It’s been over six-weeks since the Department of National Defence (DND) held public engagement sessions over a proposed Over the Horizon Radar Receive site in Clearview Township. The proposed site would cover more than 4,000 acres of prime agricultural land. Rachel Brooks and her family are cash crop and sheep farmers and will be directly affected if the proposed site is approved. “They’re looking at installing two sites that would be approximately 1,500 acres each. What’s 1,500 acres? Well, you multiply that by two that is 3000 and that would completely encompass the town of Stayner and more,” said Brooks. “So, these two sites combined would obliterate a small town and I feel like that is significant.” Dozens of farmers received letters in the mail asking if they would be interested in selling their land. Brooks has sent letters to Prime Minister Mark Carney citing her concerns with food insecurity top of mind. “I have no desire to sell our land, this is where we raised our family, and it’s where we have our business. We’ve been working this land for 45 years, there’s no desire to go anywhere else,” said Brooks. With others questioning how to make up for lost land, Jennifer Hutchinson and her family farm cash crops and beef. She said it’s hard to comprehend where food will come from if the DND takes away agricultural land in the region. “Wheat that makes our bread, there’s farms that have animals that feed us, you lose 4,000 (acres) Where are we going to gain that?” said Hutchinson. “You can’t put that on top of a building like, where is that going to come from? With the amount of people coming into our province, into Canada, who is going to feed them? Where is that going to come from?” The community has more questions than answers as signs that say no DND Radar in Clearview continue to appear. “Putting the signs up on our farm, it was just putting our foot down and saying listen, this farm is not for sale,” said Hutchinson. “Please go to another location.” “I hope when DND comes, they come to the 700 acres and they see the signs, they see that people are not willing to budge,” she said. “We do not want to move. We do not want to sell. Listen to the signs. Go find another location.” CTV News reached out to the Prime Minister’s office and the DND for progress on the results of their public engagement session. They replied updates will appear on their websites. The DND received more than 400 forms from online feedback from July 17 to October 15.
