Monday, January 28, 2008 - With the passing of an Interim Control Bylaw, Northern Ethanol's proposal to construct an ethanol refinery on the site of the old Molson brewery has been put on hold for a year to give City planning staff time to study the impacts.

Park Place developer North American Investments has applied to the Ontario Superior Court for a permanent injunction to prohibit the production of ethanol on the site, claiming that the city's zoning bylaw prohibits it.

Both of these developments are satisfying for those of us who oppose the production of ethanol in Barrie in such close proximity to densely populated areas.

However, Northern Ethanol's proposal is anything but dead. Its application for a Certificate of Approval is still before the Ministry of the Environment and could be approved any time. And Northern Ethanol's appeal of the City's alleged delay in processing its site plan application is before a decidedly pro-development Ontario Municipal Board. If any one agency charged with a decision in this matter rules in favour of Northern Ethanol, rejection by a subsequent agency becomes more difficult.

C.A.R.E. cautions residents not to become complacent or to be lulled into a false sense of security. Continue to use the contact information on the Raise Your Voice page of this website to express your concerns to the media and your representatives about the Northern Ethanol proposal. Approval is still very much a possibility!