A grassroots campaign to stop a Ministerial Zoning Order (MZO) for the Picton Terminals expansion has collected over 600 signatures on a petition destined for the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Paul Calandra.

Say No to MZO, a campaign led by Penny Morris and County Conservancy President Leslie Stewart, asks that the Minister refuse the MZO and stop the proposed expansion in its tracks.

The County’s settlement deal with Picton Terminals requires it to apply for an MZO to rezone the property MX-Industrial Extractive by the end of the year. The zoning would allow for a rock quarry and international container shipping.

A Ministerial Zoning Order sidesteps municipal procedures for a zoning bylaw amendment, which normally require environmental studies, permits — and public consultations with both local residents and Indigenous councils.

Local zoning amendments can be appealed to the Ontario Land Tribunal — but there is no way to appeal an MZO.

MZOs are generally regarded as an exceptional provincial tool to override local zoning. Previous provincial governments issued an average of one per year. The Ford government has issued over 100 since coming into power in 2018. 

Last year, the Auditor General commenced an investigation into the Ford government’s use of MZOs at the request of NDP Leader Marit Stiles. 

In response, the province introduced new legislation to make the use of MZOs more transparent. A new “Zoning Order Framework” created clear parameters for an MZO request: the new zoning must serve  provincial priorities, such housing, long-term care, hospitals, education facilities, and transit-oriented communities. 

The list of priority projects, however, still veers off into vagueness: “manufacturing, economic development, etc.” also qualify. 

“It’s an enormous leap to make without oversight.
Cargo containers will take over farmland,
quarrying on the cliff will continue unabated,
container ships and trucks will operate 24/7.”

Leslie Stewart, County Conservancy President

If Minister Calandra signs an MZO for Picton Terminals, every neighbouring property it can acquire by December 26 will be classified as MX Industrial-Extractive. Picton Terminals’ Ben Doornekamp has his eye on seven adjacent properties currently zoned rural. 

“It’s an enormous leap to make without oversight,” said County Conservancy President Leslie Stewart. “Cargo containers will take over farmland, quarrying on the cliff will continue unabated, and container ships and trucks will operate 24/7.”

“It’s so wrong, and that’s why we keep fighting,” says Ms. Stewart. “The consequences could be disastrous. Nearby houses already shake. With cargo containers stacked high and sprawled across hundreds of acres, the risk of a fire breaking out is too great for a community with a volunteer fire department,” she continued. 

“Risks to the watershed are unclear, and will remain so unless the required environmental studies are carried out.”

There is little public trust in Mr. Doornekamp’s environmental stewardship. Save Picton Bay, County Conservancy’s predecessor group, took Mr. Doornekamp to court in 2018 over environmental infractions, including improper storage of petroleum and salt that led to water contamination. 

There is even less trust in Council, which voted 7-6 to accept the minutes of settlement with Picton Terminals without public consultation. 

“The County gets nothing from this,” says Ms. Morris. 

“It’s even less than nothing,” said Ms. Stewart, pointing out that if Picton Terminals acquires seven more properties, it will take housing out of the County by knocking down homes and precluding the construction of new ones. “That’s the opposite of the stated provincial priorities for MZOs, which are to expedite housing and long-term care homes.”

Nor does the expansion promise new jobs. The grain shipping firm Parrish & Heimbecker has already entered a contract to lease a port from Picton Terminals. It will be able to establish a grain shipping port at the Terminals regardless of the MZO decision. 

County Conservancy and Say No to MZO are hopeful that new provincial legislation regulating MZOs will mean the application is denied. 

Say No to MZO is calling on the community to mobilize, noting that every successful bid to stop an MZO had grassroots organizing behind it. 

To sign the petition or get more involved, visit Penny’s Pantry at 10 Elizabeth Street in Picton. County Conservancy updates are available on Facebook. Ms. Morris and Ms. Stewart are also encouraging those opposed to write to Premier Ford, Minister Calandra, and MPP Allsopp to make their voices heard.