WOW I WOULD CHARACTERIZE THE REGION"S TREATMENT OF WILMOT TWN. AS PETTY, DISRESPECTFUL AND WORTHY OF CONDEMNATION

 

It's not just the fact that they've already lied to them, stolen their water contrary to a written agreement and passed a formal motion permitting new water taking from their Township which is already facing lower water elevations and private well dysfunctions. On top of that they have advised that despite more water being pumped from Wilmot for the benefit of other municipalities, Wilmot Township will not have any extra water allocated to themselves with Kitchener getting 51.1 %, Waterloo 24%, Woolwich 14.8% and Cambridge 10.1 %. It is the reason given for Wilmot getting nothing that I find shocking. It is stated in today's K-W Record article by Joe McGuinty that "...virtually no extra water will be allocated to the township as it declined an invitation to participate in a working group." Following that apparent punitive comment, insult is added to injury when the reporter then adds that "Wilmot will get 0.01 % of new water allocation, or enough for one person." It's Wilmot's water and the Region aren't satisfied with taking it without permission but they also have to throw insults at the Township that is carrying the rest of the Region on their backs through this water crisis?

On the front page of the Record in a different article by Luisa D'Amato there is a quote from a news release by the Waterloo Region Home Builders' Association which states "This is a catastrophic failure of mismanagement by the region at the worst possible time,".  That's a minor exaggeration as but for the federal government finally cracking down on the massive, infrastructurally unprepared for influx of foreign students, it could have been much worse. Last year Waterloo Region only grew by a miniscule 90 persons compared to thousands and thousands per year prior far outstripping housing, jobs, medical, water and wastewater abilities to handle. 

The Region have listed their suggested plans and timelines and I see nothing that will please anyone in them. Literally as I speak right now regional councillors are hearing from local citizens and builders and developers at regional council and I expect that it will get loud and raucous.

WOOLWICH WATER CRISIS EQUALS FANTASY LAND

 

This is the land where major cleanup issues are never resolved, they simply disappear and die. From DNAPLS to Stroh Drain, Optimization to refusal to hydraulically contain all aquifers on the Lanxess site to other industrial sources present in Elmira and ignored for decades to the gross coverup for decades of the Varnicolor Chemical site; it's been one series of lies and deceptions after another.

Another huge issue is why Varnicolor a recycler of used solvents supposedly never had any chlorobenzene on their site.  Who are they kidding? Chlorobenzene is a major solvent used both as an intermediary in many chemical reactions as well as a primary solvent involved with paints and dyes yet we are to believe that absolutely zero was found in and under the soils of Varnicolor's Union St. site. 

Other unanswered questions include why the groundwater cleanup at Motiveair on First St. was kept hidden from the public as well as from CPAC and UPAC. Yes the cleanup was caused by Varnicolor's negligence and poor solvent handling but clearly the MECP and others did not want the public or myself to find out about that.  There are also a number of unanswered questions to this day about Varnicolor's property on Union St. as well as the one (called TriUnion years agio) located on Howard Ave. Finally where did the only recently admitted free phase DNAPL located by the Howard St. Water Tower and OW57-32R come from? Who was the source: Varnicolor, Borg Textiles, Uniroyal Chemical?

These unanswered questions are why Woolwich Township, Lanxess, the MECP and others have frozen me out as much as possible from cleanup participation and discussions. Packs of liars congregate together. 

P.S. Tell us about other known spills in and around Elmira, Ontario over the decades and not just the garages and service stations.

WATER CRISIS IS COSTING THE WEALTHY MONEY: IT'S ALSO COSTING WILMOT RESIDENTS WORSE THAN THAT

 The title of one of the water articles in last Saturday's K-W Record is "Water crisis costing  major dollars ".  Both developers and municipalities allegedly are losing money with delays from the water crisis. Frankly I may feel badly for the construction workers who may or may not be currently losing employment but I'm less sure of feeling badly for the municipalities. They and their politicians are and always have been part of the problem. Also I thought our brain trusts had finally admitted that growth does not pay for itself and never has. That growth is subsidized year after year by higher taxes from long suffering residents . 

