It is long but POSITIVE

Hello everyone;

There is quite a bit of reading here, but we hope that it will help us to get refocused.  You will see that there is a lot of work to be done. We encourage you to come forward to help with those tasks that are of particular interest to you. Let us know by writing to our email list.

Lamenting the loss of leadership from Ed Speers for health reasons and sensing an urgent need to move forward with our opposition to the Bio-en installation in its proposed location, four of us (Jerry Heidbuurt, Dr. Dan Holt, Derek Potma, and Michael Purves-Smith) met last Wednesday to discuss future plans for Stop the Stink.  Dan was elected co-chairperson at a public meeting and we are agreed to proceed under his leadership. Due to the shortness of notice, Cindy Moser, secretary, and Randy Warren, treasurer, were unable to attend.

Stop the Stink is highlighted for the moment because there is a sense that it may be time to change the name to something less confrontational.  The official name, other than Stop the Stink is Bio-Fuel Citizens Committee or BFCC. Shannon Purves-Smith suggests Bio-fuel Citizens Response Group. Your suggestions and comments are welcomed.

We wonder if by focussing attention so single-mindedly on “Stink” we have enabled the company to outflank us.  We are sure that none of us are at all convinced that the smell issue is anything like resolved. However, in the minds of some of our fellow Elmirans, the company’s presentation on odour emissions may have been convincing.  Since the issue was to Stop the Stink, the question is therefore settled for them, whereas we know that it is multifaceted and very complex.  Since, even if the company were to satisfy the MOE about every single one of our demands or were allowed simply to ignore them, we would propose that the thing that we cannot be satisfied with is the issue of the history of Elmira.  Therefore, maybe we should get some visibility started around something like “Elmira already has enough Chemical Plants.”

We have identified a number of tasks and have already set them in motion:

• Perhaps the most important of these is the election of a municipal council with a significantly different outlook than the present council.  As a result Mayor elect, Todd Cowan has already been in touch with the Ministry of the Environment to discuss the relocation of the plant.  We await the results of his initiatives.
• We will insist on a meeting with MPP Leanna Pendergast as soon as possible.  A number of us have written to her, sometimes on more than one occasion.  Not all of our letters have been answered, but we have two helpful letters from her.  The first outlines in some detail the process that all of us are required to follow in addressing the Bio-en application.  The second addresses in more detail some of our concerns, including the transportation issues.  That letter indicates that a representative of her office was at the last public meeting and that as a result her office is working on a suitable response. We will get both of these letters on our website as soon as possible for your information. A phone call was made and Dan discussed with Joe Brothers, aid to MPP Pendergast, the meeting request and our position. Mr. Brothers agreed to pass our request on to the scheduler and get back to us soon. Dan received a call from Peter McGough at MPP Pendergast’s office regarding a meeting and telephone tag has ensued. Dan and Michael have agreed to be our representatives at a meeting with MPP Pendergast. They will argue that the citizens of Elmira are anxious to work with the Provincial government to develop the best possible energy and waste disposal policy as we move forward.  They will argue that a Bio-gas installation in Elmira represents the worst possible location for this plant.
• The executive committee will try to contact groups with similar interests in Oakville (gas fired energy), Listowel (Anaerobic digestion), Belwood and Fergus (wind energy), and Conestoga and West Montrose (inappropriate gravel extraction) with the view to forming a committee that can act with a united voice on environmental issues. Any help that you can offer with making the appropriate connections would be greatly appreciated.
• We are continuing our efforts to inform ourselves on the issues involved and are studying the draft reports of the Bio-en Power Inc. In order to develop a timely response to its application.  The Bio-en draft reports are available at www.bio-en.ca/publicnotice.html [link is not valid; draft reports will soon be available on this site –SysAdmin].  Click on “description.”
• A number of us continue to study the impact of truck traffic on Elmira. The evidence supports our contention that there is already an unusual amount of heavy truck traffic through Elmira.

