Good Evening Warden, Councillors and staff, and members of the public

I am Julie Bancroft and I would like to introduce Mr. John Horton, we are both from Tricounty Watershed Protection Association.

I am here to speak about zoning and the impact unregulated development can, and has had, on our communities.

 I will be providing you with a copy of this presentation, so you will not have to take notes.

 You will have received by email pictures of several lakes covered in blue green algae, a cyanobacteria information sheet,  a critique of the fur regulations written by Frank Thomas with our input,  a map to see how many counties are now impacted, and the water report of the 7 lakes within the Carlton River Watershed area conducted by M Brylinsky from Acadia University.

 About 6 years ago Mr John Horton brought the issue of our polluted lakes to the attention  of the public,  and subsequently a group of  concerned citizens evolved into the Tricounty Watershed Protection Association.

Every avenue was explored to bring the issue of pollution to all levels of government,  all media was involved.   All was in vain because we did not have proper municipal zoning in place to stop the mink farms from setting up their industry beside lakes and rivers.    Mr MacDonell minister of agriculture was here to listen to the concerns of  hundreds of citizens and assured us that there would not be any expansion of this industry until the regulations were in place.

We thought we had made our point and what's more, that we had won the fight, but we were wrong.

 Almost 4 years ago the Planning Advisory Committee (PAC) was asked by council to review the zoning of our community.    A review is mandated every five years, but nothing had been done in almost 15 yrs.   I am encouraged we have a partial copy of some of the zoning being made available before the next pac meeting.

Currently there is a policy of spot zoning and using the "instrument of subdivision" on a regular basis as a substitute for proper subdivision.   The instrument of subdivision was originally designed for a farmer to cut off a portion of land for their family without the burden of survey costs.    It was never intended for subdivisions or million dollar industries.

 The lack of proper zoning is causing friction between the municipality and taxpayers.    A new zoning plan will hopefully address many concerns such as industrial farms,  abattoirs,  waterfront rights,  procedures for land development for new businesses,  as well as community public spaces,   all of which will involve the citizens of our community in a fully transparent process. 

Anyone who buys real estate wants to know their investment is secure,  that the property is on a surveyed lot and their neighbourhood will stay the same or gain in value.   Spot zoning changes neighbourhoods from residential to industrial in a heartbeat.

At a recent PAC meeting Brad Fulton proposed that there was no need to rezone areas for industry as Rural Industrial as all Rural Development (RD) in the municipality would have Development Agreements, if required.  This proposal was not agreed to by the PAC committee, and was voted down.   This is not real zoning, it is spot zoning with a new name.    I AM CONFIDENT COUNCIL WILL ACCEPT the planning committee's advice on this issue.

Do we want industrial business in our community?  ABSOLUTELY but we want all business to be welcomed and placed in the correct areas namely the industrial park, rural Industrial or marine industrial zones.

We have approx 100 acres at the Hebron Industrial Park that is virtually unused.  It makes common sense that the "industrial business" be directed by the municipality to the industrial park.   This can be done in a completely welcoming manner and would be a win, win situation.   Furthermore, the municipality could show the prospective newcomer all the properties that are already zoned for their business and make them welcome in our community     AND BE OPEN FOR BUSINESS WITHOUT DELAY.

 It was stated by Mr Fulton  the development agreement process for inland  aquaculture has further delayed the zoning from coming forward. As far as we know there is no formal application outlining exactly what this aquaculture business will require to open, or how this operation actually runs.   This vital information should have been made available before the process was begun.   How can a development agreement be written without all the pertinent facts? Perhaps we should revisit this procedure.

Council must be extremely cautious in writing agreements that may not contain adequate protection for citizens and the environment.   This process further delayed our zoning.   I believe the new zoning would have covered this issue.

 The success of our community’s future lies in the ability to attract new and returning residents to enjoy the lifestyle this area has the potential to deliver, but home devaluation will be a huge result of the continued zoning flaws and pollution of our area.

 Last year, a precedent was set in Digby County that specifically stated several properties were diminished in value because of the proximity to a mink farm. This year,  you can be sure that many more residents in our county will be appealing their assessments,  and that in turn will mean less tax revenue for the Municipality.   Whole areas can become stigmatized by pollution making them impossible to sell.

 Filth, flies, rodents, seagulls and smell have become serious issues even kilometres from farms themselves.   Mink farm pollution, of the land, water and the very air we breathe is both a real and a potential threat to the property values and reputation of our Municipality.

