Although MPP Billy Denault has confirmed that Arnprior is not part of the special exemption zones created in the recently-passed “Bill 5”, the legislation is a sign post to the road we’ve been going down for some time, as far as diminishing Environmental Protections, says Lacey Smith, of the Save the Grove Again Committee.
She references a deficiency in the logic of how, when the Grove Nursing Home was expanded by extracting a portion from the old growth forest to accommodate the new premises, an Environmental Impact Study identified the presence of an endangered species of bat.
What’s a loophole on paper is big enough to drive a skidder through in practice.
The Save the Grove Again Committee will see key allies working with it over the summer to identify just whose habitat may be disturbed if Cavanagh Homes gets to develop the 20 acres of meadowland severed earlier this year from the Galilee Centre property.
Research done in the 1990s is now out-of-date.
Lacey says when the Save the Grove Again Committee appeared before Arnprior Town Council on January 27th, it was to encourage elected representatives to get involved.
She says if elected representatives choose to shirk their duty which the Town’s own Official Plan imposes, where’s the logic there?
Not only does Gillies Grove attract visitors, it’s also a feature in selling homes.
The Save the Grove Again Committee Chair maintains great numbers of people who really care about the Grove are buying into the myth that development on private property right next door really can’t hurt.
You’ll hear it in taxi cabs; you’ll hear it in coffee shops- but just because you don’t see 100 foot tall trees in the meadow, doesn’t mean the Grove doesn’t need room to grown in order to thrive.
To help paint the picture of what’s truly involved, the Save the Grove Again Committee is planning a series of nature walks through Gillies Grove that you can involve yourself in.
There’s no registration involved. Meet at the Ottawa Street entrance of Gillies Grove. The first of these is Saturday June 28th at 9AM. There are additional “Grove Roves” on July 19th, August 16th and September 20th.
By Rick Stow