Pus1,WhiUby Fies PMUs.,Wckioday. Apui 12. 1M0 BRd le ) Mushroom f arm workingon odour'problem Many complaints about bad odours have beon macle by rosidents living in the vicnity of the Greenwood Musbroom Farm. "The' smell is unbelievably rank. It géointo my carand thon my clothes sink," says Sal Giles of Heron Roadin Ashburn. Even tbough *Ashbbrn's Thundorbird Golf sud Country Club in located more than 'a kilometre from - Greenwood, Wilson Paterson, the club's general manager, says "the smell is intense -- liko rotting cabbage." Patorson worries about the impact the odour wil have on weddings sud réeptions held at bis facility. And with tbe golf season fast approaching, ho says the odours "could have a very negative impact" on business. Greonwood, the sixth-Iargest mushroom producer in Ontario, Bý-rookii ho hôsing9 JobsOntario - funding will be povine te establish a 40-unit, lo-ieapartment building in Brooklin. The Durham Region Non-Pro- fit H-ousing Corporation is the developer of the projeet, and will now bite su architeet sud find a location for the building. Up te four of the units in the building will ho designed for wheelchair acessibility, and 12 unitsi will ho for residents with physicaldisabiiîties. Support services and 24-hour support care will be provided through funding from the provin- cial ministry of health. Irstitite Nine members of the. Brooklin *Women's Insitute recently met at the homo of Bessie Cosway.. June' Hoas discussed the resolutions 3of the Wl. The next meeting iil h at.the same locatLion on April 19, 1 p.m. AUl are welcome to attend. Cou'ntry dance Brookinls Beethoven I.odge Odd Fellows wiil present a 'good old tira. country dance' on Frday, April 28, 8 p.m., at Broolin 100F Hlall, Bagot St. Thore will b. fiddle sud guitar rausic, round sud square dancing. Lunch is at 8 p.m. Tickets for the event are $3. Ai profits go te charities. For tickets, oeil Harry Agar- at 666-0814 or Art Budd at 655-8034.* I purchased the, old Andrews Antennao site in the springof 1994 te bouse their main a wbhb previously operated on Broclk Road in Pickering. After extensfive- renovations, Groenwood bogan, in October, large-scale coraposting involving front-end loaders turning huge piles 365 days of the year on su opon two-acro concrete pad. That's when Ashîburn-area resdents within a three- te five-kilometre radions realized soMotbing was in the air. Mac Snobelen, one of -the owners of Greenwood, says efforts have been made te correct the odour problera for some months, now. "I think we've made somne dramatic improvements sud Fd say the odours, are milder now. ri gets project The announcement of the pro- jet was1 macle by Gord Milîs, MP forthe Durhama East riding which includes Brooklin. Snobolen says bis compost formula, which is macle up of formula, fresh hay and, straw, ground cor» cobs, dried cbicken manuro and agricultural g'sum is heavily afce by weather conditions. He says a number of changes to the formula wore madle sud a borra around the site was built te help control the odours. "The smell hasn't subsided" says' Grry Emin, Whitby councillor sud Asbburn resident. "On a scale of 10, with 10 being the worst, at best, it is* presently a rafle.. Emm, wbo bas'received many complaints from residents, bas brought the matter up at Whitby council. He bas also passed documents along showing that odours. coming from mushroom farms - can somnetimes be hazardous te human health, depending on the ingredients used in i their composing operations. But he doesn't tbink the Town can -do anytbing about the problem now that ail the perniits have been issued. "We have asked the Ministry of the Environment te monitor the air as well as the water run-off," Emm said. Greenwood is having trouble W BySievo Leahy Despite ail the construction activity expected in the next few montbs, we can ail stilIl ook forward te the Brooklin Spring Fair parade. The parade route will no doubt be different but it will flot disappoint its many fans. Parade ogizers, Group 74, aïk that all who intend te put a float or whatever «in this ya parade, start thinking about how they are going te, execute this year' thora., ' Medieval Tnmes.' That ought te produce some interosting rosulte. GUIDES TO HELP EASTERBUNNY Brooklin area Guides wil