Residents living in the vicinity of cannabis grow operations in Pelham continued to raise a stink over pungent odours they live with at a public meeting on Wednesday, wanting Town staff to know the situation has severely disrupted their quality of life.
Speaker after speaker at the meeting to discuss the Town’s cannabis control bylaw said the odours they are living with were unbearable, with one stating he had developed an allergy to the smell as a result.
In one fiery exchange, resident Dave MacFarlane pressed Acting Director of Community and Planning Services William Tiggert on several issues.
MacFarlane wanted an answer as to whether inspections were carried out at the Redecan plant on Foss Road prior to it beginning operations.
“Was the final inspection by the city or by the Town carried out, not likely,” he said. “The other thing that usually is carried out is a fire inspection. The man standing over there should answer that,” he added, referring to Fire Chief Bob Lymburner.
“Sir, I’m not going to put the Fire Chief in that position,” Tiggert said.
“Why? He’s standing there,” MacFarlane fired back.
“That’s not the purpose of tonight’s meeting,” Tiggert replied.
“I don’t care if it’s not the purpose, I want answers,” MacFarlane said.
Tiggert said MacFarlane could make a Freedom of Information request with the Town for the information he required.
“I did that, and I got nothing,” MacFarlane countered.
MacFarlane said that Health Canada demands that facilities be equipped with filters to prevent odours from escaping the plants.
“What’s the definition of prevent? To stop the odours,” he said, adding, “Your bylaws are full of shit.”
Other speakers included Bernie Law, whose family has made Pelham home since 1926. He said the presence of cannabis grow facilities in Pelham have had a dramatic effect on the quality of life for residents living near them.
“The residents of Pelham have had to live with the excessive evening light and odour coming from the cannabis growing facilities for years,” he said, adding that residents want elected officials to help them.
The residents of Pelham have had to live with the excessive evening light and odour coming from the cannabis growing facilities for years
Another resident, James Patterson, called it the “happiest day” of his seven years living in Pelham when the Fenwick site of the CannTrust/Phoena plant on Balfour Street closed.
“I'm telling you that (Wellington Heights Public School) had to keep kids inside some days because the stench coming out of that plant was so atrocious,” he said.
He urged the Town to fight for the residents’ quality of life.
“I'm proud to be in an agricultural small rural Town and this is what I want to fight for,” he said.
But Tiggert, however, reminded the residents that the bylaw being discussed does not cover odour. Rather, it covers where cannabis facilities can operate and other things such as setbacks from sensitive land uses, homes, and roads as well as site-specific provisions for Redecan’s existing facility. Odours fall under the Town’s odourous industries nuisance bylaw.
But that didn’t deter residents from continuing to talk about it.
While Tillie Clapp doesn’t live near what is now home to Thunder Spirit Ventures (which recently purchased the CannTrust/Phoena site) or near the Redecan facility, she sympathizes with those residents who do.
“There isn't a time I drive by and not smell a horrible smell,” she said. “I feel badly for the Cannabis Control Committee who worked their tails off and saw a deadline pass recently where Redecan was supposed to submit some documents. I have a sense that they are just thumbing their nose at us.”
She also expressed her concerns about facilities popping up on what is prime agricultural land that could be used for growing tender fruits.
“There's still going to be a route to apply to go on specialized agricultural zones,” she said. “They’re not making any more land that grows peaches plums and all of those delicate fruits.”
But Larry Slocum does live near the Thunder Spirit facility. He said when it was operating previously as CannTrust/Phoena, he developed allergies because of the constant stench coming from the plant.
“I can't go outside, I have to have filtration because my nose runs constantly,” he said.
He also wondered about effluent coming from the facility when it was in operation. He noted moss growing on the north side of his property. He has lived on Canboro Road for 37 years and there had never been moss growing there.
“But after CannTrust started operating it’s slowly starting to develop,” he said.
Tim Nohara, who chaired the Cannabis Control Committee until its dissolution in 2022, asked that he and anyone else who may be interested be given a copy of any revisions made to the proposed bylaw that were the result of the public meeting, before the revised draft goes to council.
“It would make review of those documents before the amendment comes to council easier if we reviewed the documents for this meeting. Then, we’re just looking for highlights for the next one,” he said.
Ron Burkhout, chief operating officer for British Columbia-based Thunder Spirit, promised residents on hand for the meeting that the company would be transparent when it comes to their plans for the site.
“We’ve heard the word transparency here a few times tonight,” he said. “We want to be very transparent. If you come by a facility and you see cars in the parking lot, please stop in, my door’s always open. I will openly address any concerns anyone has.”
That transparency would extend to any changes at the site, including any plans for expansion of the facility.
“We’ll let you know exactly what our plans are,” he said.
About 70 residents and members of council turned out for the meeting, which was a chance for residents to have their say on the Town’s proposed cannabis control bylaw. Tiggert said feedback from residents will be considered and factored into the bylaw before it comes before council at its meeting on July 10.
Stay connected to the bylaw's progress via this Town portal.
Updated July 1 2024 to correct the spelling of resident Larry Sztogryn's name.
