Dresden keeps up Ontario landfill battle

Posted November 10, 2026 2:39 pm

1 min read

2:53 Ontario’s landfill crisis: The cost of inaction

A southwestern Ontario town is pushing back on the latest step to advance a controversial landfill and transfer station project, as Premier Doug Ford’s government ramps up a search for garbage space.

Waste company York1 wants to revive a small dormant landfill less than a kilometre from Dresden and pack it over the next decade with enough waste to fill the Rogers Centre, despite local opposition.

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The landfill would mostly take soils, such as excavated earth from worksites, and construction waste, according to the company’s plans.

Municipal officials have argued the company relied on outdated approvals to bypass a full environmental assessment.

The Ford government, which backtracked last year on a promise to complete that study, has now opened the amended permits to public review.

If greenlit, the municipality says the landfill will still be subject to local zoning requirements, after York1 recently dropped a lawsuit arguing those local approvals should not apply.

© 2026 The Canadian Press