Huron County Planning Manager Denise Van Amersfoort presented county council with plans for a Scoped Aggregate Strategy Update at a recent council meeting.
Van Anmersfoort says the Huron County Aggregate Strategy was created back in 2005, so it was felt it was time to do an update.
“Just to make sure that that strategy reflects some of the changes that have occurred since 2005, both from the industry perspective, how has the process changed in terms of approvals and also take the opportunity to promote some more understanding about the aggregate industry in Huron County," Van Amersfoort explained.
Van Amersfoort says there have been times when the possibility of a new aggregate operation has raised concerns with neighbours so they're hoping to promote a better understanding with this update. She also points out aggregates are a natural resource in Huron County and it's used every day in things like construction and road projects.
“So we need to think about, yes, the aggregate industry is here in Huron County and we want to make sure that we are planning correctly for it. And at the same time I really do think there is that opportunity to do a bit of public education to make sure that people's understanding of the industry are based on fact," added Van Amersfoort.
There have been some regulatory changes since 2005, so Van Amersfoort notes they want to look at that, and there have been changes in the landscape, so they want to look at some of the mapping, as well as promoting a better understanding of the industry. Van Amersfoort says more information about that will be available on the Huron County Connects web site later this month.