To give you an idea of the amount of manure produced, a local engineer prepared a management plan for a farm of 45,000 mink at peak production.    THIS DOCUMENT WAS PROCURED BY USING THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT.  8000 female mink were followed through the breeding cycle until pelting, resulting in a total of 45,000 mink

These 45,000 mink produced 943,200 lbs of manure annually. This figure does not include carcasses, urine, excess food and wood chips. 15% of the manure is left on the ground. That amounts to 70.74 tons of residual manure annually.

Approximately two million mink were pelted in Nova Scotia last year. That amounts to 41,920,000 lbs of manure per year.   That is equal to twice the amount of human waste produced in the whole county of Yarmouth (50,000 people) annually.    Carcasses, waste food, sawdust  and urine NOT INCLUDED!!

Many existing farms, including new ones built in the last 3 yrs,  are 1950's style roofed open sheds with wire cages open at the bottom.   The manure and urine falls onto dirt floors which are covered with wood chips or straw.   Compost is more often than not, out in the open, and subject to the elements.

The point is, there is nowhere for this manure to go.   Our enquiries have told us that composting sites are running at capacity.   Manure is composted on site at the farms in most instances, along with carcasses of diseased animals and unused mink food.  The stink is unimaginable, but that is not the worst of it.

Mink manure is unique in its exceedingly high phosphorus content.  Cow manure has 4 lbs of phosphorus per ton, pigs 5 lbs per ton, chickens 40 lbs per ton and mink 50 lbs per ton.   There has been over-use of high phosphorous chicken manure and chemical fertilizers already in Annapolis, and scientists have found that this overuse can make the land unproductive.   The continued practice of spreading mink manure on the land as a method of disposal will probably not prove to be an option at all for this volume of manure.

Mink are carnivorous, they eat fish and chicken mixed with a grain like substance and has super phosphates in it to stop spoilage.   Antibiotics, fertility drugs, and phosphates are not removed by the kidneys, and go into the mink urine. Phosphates are never removed – they remain even if the manure is burned, and so make their way into the land, or are washed into the waterways.   As mentioned one ton of mink manure has 50 lbs of phosphates.

Why is this a problem?

One pound of phosphorous can potentially generate 500 lbs of algae.  In the water tests done by Dept of Agriculture, ONE stream was found to have 250 lbs A DAY of phosphorous, pouring thru it into the lakes.

Many industrial farms have gigantic lagoons that hold millions of gallons of manure, urine, and other farm wastes. These lagoons can leak or overflow causing devastating environmental damage.   This raw manure is 160 times more toxic than municipal raw sewage.   The new regulations say uncovered, earthen, septic lagoons can be 50 metres from your property line or  well.   Is there anyone who thinks this is a good idea?

Algae blooms are cyanobacteria, caused by too many nutrients in the water. Phosphorous feeds the bloom and promotes grows of all vegetation in the lake. Rashes, ear and eye infections are common, and cyanobacteria has also been linked to liver disease, and dementia.  Small children run a higher risk of getting sick, dogs are especially prone to illness.

 It is obvious when a bloom is happening - the lake is green.  However, the most dangerous time is when the lake seems to clear as the algae sinks to the bottom, where it regenerates producing other toxins such as the microcystins detected in Fanning Lake by the Dept of Environment water tests.   Boiling the water does NOT make it safe.

 The YMCA camp on Lake Fanning that has been a part of Yarmouth County residents’ summer memories for over 80 yrs, was forced to close.

Even though generally accepted Health guidelines indicate that these lakes should be posted as unsafe for swimming or the ingesting of fish , the Provincial Department of Health seems to be unconcerned, and told us we should check the radio for warning alerts!

Aleutian disease, a highly contagious disease which targets mink,  is presently rampant in the Annapolis Valley and South West Nova, resulting in the extermination of thousands of mink.   It is spread in a variety of ways including rodents, flies, seagulls, escaped mink, saliva, mosquitoes,    on clothing, and vehicles driving through contaminated waste. The virus can be dormant for a period as long as 2 years,  and is extremely difficult to eradicate.   Mink Ranches themselves are worried about the close proximity of farms because of the fear of contamination.

Our county has suffered severe ecological damage from this industry and nothing is being done to fix it and it must be addressed.   I know many had hoped the new mink regulations would solve our problems but they have not.    As you can see from the critique I provided you with,   there are many loopholes.

So what can we, and what will we do about protecting our communities?

Mr Pick, from Dept of Agriculture, and the administrator of the Fur Farm Regulations stressed that municipalities are free to implement any rules they want and the farmers would have to comply.

Everyone is talking about sustainability. The definition of sustainability is "capable of being maintained at a steady level without exhausting natural resources or causing severe ecological damage".   Is the fur industry truly sustainable??

