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4-ORONO WEEKLY TIMES, JANUARY 16th, 1973 Robert Nixon Carruthers reviews to visit riding '73 1973 will be recorded as a period of growth and change unparalleled in the history of Durham riding. THis has been the resuit of a general increase in population and development growth within the province. The area has felt the impact of this growth to a major extent because of the rapid development of Metropolitar. Toronto and the fact that all areas of the county lie within easy commuting range of industrial areas to the west, including the city of Oshawa. Three issues have predo- minated the interest of cit- izens of Durham County during 1973. L. The restructuring of local government to form the new regional municipality of Durham and the new area municipality of Newcastle. ' 2. The location of the new hydro power line to join the LEnnox Station in Prince Edward COunty with the nuclear power plant at Pick- ering. 3. The proposal of the CPR to establish a sanitary landfill operation for MEtro waste in the Township of Hope. Public participation has played an important role in the discussions of these issues and in the case of local government restructuring in- fluenced significantly the de- cision reached by the local councils. Decision reacheci with respect to the other issues will no doubt also be greatly influenced by the public's participation. It should be noted that while there was opposition to the above proposals alternative suggestions of a constructive nature were submitted by groups from the public sector. Decisions,. however, have to be made and to the greatest degree possible the govern- ment has ensured that these be made either by an inde- pendent body or by the local council. In the case of the CPR proposal, in my option, decis- ion should rest with the local council which is more fully aware of the priorities and needs of the community and represents not only the min- ority groups but all the citizens of the municipality. The unprecedented growth in the riding has brought problems which are reflected in the need for expanded services, particularly in the towns of Bowmanville and Port Hope as well as the village of Newcastle. Bowmanville, with facilities to serve the present proposed THE Furniture Barn .HWY. 115, NEWCASTLE BUDGET WISE - QUALITY WISE WE'RE TOUGH TO BEAT Çood se1ection of Beverly Living Room Suites af sensible prices. Large selections of Rockers, Recliners in assorted colours. Also pole lamps and table lamps for that extra touch to your home, OPEN 7 DAYS WEEKLY Phone 987-5151 or 987-5161 NOTICE PUBLIC MEETING Robert F. Nixon Leader of Officiai Opposition wilI speak at the George Hamilton Public Schoot Welcome, Ontario Thurs., Jan. 17th 8:00 p.m. TOPIC: * Local Environmental Probiems * Regional Government * Other Current Issues Question and Answer Period to follow Refreshments will be Served. EVERYONE WELCOME Durham Liberal Association Robert Nixon, Ontario Lib- eral leader, will be visiting Hope township on Thursday January 17. The opposition leader in the Ontario legislature will first visit the proposed CPR land- fill site north of the Lakeshore Road in Hope township at about 3 p.m. He will be taken by snow- mobile across the folling hills and wooded ravines of the proposed garbage dump. After his tour he will have dinner and then will speak to the annual meeting of the Hope Township Liberal As- sociation at 8 p.m. in George Hamilton School, Welcome. Members of the Liberal Association hope that he will include in his speech com- ments on his afternoon visit to the landfill site. expansion to a population of 15,000 is now restricting any further development until expanded water and sewage services are available. Newcastle, with a newly established sewage system, has provided for future grow- th. As part of the new Region of Durha, sewage and water services in that community will come under the jurisdict- ion of the region and with regional planning can face the future with confidence. Port Hope and Hope town- ship have also been affected significantly by the general growth with several new 'subdivisions in the town in the process of being developed and the township faced with decisions respecting the num- ber of proposed subdivision totalling some 1,000 new lots. With the need to preserve the excellent agricultural land and attain a satisfactory balance of industrial, com, mercial and residential as- 'sessment, the apparent need for some form of restructur- ing appears critical and is emphasized by the restrictive measures presently adopted by both the town of Port hope and the Township of Hope. Municipal councils within the Durham riding have provided, over the past year, responsible legislation and in co-operation with the provin- ce and with groups in the municipalities their actions have, to a major degree, resulted in progress and benefit to the citizens. The increase in general grants to the municipalities in 1973 by the province has enabled the local councils to prevent any significant incre- ase in property taxes and, in some instances, it has result- ed in a decrease in the tax levy. In durham county this extra assistance amounted to $411,000 with Port Hope, Bowmanville and Darlington Township receiving the larg- est amounts $126,000 $140,000 and $70,000 respectively. New assistance for farmers in the riding increased the property tax rebate for this sector of the economy from 25 percent to 50 percent. Assistance in property tax rebates has been applicable to all property owners and has been of particular assistancc those in the low income bracket. A $50 bonus to senior citizens receiving-the guaran teed income supplement has also been part of the program and a rebate of 1 percent on sales tax in 1974 will be oft further assistance to this group in our society. County forests marks 50th birth The New Year marks the 5oth Anniversary of the founding of the Northumber- land-Durham County Forests. Both forests are located on the Oak Ridges Moraine or Great .Pine Ridge of Southern Ont- ario. In 1792, when the Counties boundaries were set out by Lieutenant-Governor Simcoe, the Ridges were heavily forested with White Pine, Red Pine, Red Oak and Hickory. As settlement of the Counties progressed in the 1800's, the cutting of trees for masts, squared ship timbers and railway fuelwood and the usual land clearing practices associated with the develop- ment of agricultural lands, soon dwindled the supply of timber resources. The clearing of large tracts of the Oak Ridges with their light, sandy soils and steep topography, resulted in se- vere soil erosion problems, flooding and reduced avail- able groundwater. By 1900 large stretches of sand wastes were to be seen across the Counties and from 1860 to 1930 a general decline in the local population occurred as farm- ers abandoned their unpro- ductive lands. The soil erosion problem, however, was not unique to Northumberland and Durham Counties. Similar conditions existed in a number of Southern Ontario Counties. The problem was viewed as serious and in 1911 The Counties Reforestation Act was passed enabling counties to acquire lands for the reforestation purposes and to enter into long term man- agement agreements with the Province for these lands. This legislation later became known às the Municipal Reforestation Act and in its present forms The Trees Act and The Forestry Act. In November 1923, at the request of the Counties Spe- cial Committee on Reforest- ation of Wastelands, G.M. Linton and A.H. Richardson of the. Ontario Forestry Bran- ch surveyed the counties and selected an area in Hald- imand Township on Highway No. 45 as the first tract of the Northumberland County For- est. This original tract con- tains the present forest head- quarters. In January 1924, options for 1011 acres were presented to County Council. The options were taken up at $5.67 per acre. Later in the year the Counties and the Department of Lands and Forests entered into a 30 year management agreement whereby the Province man- aged the forest and assumed all management costs. Subse- quent legislation has provided for assistance in the form of grants to the Counties for the purchase of lands for forestry purposes. In 1927 the first parcel of the Durham County Forest was purchased in Clarke Town- ship at $6.25 per acre. The Durham Forest has since expanded to 1500 acres while the Northumberland Forest is some 5200 acres in size. . With more than 50 years behind it, the County Forest program bas been more than successful in attaining its original objective. Not only have the county forests re- claimed waste lands and provided a viable timber Couple celebrate 50th anniversary A happy event took place on Thursday last, January 10, when former residents of Orono, Mr. and Mrs. RIchard Fowler, celebrated their fift- ieth wedding anniversary in the Brooklin Oddfellow's Hall. Mr. Fowler was born on a farm in Manvers Township on the border of Cartwright and Manvers Townships. He at- tended Lotus school. His bride was an English girl named Grace Pullen whom he met and married in Pontypool. The couple came to Orono in October of 1936 with their two daughters, residing for five or six years on the "Staples" farm, north-west of Orono business section. Later the family resided on the John Tamblyn dairy farm before moving to the Newcastle area to the James T. Brown farm. Mr. Fowler is still active in farming and at the age of seventy-five works part of the year for the E.P. Taylor farms, where he has been employed for several years. resource for Ontario's wood- using industry, but they have provided extensive areas of woodlands which are showing an unexpected value as re- creational areas. How far are the teachers willing to go? Through a questionaire the Ontario Secondary School Tea cher's Feder'ation is attempt- ing to find out for teachers in the Province are willing to go in an effort to influence t' government in its draft leg, lation on teacher's bargaining rights. Teachers in his area are to receive the question- aires. The local branch of the OSSTF are also planning to see legal advice to find out just how far they may go in bringing pressure upon the government to reconsider their proposed legislation. WHY PAY MORE?- SAVE!! On Premium Quality FUEL OIL STOVE O L PROMPT, COURTEOUS- SERVICE CALL 668-338' I M ~ Planning a Winter Vacation? ~~~~1 I Worried about Gas? Park your car andtravel MOTOR COACH WITH TRENTWAY TOURS LTD I TO Florida, California, Mexico FOR DETAILS CONTACT TRENTWAYTOURSLTD. P.O. 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