It wasn't even on the radar in the last provincial election, but a proposed mega dump near Ingersoll is galvanizing many of the electorate this time around.
It could play a role on voting day.
Residents will get a chance Monday night to hear where candidates stand on the landfill issue.
Foldens Creek in Oxford County is the last spot you might expect an election to be fought, but activists say the health of an area brook is at risk if Walker Industries is allowed to build a massive landfill next to the Thames River.
Activists are asking Queen’s Park hopefuls to state where they stand on the proposed dump at an all-candidates meeting.
Karen Paton Evans of Oxford People Against the Landfill says she expects candidates to say exactly where they stand on the landfill.
Walker Industries is proposing a landfill at the 200-acre Carmeuse lime site near Beachville.
Critics say it would hold 17 million tonnes of waste and it would be less than a kilometre from a municipal well.
They're also concerned the Ministry of Environment will allow a lake to be drained for the landfill.
Near the proposed landfill, there are as many anti-dump signs as there are election signs.
Civic officials are hoping that on election day, the two issues will be closely intertwined.
In 2011, Tory MPP Ernie Hardeman won with 55 per cent of the vote, which was more than all the other parties combined. But at that time the landfill was not part of the campaign.
Ingersoll mayor Ted Comiskey says Hardeman and challengers will have to be clear on where they stand.
The candidates meeting on the proposed dump starts at 7 p.m. at the Colombo Club in Beachville.
