Wilmot residents appeal approval of new Petersburg pit

A group of Wilmot residents are continuing to push back against a new sand pit in Petersburg despite the township already giving it the go-ahead.

That approval, given in May, came despite some fierce public pushback and now frustrated residents have been left few choices but to appeal to the Ontario Land Tribunal.

Julie Neves is one of the area residents standing against the Middle Street Pit on Snyder’s Road East. Speaking on The Mike Farwell Show on Thursday, Neves said she’s disappointed the township isn’t standing with them.

“It is costly to stand by the community, we understand that, but there is a question of public health and safety,” she said.

Neves then seemed to focus on two key concerns: trucks and dust.

“They say the road can handle the transit and the traffic but these are larger trucks than what we see right now,” Neves said, adding, in some spots, she believes they may need to take up two lanes.

She also said the proposal allows for up to 18 trucks to leave the sand pit per hour from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Friday and from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends.

Neves argues the trucks will add to neighbourhood noise and pollution. She also said they’ll kick up more dust than already lingers in the area air due to the several near-by pits already in operation.

“Most importantly is, most of the residents, they have to deal with the haul route exiting these pits through these corn fields,” she said. “That brings a lot of dust.”

“It’s pretty dismal out here now, Petersburg used to be rolling hills [but] now we just see piles of asphalt [and] trucks on the road,” Neves said, adding even when forest fire smoke from northern Ontario and Quebec was affecting area air quality, the pits never stopped.

“So we had not only the poor air quality, but also an increase in dust because the hotter it gets, the more this material flies,” she said.

Neves also added there’s further frustration after the township opted not to go ahead with further study of the potential health impacts of another new pit in the area.

“The corporation, the Township of Wilmot, responds [to say] it is a regulated industry, [under the Aggregate Resources Act] so, therefore, we shouldn’t have to spend [the township’s] time and effort–because, again, it has to do with costs–and we shouldn’t have to make a study on air quality, on noise, on any of the things that are affecting the community,” she said.

“Unfortunately, that’s not sufficient,” Neves continued. “It is the purview of the township to look out for the best interest of its people and [while] we’re not living on the pits, we are living beside the pits.”