‘The dust will fly' – but control measures returning this fall to Chatham-Kent
Council voted 13-3 on Monday night to bring the program back, months after eliminating it in an effort to save about $1.3 million from the municipal budget — a move that represented a 0.8 per cent savings on the tax rate.
The change of direction came after vocal opposition from residents who live on gravel roads, including farmers and members of the Kent Federation of Agriculture.
'We're very happy that it's coming back,' said KFA president Jim Brackett, who lives on a dirt road in Morpeth.
But Brackett warned that reinstating the program isn't enough — it has to be done properly.
'It has to be applied properly and has to be applied at the right rate, it has to be the right product, and it has to be done twice a year to be the most effective,' he said.
The dust, he added, has serious consequences for both people and crops along with motorist's safety.
'It's bad for our health. And if you were doing a construction site in town, you would be obligated to mitigate the dust,' said Brackett. 'I wash my vehicle every couple of days because of this. My house, I can't open the windows. My crops, it'll form a layer over the crops and interfere with translocation, increase the heat.'
He explained, 'I already know of one resident that's been forced off the road because he was in a cloud of dust.'
Although residents have been calling for immediate relief, municipal staff say the program won't resume until sometime this fall due to tendering and administrative delays.
'If they wanted to, they could be doing it quickly, but it sounds like it's going to be September before we get it back,' said Brackett. 'I may not get dust control this year, but someone may. So as long as some of our members get dust control and some of our people that travel the rural roads, then that's a plus versus nothing.'
Ward 6 Councillor Michael Bondy, who originally voted to cut the program, brought the issue back to the council table after hearing from residents across the municipality. 'I heard from a lot of rural voices, and they felt pretty slighted and, frankly, kind of ripped off because something that had been done for 40 plus years was cut from the budget with my help, because I voted to help cut it from the budget, because we were told by staff that it's ineffective, it doesn't work and it's a waste,' said Bondy.
Bondy told CTV News there are upwards of 1700 kilometres of gravel roads across the municipality.
'It was just another one of these instances of the rural voices just weren't heard and I'm a city guy, but I represent all of Chatham-Kent as a councillor, right? So I thought, well, I'll bring this back. This should be an easy one. Well, not quite that easy, but it did pass after an hour and a half discussion.'
Bondy says red tape is now the main hurdle.
'The dust will fly unless the process can be changed because there has to be a report to council. It has to be tendered. The tender award has to be signed and contracted... blah blah. What am I saying? I'm saying red tape is what it is. It's red tape.'
While hopeful that staff can speed up the process, Bondy acknowledged it may take time.
'I'm really hoping that, you know, staff can maybe get this moving a little earlier as it is only the beginning of June,' he said. 'I thought this was going to be rather simple, because it's been done for 40 plus years, by the same people. So I didn't think it would be difficult to reinstate. But I'm not complaining because we did vote to reinstate it, so, you know, we're halfway there, I would say.'
Meantime, residents like Brackett are cautiously optimistic, saying any progress is better than none.
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