
Joseph Izhakoff and John Sherer of The Highland Companies Photo credit: CBC
CBC recently interviewed The Highland Companies’ executive Joseph Izhakoff and fellow principal John Sherer. The Highland Companies is the American-financed company behind the controversial Melancthon mega-quarry north of Toronto. “The interview marks the first time that high-powered U.S. investors behind The Highland Companies have spoken publicly about the quarry application and the opposition that is building against it, including complaints about a lack of transparency.”
Water: “Because the proposed quarry is below the water table, the plan involves collecting the water that would seep into the pits during the mining process and re-injecting or pumping it back into the aquifer. …Once a section had been mined, it would be rehabilitated by the re-laying of soil on the quarry floor… Water, however, would continue to be pumped out, as it seeped into the pit — up to a maximum of 600 million litres per day.” Dismissing widespread concerns about the water, Izhakoff says, “We’ve studied the water in this area. We’ve been monitoring it for many, many years. The quarry doesn’t get opened all in one shot. It’s a phased process. So part of that process is putting in monitoring wells, going slowly, moving carefully, monitoring it as we go. So we’ll learn a lot as we go and we’ll have the contingencies in place to make sure that it’s consistent with what our research and modeling told us.”
NAFTA: “In 2008, an American company was denied its application to expand its basalt quartz quarry near Digby, N.S. It is suing the federal government for breaching the rules of the North American Free Trade Agreement, claiming more than $100 million in damages. And this year, St. Mary’s Cement — owned by the American arm of a Brazilian conglomerate called Group Votorantim — filed its notice of intent to sue the federal government for damages of ‘not less than US $275M in compensation for the loss, harm, injury, loss of reputation and damage caused by or resulting from Canada’s breach of its obligations under Part A of Chapter 11 of the NAFTA.’ The company had wanted to build a quarry near Hamilton, Ont. The lands for that quarry had been assembled by Lowndes Holding Corporation… When asked whether the Highland Companies would pursue a legal suit should its application for the Melancthon quarry be refused, Izhakoff replied: ‘I’m not an expert on NAFTA.'”
Lobbyists: “With a provincial environmental assessment now ordered, the issue will remain unresolved for years and may find itself on the national stage, if issues such as fisheries and transportation are raised. That’s because these matters fall under federal jurisdiction. Highland Companies has enlisted the services of lobbyists on the provincial and federal level, for which it has received much criticism, though it is not unusual for companies to hire advocates on their behalf.”

Seth Klarman of the Baupost Group
“Bankrolling — and controlling — the Highland Companies project is the Baupost Group, a hedge fund based in Boston, Mass., with assets of approximately $20 billion US. As a private firm, the Baupost Group is not required to divulge its investments, except for those in publicly traded companies.” In mid-September, the Boston Herald reported, “Baupost, headed by investment guru Seth Klarman, has reportedly managed money for Harvard University’s endowment, though it’s not clear if the school’s money is invested in the quarry. Harvard Management Co. declined comment. Baupost spokeswoman Elaine Mann said the hedge fund couldn’t comment on investors…”
The Council of Canadians has been actively campaigning against the proposed mega-quarry for the past ten months. For more on our activities, please see http://canadians.org/blog/?s=melancthon. We have also begun discussing an action at the Baupost Group offices at 10 St. James Avenue in Boston, Massachusetts. Stay tuned for more.
The full CBC report is at http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2011/10/10/melancthon-quarry.html.