By Mark Squibb
Witless Bay council last week denied an agriculture permit to a resident council had previously issued two Stop Work Orders to.
The Town issued Aloysius Carey a Stop Work Order to stop all farming and construction activities on his John C’s Grove Road property on May 9, 2023, which was the second such order.
The Town first became aware of the growing of hay and spreading of manure on the property in May 2022. No permit had been issued, and council issued a Stop Work Order on May 25, 2022.
The property is zoned as “Residential,” which allows for home-based agriculture so long as farming activities do not pose problems to neighbouring residents.
The work continued and council issued the second Stop Work Order on May 9, 2023.
Carey appealed that second order on May 23.
Adjudicator Clifford Johnson, weighing the evidence, confirmed council’s Stop Work Order on January 17 of this year.
In attendance at last week’s meeting were Gordon Crocker and Martina Aylward, both named as interested parties in the appeal document, along with Carey.
“I’m after making several calls and emails to the council about this property,” said Crocker, who lives alongside Carey. “There’s no permits in place, the zoning is wrong. It’s not a hobby farm up there by any means… It’s a commercial farm.”
Crocker said there is an abundance of neighbourhood pests on the nearby farm and blamed a recent washout of his driveway on land clearing at the property. Crocker was also concerned that the spreading of manure might compromise the water quality of his subsurface well.
Aylward echoed Crocker’s allegations, calling the farm a large-scale, commercial operation.
Carey himself also spoke and denied responsibility for Crocker’s driveway washing out.
“There’s no proper ditching,” said Carey, who added he only cleared land on his own property and that Crocker actually cut some of the land himself. “So, I’m not responsible for someone’s driveway washing out if there’s no proper ditching.”
Carey said, as per his application, that he wouldn’t spread manure on the meadow adjacent to Crocker’s property, but also defended the spreading of manure as a common practise.
“Manure has been spread all over this island,” said Carey, who cited local farmers who spread manure on their properties.
Carey also denied that his farm was a commercial operation and said he has to call in friends to spread manure with their equipment.
“I have an old, ‘73 farm tractor, a John Deere,” said Carey. “That’s all I got. So, there’s no pile of commercial equipment in any way shape or form.”
He said he was applying for a permit to grow hay to feed his horse and two ponies. He said he would also split the hay with another group.
Following the three presentations, councillor Ralph Carey put forth a motion to deny the application.
Town CAO Jennifer Aspell reminded the councillor that he needed to state a reason for denying the application, suggested a friendly amendment to the motion.
Councillor Carey, who allowed the motion “will probably get repealed,” moved to deny the application because it was outside the Town’s development regulations for residential areas, citing pollution and nuisance issues.
The motion passed unanimously.