Parts of Waterloo Region can still build and develop as usual such as most of Cambridge , North Dumphries, Baden and New Hamburg.  Also developments and buildings that do not require additional water demand are exempt from the current hold on development.  Supposedly municipalities are losing out on Development Charges (DCs) as they are being greatly delayed. Again my understanding is that Development Charges may offset the costs of extending sewers or water lines etc. but that they do not cover 100% of the costs of growth which eventually include greater snow plowing, fire service and police service not to mention health care, hospitals etc. All in all I don't feel that citizens are remotely getting the full and honest versions of the negative sides of growth which of course also include environmental costs. Just ask residents of beautiful neighbourhoods whose vacant lots and wooded areas are under constant pressure from developers nibbling at the edges or worse. 

My advice to the Region of Waterloo is stay the course, get your water infrastructure improved and don't be harassed into premature lessening of the current development restrictions until everybody's water supply is stabilized and improved.

ARE REGIONAL COUNCILLORS STUPID, TONE DEAF OR ALL TRYING TO LOSE IN THIS FALLS MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS?

 

You almost have to think that when everybody are unhappy with the Region's water decisions that maybe they really are all trying to get the boot this fall. Don't they know that they can simply say "I've had enough of the good times and am uninterested in the bad times so goodbye. "? 

Firstly they are about to take 15 litres per second more water from Wilmot wells. This item should not even be on the table until AFTER they have committed to drilling old wells deeper or new wells for Wilmot residents whose wells are no longer reliably providing water. This "commitment" does not mean either verbally or in writing because they are proven liars and deceivers.  This "commitment" means the cheque or cash is in the hands of the residents desperately needing them for immediate construction of new or deeper wells.

How clear has it become that the developers and builders are the tail wagging the dog? Man we've recently seen Woolwich Township cut and run from a single wealthy individual whose wants, not needs, for an enclosed, full size, full amenities ice rink on his property buffaloed them. Now over and over again we publicly see developers and builders telling the Region what to do and the difference between us and them is that the Region says O.K. to them. 

Basically the developers and builders have given the Region of Waterloo a deadline and it is June 3/26. That is this coming Wednesday and presumably will occur at the regional council meeting. That is when those in charge will find out if their specific projects have been allocated enough water to go ahead and start building, essentially after the cities give them the building permits and or other required documentation. Make no doubt any failure by the Region to do so this Wednesday will likely result in legal action by those far more entitled than you or I to continue making millions of dollars building homes, apartments, townhouses etc. for the Region's no longer grossly expanding population. Federal government policies finally stopping mass unneeded immigration have been enacted. That said allegedly there were only 90 new residents in Waterloo Region last year which seems unbelievable in the opposite direction of what we've had for the last twenty to fourty years.  

Politicians as well as those in charge may have gone too far this time as many of us have lost all trust in those who run the Region of Waterloo. Today's K-W Record have several water articles keeping us informed as to the latest nonsense going on.

THE TALK AND THE ROUND & ROUND IN CIRCLES NEVER ENDS, IT JUST GOES ON FOREVER

 

The Woolwich Observer published a Letter To The Editor from Ms. Bryant that was commenting on an earlier article in the Observer (Oct. 12/23) titled "Lanxess study finds Canagagigue contaminants pose no unacceptable risk". Ms. Bryant's Letter To The Editor one week later is titled "Canagagigue hotspots should be addressed".  Well yes as a matter of fact they should and only a wealthy corporation with more money than ethics could think otherwise. 

There is of course no health study to back up the Risk Assessment claims of no unacceptable risk. There is however reams of paper involved in a number of Draft reports as well as in the possibly final report. As stated lots of contaminants were found some 1,000 times higher than regulated standards. These contaminants are long proven Persistent Organic Pollutants (Pops) including DDT, DDD, DDE, dioxins and furans, Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs), PCBs and mercury. They are found in the bottom of the Creek as sediments as well as along the Creek as creekbank soils plus further away from the Creek as Floodplain soils. Finally they are also found in members of the Benthic community that lives within the sediment and finally via bioaccumulation have moved up the food chain into fish tissues. These fish of course are also predated upon by birds of prey, raccoons, foxes, coyotes and more. Yes the fish tissue concentrations also exceed published health criteria  None of this seems to matter to the suits merely doing the job they were paid to do.

This situation is the result of money talking. The successor polluter has more money for legal battles than the Township, the Ministry of Environment (MECP) or anybody else involved. They are not afraid to spend it to save themselves millions in further cleanup costs. In my opinion both human health and environmental health for them are not nearly the priority that shareholders' profits are. Money talks!

