By Jeffrey Simpson / City Hall Reporter

Residents of the Antrim area told Halifax regional council Wednesday they don't want a construction and demolition facility in their backyard.

A minimum distance of two kilometres, buffered by forest, from the nearest home to the Guysborough Road site is too close for their liking, council heard at a special session.

"Just because people choose to live in the country, the boonies, does not mean they deserve to have their surroundings ruined by the dump site," said Basil Owen of the Clattenburgh and Dollar Lake Residents Association.

The disposal facility that Halifax Construction and Debris Recycling Ltd. has proposed would accept about 18,000 tonnes of construction waste a year. It would also close during spring because of weight restrictions on the Old Guysborough Road.

Mr. Owen said he has serious "safety concerns" because the road is unfit for heavy truck traffic.

"People are opposed for good, solid reasons," Tory MLA Brooke Taylor said.

"There's simply too much at risk."

He produced a petition with names of more than 400 people opposed to the proposal.

But Coun. Sue Uteck (Northwest Arm-South End) asked why the provincial government didn't step forward if the proposal is so potentially dangerous to the surrounding area.

"They could have stopped this process before we even started," Mrs. Uteck said.

Coun. Gary Hines (Waverley-Dutch Settlement) also questioned Mr. Taylor's attack.

"He should justify his criticisms," Mr. Hines said.

Donald Mason, of the community monitoring committee for Halifax's solid waste strategy, said there are no problems within two kilometres of the city's landfill at Otter Lake.

He said there are also plans for a golf course and housing development within that zone, indicating there wouldn't be problems with the inert material dumped at a construction and demolition facility.

"It's a strategic development," he said.

Council will decide at an undetermined future date whether to approve the site.

There is one other proposal for such a site. RDM Recycling Ltd. wants to operate a facility in Harrietsfield.