The executive committee agreed that in order to maintain momentum, it is time to formulate a Mission Statement:

The Stop the Stink movement is committed to the protection and improvement of a quality environment for all of us who live and work in and around Elmira.  Its members are committed to working with the Provincial and Municipal governments to plan forward-thinking solutions to our enduring environmental problems, such as waste disposal.  We believe that the proposal of Bio-en Power Inc. is poorly conceived, and that it will do serious harm to the quality of life here if it is forced upon the people of Elmira in the proposed location. The group wishes the company well and appreciates its dedication to the technology involved. It sees no reason why the company should not benefit from the lucrative public subsidies available if a suitable site can be found outside of Elmira. However, the group strongly opposes the idea that money should be allowed to trump public good in deciding whether or not this project should go ahead in the proposed unsatisfactory location. Finally, given Elmira’s long history of serious difficulties from odour and chemical emissions and spills from many firms that have operated, or are presently operating, in Elmira, the Stop the Stink group feels strongly that Elmira is the last place in Ontario that should be saddled with yet another plant that threatens the community with further problems of this sort. Therefore, the Stop the Stink movement will take all reasonable steps to oppose this plan, especially with regard to raising public awareness.
• The group has recently come into possession of an important report entitled Guidelines for Selecting Suitable Sites for Biogas Plants. It was written with the support of the European Commission and published in April 2008. The whole report is available at

  http://www.big-east.eu/downloads/WP6_Site_Selection_Strategy_final_20080404.pdf

  The following are two significant parts from that report, highlighted in yellow and red. We will continue to analyze other parts of this report over the next few weeks.

  The first step is to select suitable regions for biogas production. Suitable regions are defined by the availability of biomass. Due to the low energy content per volume and large quantities it is economically and energetically not useful to transport liquid agricultural feedstock further than 5 kilometres, and stackable energy crops more than 15 kilometres. Thus, a biogas plant should be located in a radius of less than 15 kilometres from available biomass sources. Also the digestate . . . . should not be transported further than 15 km due to increasing transport costs.

  With one exception, Bio-en has not been specific about where is will get its feeder stock. The feeder stock source named by the company is a partner in the project, Piller Sausages and Delicatessens Limited. Its plant is located thirteen kilometres from the proposed site of the Bio-en facility, but useable waste from this plant would fall far short of the quantity of feeder stock necessary for a plant of the magnitude proposed by Bio-en. Therefore, Bio-en has made it clear that it will accept materials from anywhere in the province of Ontario and from adjacent States. Publicity material issued in the press indicates that the significant waste disposal problem of Toronto region offers a tempting target. This makes a mockery of the above quote and it is clear that the project is only possible in the proposed location as a result of an extremely high rate of public subsidy. If the company were to be set up entirely with private funds, transportation costs would force it to find a location much closer to its feeder stock.

  Possible neighbourhood conflicts:

  Emissions, particularly smell and noise emissions, can not be avoided. Thus, the site has to be selected in view to possible conflicts with neighbouring areas.

  Are there residential areas in proximity (this should be analysed in view to the prominent wind direction?)

  Elmira is downwind of the proposed site.  The two statements speak eloquently for themselves.

• The executive committee will begin to discuss with as many of you as possible how we can get a large, committed, informed, and demanding group of us to attend the next information meeting scheduled by Bio-en for the end of this month (November).
• We need to be vigilant, and active in discovering and implementing strategies that could prevent what might be a serious mistake for Elmira. To that end we are suggesting the following check list and we are asking you for input on what changes and/or additions should be made and on how to implement this check list.
  • Preparation for an effective presentation to both the MOE and to Leanna
    Pendergast, our MPP.
  • Meet with Leanna Pendergast
  • Contact Ken Seiling for meeting
  • Restart the petition with a goal of signing up at least 1000 names
    (we   currently have about 400+)
  • Regroup
  • Write letters to the Toronto papers, CBC, and the Record etc.
  • Organize a fundraiser or two (how? when? How much do we need?)
  • Solicit expert opinions on Bio-en draft proposals, on traffic difficulties,
    on air pollution, and on loan restrictions related to chemical
    problems in Elmira.
  • Prepare response for the moment the Bio-en proposal is posted (We will
    have thirty days.)
  • Prepare a response if the proposal is approved (We will have 15 days.)
  • Make contact with the region to discuss waste disposal synergies
  • Contact the Oakville, Fergus, Listowel, and Conestoga groups; make a
    common cause if possible.

We note with some dismay that someone has started taking down our signs.  We do not currently have any replacement signs.   However, please let the email list know if you, or anyone you know, is experiencing this difficulty.  Also, if you have any extra signs please let others know so they can be put up.

Our struggle is NOT over and the placement of the Bio-En facility is NOT a foregone conclusion. We need to keep a positive attitude and work together so we can make changes that will benefit all of Elmira. Please pass the word that we are still working and still need assistance and enthusiasm.

 Dan Holt, Ph.D.

+1-519-210-2121
lgr@epix.net