ARTHUR — County councillors are hoping to transform a former landfill site in Arthur into a pollinator's paradise.
Initially proposed at a Solid Waste Services (SWS) committee meeting in January, the county is investigating whether it is "feasible" to convert the closed Arthur landfill, which is located between 145 Preston St. and 161 Preston St. in Arthur, into a public pollinator park.
Staff said this is an opportunity to further the county's "support of pollinators" while educating the public on their "vital" contributions to the agricultural sector.
While the conversion has the potential to be "both costly and complicated," staff said fewer concerns are related to allowing the public to access the closed Arthur landfill as a park because "very little work" would be required to allow public access.
At a minimum, staff said the perimeter fence would need to be adjusted and installed at a steep slope on one side of the property to mitigate health and safety concerns. Increased monitoring is recommended on-site to ensure the fencing is intact.
Given the Arthur property has been closed since 1971, staff said there are "negligible risks" related to methane.
"Staff have no reasons to believe there would be environmental or health and safety concerns associated with allowing public access to the property," said staff in the report.
Partnerships with the local municipality or service clubs are recommended to help make the project more fiscally feasible from an operational standpoint since the county doesn't have a department responsible for recreational facilities.
Staff are currently anticipating additional project costs related to installing trails and garbage cans as well as potential costs associated with maintenance and upkeep.
Pre-consultation with the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP) is recommended to ensure the required terms and conditions won't make the proposal "untenable from a cost standpoint." Pre-consultation is proposed during the spring with an update to council planned in the fall.
If potential MECP requirements are "modest" and staff feels allowing public access is "appropriate," staff will begin planning the next steps including a report on budget impact estimates.
An Environmental Compliance Assessment amendment application will also need to be submitted before any work begins, with a timeline of approximately a year to receive approvals.
If change-in-use requests are received for other closed landfills, staff suggests they be assessed on a case-by-case basis but said most county-owned closed landfill sites are either not suitable or are likely to be undesirable for a park.
A portion of the Riverwalk Trail was constructed on a part of Erin's closed landfill in 2023 at the town's request in 2020.
Isabel Buckmaster is the Local Journalism Initiative reporter for GuelphToday. LJI is a federally-funded program.
