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Proposed mega quarry most bizarre thing Ive ever seen, Sandals says

Rob OFlanagan, Mercury staff Sat Oct 08 2011

GUELPH Re-elected Guelph MPP Liz Sandals didnt speak much about the proposed mega quarry in Melancthon during the election, but she delivered a sharp, condemnatory opinion about it the day after Ontario went to the polls. I think its the most bizarre thing Ive ever seen, she said of the project that would leave a hole in the ground deeper than Niagara Falls. Sandals made her comments Friday in response to a question during a meeting with the Guelph Mercurys editorial board. The opposition movement against the Melancthon quarry is growing in Guelph and across southern Ontario. An American-backed company wants to build a colossal limestone quarry on 930 hectares of prime farmland in Melancthon Township in the Hills of Headwaters, about 80 kilometres north of Guelph. Sandals said that in an unprecedented move, the Ministry of the Environment ordered a full environmental assessment on the proposal, the first of its kind in the history of the Ontario Aggregate Resources Act. Sandals is unequivocally opposed to the quarry. She said the remediation plan at the end of the quarrys life is the most bizarre characteristic of the plan. At the end of the process of digging out this great huge pit is that they are going to pump out the ground water in perpetuity and grow potatoes at the bottom of the pit, she said, a tone of sarcasm in her voice. How can you possibly guarantee that somebody is going to pump out anything in perpetuity? she continued. That is forever. That is a very long time. How can anybody seriously say, And our solution at the end of all this is, were going to pump forever, she added, with a mocking chuckle. She said it is her understanding the ministry could not simply say no to the plan, not without clear evidence of a technical nature that the quarry is not feasible. An environmental assessment necessitates full disclosure of the technical side of the plan, and will likely show it is technically invalid,

she predicted. Appearing invigorated Friday, about 12 hours after being elected to a third term, Sandals answered an array of questions related to economic uncertainty, green energy, her possible roles in the new government, and the campaign just ended. Sandals, 63, returned the Guelph riding to the Liberals in a contest she said she had legitimate worries about losing. Those worries were based on her knowledge of the unpredictable nature of elections in Guelph, where historically the moderate vote is split three ways. Those worries motivated her to knock on as many as 25,000 doors during the campaign, she said. She won by just under 8,000 votes, collecting 42.3 per cent of the popular vote, a 1.5 per cent improvement over 2007 results. She said she realized early in the campaign local voters were more supportive of the Liberal government than some polls and pundits would have led one to believe. Her campaign appeared to benefit from strong support from student voters, who favoured the Liberal plan to cut tuition for middle-class families by 30 per cent. And, she said, voters seemed to realize they didnt have to vote for the Green party to get green policy, adding the Liberals have a proven green energy/green economy plan. Green party fortunes in Guelph tanked in the election, the party dropping 6,400 votes locally from the 2007 election. Sandals said her role and schedule will change in a minority government. She will have to spend more time closer to Queens Park in Toronto, to be on hand when votes are called. Her travels throughout Ontario as a parliamentary assistant may also be curtailed as a result of this requirement to stay close to the legislature when the house is in session. With the governing Liberals just one seat shy of a majority, an opposition member crossing the floor for a prestigious cabinet post becomes a real possibility. Sandals said she has no idea if such a scenario will play out, but it has been known to happen, rarely. Who knows? she said. I think you need to work on the assumption that the numbers are what the numbers are, and manage accordingly. Sandals has been a parliamentary assistant in a number of ministries but never a cabinet minister. It is up to the premier to decide if she will fill a cabinet post this time around. Happy to serve in whatever capacity is asked of her by the premier, Sandals insisted she has no interest in a job as Speaker of the House.

Sandals said she did not make unrealistic economic promises at the door of the thousands of homes she visited. The Liberals are aware of, and prepared for, global economic volatility that could result in another recession, she indicated. Another slump in the global economy would no doubt reverberate through Guelphs economy, as it did in 2008, she said. Interestingly, its the first time that Ive ever said at the door, Were actually promising you less than anybody else, and people said, Great, thats a good thing, Sandals said. Voters actually got that the economy is fragile, she said, that Ontario is doing OK right now, but weve got our neighbours to the south that are in a mess, and weve got southern Europe thats in a mess, and that the world is a very unpredictable place. Guelphites and Ontarians voted Liberal, she suggested, because the province has already been in a bad place economically and the McGuinty government managed the crisis quite well. If bad reoccurs and no one is sure if or when it might a Liberal government has shown it can adjust to, and act on, changing circumstances, she said. I think that was one of the ballot-box issues: Who do we trust to actually manage if it gets worse again? she said. Sandals said the world economy is still in a mess, and the next few years will be difficult. She worries hugely about the impact economic instability might have locally. I think we saw more of the results of the impacts of the last recession in my constituency office, she said. During the trough, the bottom of the recession, it was almost like there were two Guelphs. One part of Guelph its public sector and its more recession-insulated businesses was not affected by the recession. Another part of the community was dramatically affected, including the entire manufacturing sector. The constituency office became a kind of entry point for laid-off workers looking for employment or retraining opportunities. The Liberals responded by spending a lot of money on retraining people. Local workers, such as those who lost their jobs when W.C. Wood closed, received upgrading and retraining as a result, she said. Absolutely, I worry about what the impact of a second recession would be, she said.

Given the economic uncertainty, and the size of Ontarios deficit, there is no doubt that cost-cutting and cost-saving measures will have to be enacted, Sandals indicated. Cutting the size of the public service is also integral to the provinces fiscal restraint measures, and is being achieved primarily through attrition, she added. A seven per cent reduction is the goal, and three and a half per cent has so far been achieved. Sandals conceded rural opposition to wind energy may have influenced the results of the election in certain ridings, and couldnt be sure if election results in those communities kept the Liberals from a majority. Guelphites love solar and are quite accepting of wind, she said, but some rural communities do not feel the same. Sandals touted Guelphs green energy initiatives and job creation potential during the campaign. She was asked Friday if such initiatives are tied to strong economic times, and whether they would stagnate in a weak economy. She was quick to answer: no. When capital costs are factored into the electrical generation equation, she said, renewable energy, such as solar and wind, is simply cheaper than nuclear and coal plants, and hydro electric systems, which are all extremely costly to build, expand, maintain and operate. So, if you look at why your hydro bill has really gone up, your hydro bill has really gone up because weve spent $17 billion fixing all the nuclear units that were offline, because neither of the other two parties would fix them, and because we fixed the main trunk transmission, she said. By contrast, wind and solar systems have minimal operating costs, and capital costs that can be paid off in 20 years. Solar and wind energy help delay the building of another extremely costly nuclear plant, she said. Even in a weak economy, we should continue to see green energy initiatives, and green job creation in Guelph, she said. roflanagan@guelphmercury.com

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