We are constantly reminded about the money the mink industry provides to the Province and this Municipality.   The Chronicle Herald reported that there are now 125 farms in Nova Scotia providing 1000 part time jobs.    By their calculations that is approx 24  low paying jobs for our county.   The need to address the true value of the mink industry to Yarmouth Municipality is obvious.

This industry is highly subsidized with our tax dollars, but other than personal income taxes I cannot see what the value is to the economy.    Additionally, this industry falls under Dept of Agriculture and they pay very little in property tax or wages.
 

BUT, MORE IMPORTANTLY.... How many millions of  dollars of environmental damage has been done so far?

 

Is this an example of jobs at any cost? What will we say to our children?   We are currently leaving them a polluted county.  Most of the pollution has come downstream from Digby and Clare Counties.   We must start protecting our purest natural resource, NOW.!!

THERE IS NO COMMODITY,  Not GOLD OR MINK, THAT IS  MORE VALUABLE THAN UNPOLLUTED FRESHWATER!!!!!
 
In October 2012, another 12 mink farms were apparently given the go ahead on Sloans lake with the use of "an instrument of subdivision."    This information has been kept very quiet.   Has the mink farm fulfilled the requirements of our municipality and the requirements of the NDP  Dept of Agriculture?    Given the amount of waste the new farms will produce, can we really expect the environment to withstand this massive onslaught?  This farm got approved the first time by circumventing the intent of our bylaws  and finding a loophole, and now, it is happening again!

What will you or what can you do about it!,

I will now go back and reference the group of citizen that

 I REFERRED TO AT THE BEGINNING OF MY TALK? 

After all the protests of citizens, picketing and letters to council and the NDP,  it is happening again!!!   The point is that six years later after all the negative attention, we are still not protected from the pollution of mink farms.   In fact it is just the opposite....., we invite it,...... by not addressing the zoning of the municipality.

The municipality is vulnerable.   What areas will be the next mink target??? perhaps Kemp, Port Maitland, Chebouge?

The decision needs to be made...DO WE WANT THE MINK INDUSTRY OR NOT!!!!

Does it comply with the definition of sustainable industry or are we being very short-sighted here?    Are we sacrificing our health, our environment, our children’s heritage and enjoyment of the lands and waters of Yarmouth County for the sake of very few minimum wage jobs and the enrichment of the fur farm owner?

OR....do we WANT to pursue the mink farm industry expansion...... ..but with clearly defined limits and restrictions?   Can and should we force industries to use the most modern and efficient technologies, rather than allowing the 1950 farming practices to destroy our beautiful County?   Remember that the Mink Regulations allow existing farms to continue polluting for at least three more years unless the Municipality in which the farm resides, enacts more stringent regulations.  The Municipal regulations supersede those of the Province.

Whether you answer yes or no, either answer means addressing the zoning issue and getting it right, ASAP.

Council needs a real vision - a plan for generations to come, with goals for the future.   We need to be looking 50 to 100 yrs ahead so our grandchildren's grandchildren will have a future right here in Yarmouth County -this is an area that closely resembles my idea of paradise.   We  must not allow it to become a sewer of pollution.

If the political will exists to SAVE our County, we must have new ways of doing things.   Transparency and conflict of interest issues must be dealt with openly and honestly in public -.The opinion and rights of residents need to be respected.    Let citizens become allies and not adversaries.   Council needs to direct the CAO  clearly  and precisely what has to be done and  he in turn must make sure the work gets done in a timely manner, even if it means redefining internal policy and procedures!

The community wants the security of good zoning.   Perhaps we should be thinking of a new zone, Rural residential.   Some areas which are especially desirable, like lake and waterfront, could be given this designation and would become higher-end housing with more  tax revenue, while at the same time protect the environment and the value of the property.

If we do not want mink farms on lakes and rivers ..LET'S BE BRAVE AND SAY SO!!!  and protect ourselves!

Farming has always been a part of the heritage of Nova Scotia and with the breakdown in food safety it is even more important than ever to keep local farming.. I do not believe the fur industry is a farm and perhaps we need some definitions of what a farm is, and what is an industry.

 Communication with Digby/Clare County regarding the pollution coming from their headwaters into Yarmouth County is crucial – There are new Municipal Councils in place throughout the Province. Let's communicate!!

The citizens of this county started 6 years ago to bring this pollution to the attention of council.   In three more years when the regulations come into full effect it will be almost a decade since we started our mission and the regulations will still be unenforceable.                                                                        

Let's listen to “new voices” and “new ideas” and start doing “new” things, for the right  and honourable reasons.   Let us move forward and think and act for the future generations,  We must act NOW,   do not wait until  tomorrow.

Thank you for listening, I hope there are a lot of questions.