that served as a RADAR training site during the Second World War. While the Ouds own the structure, they will be renting it to a tenant for personaluse cannabis production (with a medicinal marijuana licence as opposed to a commercial facility with a licence administered by Health Canada). As the owners of Vanastra Packaging, Jason Oud said the family has been “good corporate citizens” in the community for over 20 years, giving back to Vanastra and playing an active role in its resurgence in recent years. However, there was great opposition to the project in the form
of both written concerns and lively debate at the public meeting, held virtually on May 4. First, Huron County Planner Laura Simpson detailed the project for those in attendance, saying it would be situated just 30 metres from the Vanastra Curling Club. This is incompatible with a special bylaw passed by Huron East in 2019 to govern cannabis production facilities, which says facilities with a proper ventilation system need to be 150 metres from sensitive facilities like recreation centres, parks and homes. Without ventilation, facilities have to be 300 metres from such structures, according to the bylaw. Simpson did say, however, that in her view, the variance is minor in nature. She also noted that the Ouds had enlisted the services of Biorem Technologies for air treatment and ventilation and that their plan had been reviewed by a third party, as per Huron East’s bylaw. Phil Girard, president of PG Compliance Management Inc. conducted that review and said the project could move forward, though it was important that an odour management plan be regularly
monitored, maintained over time and that any citizen complaints be thoroughly investigated. Simpson also noted that over the course of the public consultation period, 20 letters of opposition were received, as was one letter of support. Many of the concerns pertained to odour in the village, allegations of which is something the village has been tangling with due to two other private cannabis growing facilities for several years. Simpson didn’t necessarily recommend approval, but she did suggest that council pass first and second reading of the minor variance bylaw, but hold off on passing a third and confirmatory reading until a more detailed odour management plan is submitted, reviewed and approved by council. Derek Webb, an engineer and president and CEO of Biorem, attended the meeting to explain the air treatment system, saying his company has been mitigating odour in southwestern Ontario for 30 years, first with rendering, deadstock, solid waste and wastewater facilities, and now, increasingly, with cannabis production facilities.
For the Ouds’ building, Webb said he proposed the installation of an emission stack on the roof of the facility, as opposed to the side. However, it’s inside the building, he said, that most of the work would be done. The system would employ an adsorbent system that would remove over 99 per cent of odour from the air before it even reaches the stack. As a result, the air coming from the facility would emit 0.48 odour units per cubic metre, which is extremely low and well beneath the provincial guidelines. For comparison’s sake, he said, a simple household barbecue cooking hamburgers would be emitting hundreds of odour units. The smell of grass from a freshly-cut lawn, he said, would likely be over 100 odour units per cubic metre. He also said that a similar system had recently been installed at a cannabis production facility in Guelph and had been working well. Furthermore, he said he personally lives 300 metres from a wastewater facility using one of his company’s systems and there are no concerns. The system, he said, utilizes a carbon-like adsorbent made of virgin coconut shells that are heated
and turned to coals. They are then utilized to pull odour out of the air, treating it before it’s released outside of the building. When those coals are spent, he said, they will likely be disposed of at a local landfill and classified as non-hazardous waste. The amount of waste that will be generated, he said, will be minimal, likely equating to less than 12 cubic metres over the course of two years (or perhaps one year, in the worstcase scenario). Jason Oud then spoke to his and his brothers’ commitment to Vanastra and their good corporate citizenship. Their track record over 20 years in the community, he said, speaks for itself and to conflate their project with two other troublesome operations in the community would be unfair. He also said that, as current business owners in Vanastra, it wouldn’t be in their best interests to do anything that would harm the community, its people or property values, as it would only be harming themselves as well. Oud also detailed the operation, saying it would employ three Continued on page 8