THE BRASS, THE AUDACITY, THE NERVE & SENSE OF ENTITLEMENT IS BOTH SHOCKING AND DISGRACEFUL

 

This is not the first time that hockey of all things has determined the makeup of Woolwich Council. The irony is that Mayor Shantz's initial win (20 years ago?) as a councillor over Pat McLean was not due to any remote superior character, education or experience but due to Sandy Shantz publicly supporting a two ice rink recreation centre whereas Pat wanted but one. Now as Sandy is not running again in this falls municipal election she won't lose her seat over her decision to permit the new, private rink to stay. The same may not be said for other councillors whether in favour or against allowing the new rink near Bloomingdale to stay despite the property owner pretty much literally waving their middle finger at Woolwich Council.

It was a calculated, in your face slap to both councillors and planning staff as the very well to do property owner decided to simply ignore zoning and by-law issues by building his personal, fully enclosed and fully equipped ice rink supposedly for his family and friends only versus for commercial purposes. Time will tell as this person has demonstrated a willingness to publicly flip the middle finger at Woolwich Council.

There are many issues involved in this situation and frankly despite my harsh criticism of Woolwich Council environmentally, I almost feel sorry for them with this no win scenario.  Issues include individual's property rights versus the encroachment and expansion of government influence and authority. Issues also unfortunately include the Rule of Law whereby each and every citizen is to be treated equally before the law.  What we clearly see here is an individual with the money and influence simply confronting a municipal government and effectively telling them to #uck off or else I'll see you in court or at the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT) or both. No subtlety, no apology, no oops I goofed. Any other average citizen treating Council this way would have the Township's lawyers all over them and a very expensive, possibly bankrupt inducing legal battle before them. 

Part of my sympathy for the individual involved has to do with most municipal council's including Woolwich historically lying, deceiving and bullying citizens whenever it pleases them. Think of the Rattasids among others who for a while owned the former Paleshi garage and auto wrecking yard and how they were treated by staff and council. Clearly this individual in Bloomingdale whether through good luck, good management or whatever has the financial means to push back hard and has chosen to do so. His is a classic case of do what you damn well please on your own (very large) property and then ask for forgiveness afterwards with little to no sincerity and a blatant in your face attitude because clearly his lawyers have told him that an expensive legal battle for the Township during an election year will not be wanted by them. 

Frankly half of this looks good on a municipal Township with a long history of both stupidity and arrogance. It's just unfortunate that it sends the message that yes indeed money does put you above the law. Just ask a couple of guys by the name of Nygard and Stronach about how long money can buy you legal protection in this country.

     

  

LOCAL GOOD NEWS: CANAGAGIGUE CREEK IS AS TOXIC AS IT'S BEEN FOR THE LAST TWENTY YEARS BUT BETTER THAN IT WAS THIRTY TO FOURTY YEARS AGO

 

The headline above demonstrates what passes for environmental cleanup and improvement in Woolwich Township particularly between polluters and politicians.

These results are from the recently released 2025 Biomonitoring Report. DDT and metabolites (mostly DDE) in fish tissues are above the CCME (Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment) Guidelines of 14 ng/g for several reaches in the Creek on the Lanxess (Uniroyal) property.  The guideline is 14 ng/g and the concentrations in Shiners and Bluntnose Minnows averaged between 50 and 70 ng/g, well above guidelines.  

PCB concentrations in fish tissues were all below the CCME Guidelines except for the upstream reach which is interesting. What is just upstream from the former Uniroyal that could have discharged PCBs in the past?

Dioxins and furans concentrations in fish tissues were above the CCME Guidelines of .71 pg/g TEQ (Toxic Equivalency) downstream but below them upstream from Lanxess/Uniroyal.  The downstream composite samples were around 1.6 pg/g which also indicates a decrease from  concentrations that were higher in the early 1990s but have been stable over the last five years. Now this result similar to the others allegedly can not be "...directly or statistically compared with historical MECP tissue data..." due to differences in sampling, fish species assessed and other reasons which I find very convenient and dubious. 

Somewhat strangely the dioxin and furan tissue concentrations in Shiners are higher in 2025 than they were in 2020. One excuse given is that the fish (shiners) averaged a little larger in the 2025 sampling than the earlier one.

All in all this study proves that doing nothing is cheaper than actually cleaning up and that eventually when you stop polluting, concentrations of toxic Persistent Organic Pollutants (Dioxins/DDT/PCBs etc.) tend to decrease over decades.