Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

Dufferin Cty - Honeywood land

A new issue (to me in Huron County) has been brought to my attention. I am quickly being brought up to speed but as we all know, there are always unanswered questions. I thought I would throw it out there to see if anyone out there can toss it back at me.
All I know - vast tract of land being aquired by the Highland Companies. (over 6000 ac). Apparently it is potato land. Someone has decided it is to be mined? Limestone Quarry?
Two articles that I have found dated April 23 (Orangeville paper) and June 23 (marketwire):
http://www.citizen.on.ca/news/2009/0423/mailbox/026.html
http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/North-Dufferin-Agricultural...

(added Sept. 23) Found a main site for the local resident group: http://www.ndact.com/NDACT/

If anyone has any input - toss it out here.
Wayne Black

Views: 101

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Avia Eek on September 24, 2009 at 7:39am
I'm learning all about people dropping the ball. Our Minister of Energy, Smitherman, and the OPA had decided that northern York Region needed an additional power supply in "peak" times during the summer and winter. They chose the Holland Marsh, or more specifically, "just outside" of the Holland Marsh. The facility is slated to be built in a flood plain, beside Specialty Crop Area, in the Greenbelt, and on prime agricultural land--go figure. Oh yeah, it will require 18 km of 16" high pressure gas line to feed the plant. The crazy thing is, we are King Township and are on a separate grid, this will not benefit us at all. 170 tonnes of greenhouse gases will be spewed into the air at 900 degrees and will no doubt affect our micro climate (one of three in Ontario). The ironic thing is Smitherman is denying solar farms--where the land can be returned to agriculture in 20 years,--on prime agricultural land, yet insisting the natural gas-fired peaker plant should be on prime agricultural
Permalink Reply by Wayne Black on September 28, 2009 at 9:38am
Rec'd today via email. the Hellman's video was attached which is already posted here in my videos.
Wayne Black

Anyone noticed the rapid rate that Ontario farmland is being eaten up by urban sprawl, road expansion, etc.? Anyone think it’s wrong that Royal Gala apples from Chile were featured front and centre when I entered Sobey’s this week when I can currently pick them fifteen minutes from my house? Ever wonder when the provincial government is going to prioritize the protection of farmland in addition to setting aside ‘green areas’? Do you stop to question how our ever increasing population will be fed as well as we are today by an ever decreasing quantity of local farmers and farmland?

Want to know something you can do?

You can sign an online petition against a proposed 6000 acre quarry (the size of Orangeville pop. 30,000). It is currently threatening Class 1 farmland (highest productivity) within a 1 hr drive of Toronto (north of Shelburne my hometown). Not only is the farmland threatened, but the pit location also threatens underground streams and rivers which form the headwaters of the Nottawasaga and Grand River systems so groundwater supply is at risk. The topsoil required for agricultural use is a limited natural resource. Ontario residents need to speak out so that the things we take for granted still exist for generations to come.

http://www.ndact.com/NDACT/Petition.html

Thanks for your time!

▶ Reply to Discussion

RSS

Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

July Heat Wave Puts Midwest Corn and Soybeans Under Pressure

A major heat wave is building across the central and eastern United States, raising concerns for corn and soybean crops as July begins.

- Derecho climatology (Gaustini/Bosart): a corridor through the northern Plains/upper Midwest carries a >65% annual chance of a derecho-strength MCS, driven by northwest flow on the ridge's periphery. We must watch this region over the next 60 days. More on this below... - Cold North Atlantic: Years with the current North Atlantic cold-tongue pattern favor western troughs + heat pushing into the Midwest. Caveat: rapid warming on the south side of the cold plume means the simple composite likely understates the evolving pattern. Plus the Gulf of Alaska has been warming which could negate these impacts. See this part of the video for a deeper dive. - Modeling caution: During Summer, global models like the ECMWF and GFS are at their weakest due to coarse resolution and their inability to resolve convection. So we lean on the hi-res models like the HRRR and then ensembles for large scale anomalies. Be very careful with model forecasts to total precipitation... - National yield projection

A major heat wave is building across the central and eastern United States, raising concerns for corn and soybean crops as July begins. Nutrien’s Eric Snodgrass says producers should closely monitor high heat, overnight temperatures, derecho risk and dry pockets in key growing regions.

Swine Health Advisory Committee Sets Five Focus Areas

The Swine Health advisory committee is focused on turning strategy into action. To help advance the National Swine Health Strategy, the committee identified five focus areas that will drive action and measurable progress for U.S. pork producers. A Producer-Led Push for Swine Health Pork producers need a swine health strategy that actually works on the farm. The Swine Health advisory committee was created to make sure that happens. For the inaugural meeting in May, the advisory committee’s twenty-seven producers, veterinarians, USDA staff and packers/processors met in Des Moines and left with a clear direction: build on what’s working and accelerate action. The National Swine Health Strategy (NSHS) only succeeds if it reflects producers’ needs, and the advisory committee is responsible for ensuring it delivers. The advisory committee identified five focus areas to drive measurable progress in swine health. The Top 5 Focus Areas Driving Progress Build Industry Buy-In for the NSHS Fi

Closing the Gaps: New Research Investments Support Swine Disease Elimination

The Swine Disease Research task force recently funded new PRRSV and PEDV research projects that support National Swine Health Strategy priorities. These projects aim to close critical knowledge gaps and provide producers with practical information to support disease elimination efforts. Disease elimination doesn’t happen with a single breakthrough. It happens when the industry asks and answers the hard questions that still stand in the way. New research projects recently selected by the Swine Disease Research task force will address those hard questions. Each project aligns with the National Swine Health Strategy (NSHS) priority of eliminating endemic diseases, addresses key knowledge gaps and aims to deliver information to help producers make better herd health decisions. The latest research investments concentrate on two diseases that continue to challenge U.S. pork production: porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) and porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV).

Cereals Canada 2025 Annual Report Highlights $12.8B Exports and Global Market Strength

Cereals Canada’s 2025 Annual Report underscores strong export performance, expanding global demand, and continued investment in quality, innovation, and customer relationships.

© 2026   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service