REPORT ON COUNCIL January 28, 2008 Committee of the Whole Meeting: 9:05 a.m. – 12:27 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. – 3:29 p.m. Regular Evening Meeting: 7:00 p.m. – 7:13 p.m. All Members of Council present.
CONFIDENTIAL / CLOSED SESSION: 11:23 a.m. – 11:59 a.m.
PERMIT TO TAKE WATER / SITE 41: Council had asked John Easton of Golder & Associates and Keith Sherman of the Severn Sound Environmental Association for advice now that the County of Simcoe has applied to the Ministry of the Environment for permission to draw off water from the aquifer underlying Site 41 during construction of the first garbage cell.
Easton explained that the withdrawal of water was necessary. Once the overburden of ground is removed down to the clay layer to make room for the liner and the garbage, the pressure of the water in the aquifer below will cause the clay layer to bulge upward unless the pressure is reduced by drawing off a great deal of water. (It sounds as if some dewatering of the aquifer will be necessary until the weight of the garbage equals that of the ground that is to be removed.)
Keith Sherman spoke about the impact of all that water on Macdonald Creek, a tributary of the Wye, which passes Site 41. He recommended that the water be piped to the creek, rather than into a ditch and thence to the creek, as the latter method would cause turbidity. He also recommended that the County be asked to spill the water into the creek to allow it to absorb air. Without these two measures, the dewatering exercise would have a negative impact on fish in the creek.
Members of Council expressed concerns about what would happen if things do not go as expected.
Staff is to prepare a letter to the Ministry of the Environment, raising Sherman’s and Council’s concerns.
WOODLAND BEACH MASTER PLAN: Mike Sullivan of LGL Ltd. and John Bell of John D. Bell Associates presented a slightly revised version of the draft Woodland Beach Master Plan. For details see last fall’s Tiny Cottager. Staff is to prepare a report estimating costs and implementation timelines.
CLOSED MEETING INVESTIGATOR: A recent amendment to the Municipal Act says that a person may ask for an investigation of whether it was appropriate that a particular meeting (or part of a meeting) was closed to the public. On the advice of a report prepared by Doug Luker, CAO/Clerk, Council decided to have JGM Consulting serve as “Closed Meeting Investigator”. JGM will be providing this service for municipalities across Simcoe County.
FISH HABITAT AND BEACH MANAGEMENT PLAN PROPOSED: Keith Sherman of the Severn Sound Environmental Association presented to Council an oral proposal regarding fish habitat and beach management. If we understood him correctly, he wants to assemble and correct data possessed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and the County of Simcoe showing elevation points along the whole of Tiny Township’s shore (including Farlain Lake). He then wants to create a digital elevation model of the 178 m level above sea level, the 177 m. level, and the level at 1 metre and at 2 metres depth in the Bay. He explained that more detailed plans of particular beaches showing the near shore substrate, the nature of a beach, the location of dunes and of stream discharges would be required if effective approaches were to be made to the Department of Fisheries for changes at public beaches. These detailed plans might be prepared in subsequent years. His proposed budget for the initial mapping was $25,000.
HOUSEKEEPING AMENDMENT (ZONING BY-LAW 06-001): Now that it has been working with the Township’s new comprehensive Zoning By-law for two years, the Planning Department presented a report recommending that a number of “housekeeping” changes be made to make the By-law “more complete and user-friendly.” These changes concern
the definition of a “Bunkie”
the definition of “Established Grade”
the definition of “height”
reduction in the setback of buildings and structures from laneways
development on vacant lots with an area of less than 10,000 square feet
and amendments to 10 zoning maps
There is to be a public meeting about these proposed changes at a time convenient to seasonal residents.
