Chill out, guys. There's hope in sight

Port Authority chair Al Peckham says a large east Hamilton pond that's home to big snapping turtles and other wildlife will not be destroyed as the former Stelco rod mill property is turned into a shipping pier. The body of water the authority calls Hobson Pond is north of Burlington Street and west of Strathearne Avenue. Beach Strip resident Jim Howlett recently raised an alarm about that pond, another one closer to the bayfront and a stream complete with beaver lodge that meanders through mature willow trees on the property. He said they were remnants of a watercourse and wetland at Harris Inlet, which Stelco filled to create industrial land. Howlett has since used 19th-century maps and satellite images to show Hobson Pond was once part of the inlet, which he said was named for the nearby Elliot Harris farm. Howlett complained that the port authority ruled there was no need for public consultation when it conducted an environmental assessment of its Pier 22 plans, which include dredging offshore and filling another, unrelated pond with the contaminated material. That work is under way, and Peckham said yesterday he felt the need for consultation was met by contacting the conservation authority, Department of Fisheries and Oceans and other government agencies. He said a 2002 land-use study, conducted with public input, designated the west harbour recreational and the east harbour industrial, so it was unnecessary to go to the general public again. There was a report last week that the fate of the natural areas would be decided at an authority board meeting Jan. 21, closed as all its meetings are. Howlett said he later asked for the minutes and was told they were not public. Eric McGuinness The Hamilton Spectator (Feb 2, 2008) Read more at http://thespec.com/article/318741