assist CLOCA with their sunual Easter egg hunt at Heber Down Conservation Area on Saturday, April 15. Guides will provido an alternative- ource of sustensuce pinpainting the exact compounds that are causing the odours, Snobeoen says. As a resait, they have initiated and contributed $5,000 towards a study to find out the source of the odours. "We are very interested ini isolating the problem, so we can work on it,"hbe says. He also notes that other musbroom growers wil ho involved and says bis operation is'not the only one. with odour problems. "When the compost resuits in generaily offensive odours, that is an indicator it 'isn't composting properly,"etsays, Dan inker, an Ontario Mnistry of Agriculture,' Food sud.Hural Affairs research acientist 1 specializing in rushroom-grwin. Rinkery who gwill hea d the odour study, says they will begin this month, , and thon analysis and recommendations will b. macle rogarding the compost formula. He cautions that this will not b. a "quick-flx" as there are many factors9, such as weather,ý that can contribute to the problem.- "If this was easy. to solve, 'it would have'been by now," says Rinkor. As far as residents a re concerned,-there. are onl two solutions -- move the compost Just in cse some ida csu't live on chocolite -- or parents* don't wsut to deal with after-effects. HIANTlNG ON WATERFRONT 2nd Brooklin Beavers, Cube and Scouts will plant- trees on Saturday, April 22 at the new Tbickson's Pont trail, part of the .waterfr-ont trail that stretches fio= Burlington to Port Hope. WUhi' portion of the trail is complote, but some areas are badly in nood of rehabilitation. SPAGEIT[SUPPER St. Leo parish will hold the annual' spaghetti supper on Saturday, April 22, 6:30 p.m., at Brooklin Coinmunity Centre. Tickets are $12 per aduit, $6 per child, and children under age four are admitted fis. of charge. CaRU the church rectoey foric.k ets. oporations someplace elso or enclose the entire operation. "olt is going to coot somo mnonoy t6 fi tis problem," says Enim. Building a' compost enclosure would b. expensivo, says Snobelen, and probably wouldn't fi the problem. Existing indoor comostngoperations, evon when equipe with biofilters, still don't eliminate odours. According to Snobolen, two new state-of-the-art facilities, one in B.lgium sud one in Italyr, could offer solutions. H[owever, it is still too, soon to tell as -both fadties have only beon in operation a few monhshe mys. "W<'Ve will' certainly consider enclosing the compost. area, but only if it is goin'g* Wwork."et . Paterson, who isnot. opposed to the mushrooni farm -itself,- is tired of - hearing Greenwood's assurances that they would get the odour probiem under control. "So fatit bas ouI ybeen words ]PmIr waiting andhpn fo results," he says.' Giles says since Greenwoodls compost operation sétarted, the firat thin~ she does each morning is to =hc her flagoe to see if it in okay to go, outside "The, smell bas dramatically affected our erijoyment of the outdoors." THE BROOKLIN FAIR board met recently with Dave Simser, Marie Werry,. Eldon Werry, Laurel O'Connor and, Ray Hodson. president of the Ontario Association of Agricuture Societies. This years fair, the 84th annual, takes- place June 1 to 4. From Ieft, clockwise, are f irst vice, president Walter Smith, Anyone interested in lending a hand can cali 7234602.. president Robert Jackson, Simser, secretary-treasurer Anne OObyMkResWhtyFoPoa The. Brooklin Horticultural Society will meet on Wednesday, April 26, 8 p.m., at Brookhin United Church. .Joan McWilliam will demnonstrate flower arranging. Everyone is welcome. EDUCATION WEEK St. Loeo will hold an open house April 30 te-May 5. DENSITYINCREASE APNROVED, The revised development plan for the east aide of Anderson Street just aouth of W-inchester bas received appovlfr-orathe Whitby planng sud devooprament comttee. Changes incroase the' density of townhouses sud lnk homos te, 39 umita per net hectare, fror 30. SAFER SCHOOIS The Durhama Region Catholic Par7ent Teachers Anssciation will hold a 'Safe School PoWiy interactive information session for parents on Thursday, April 13, 7 toa 9:30 pamn, im Oshawa. Cmli Laurie O'Noill at 436-1833 to, Parade to go ahead. 1 2toy Primar 1 1 ntoy Flât 1 Intpdnr Lattly 1 Inteflor