ECONOMIC ADVANTAGES OF AGGREGATE (COUGH, COUGH)

Those who are purporting the economic benefits of aggregate operations in a municipality:

1) have not researched it OR
2) must be backed by or financially backing the aggregate industry

For instance, for every tonne of aggregate that is mined, and is actually weighed before being removed from the pit (and I am NOT suggesting for a minute that lots of it is not weighed, but just waved around the scales because that would not be right) the municipality gets .006.

Wow, Melancthon with all our pits and quarries, Arnolds, Strada, etc. etc. must reap TONNES, (get it? tons??? god I hate puns) of money.

Well, not so much and not so fast.

In fact the 2009 budget shows Melancthon received $58,390.79 in aggregate revenue. Wow says you. Phewy says me. Apparently that was a bumper year because of the aggregate used on turbines and in fact the budget for revenue for aggregate this year is $30,000.00. Here is a link to the budget, take a look yourself: http://melancthontownship.ca/10notices/2010-budget.pdf

It costs approximately $64,000.00 to pave a single kilometre of road. So for 2009 with all the aggregate operations and trucks on our roads the municipality didn't even generate enough income to pave ONE KILOMETRE of road. In 2010 they expect to generate enough aggregate revenue which would pave only 1/2 a kilometre of road.

And trust me we have ALOT of trucks on the road creating wear and tear. One morning at 5:35 am I counted 12 trucks lined up at the intersection of the 4th line Melancthon on County Road 17, every one of them burning fuel, waiting until the magical hour of 6 am when they could make the turn onto the 4th line and head to Strada. Wonder how those people living in Ferrier's schoolhouse like that. How to stop it? Pass an anti-idling bylaw, but I digress.


So, Melancthon is rolling in it, aren't we? Too bad it isn't money we are being rolled in for all the sacrifices we are being told to make because it will be "good" for us and the betterment of society. Our agricultural land, our water, our heritage all for what it costs to pave less then 1 kilometre of road.