Natural resources minister to meet with bear cub rescue operator, reeve over proposed quarry

The province’s natural resources minister will meet with a local black bear rescue and the reeve of the RM of Rockwood at the site of a controversial proposed limestone quarry.

A spokesman for Ian Bushie said Thursday the minister will be visiting the site in person in July and meeting there with Judy Stearns, the co-owner of Black Bear Rescue Manitoba, and Reeve Wes Taplin.

No further details of the planned visit were divulged.

But Stearns, who is currently looking after six cubs, including three orphaned when their mother was illegally shot near Balmoral in March, said she welcomes the visit.

“I think it would be good for the minister to come out — why not?” she said.

“It will be of interest for him to see how close the quarry will be to us. I like to provide anyone with the context of how close we are and how established we are. It’s hard to explain in just an email.”

Stearns, who has warned that the constant sound of rock-blasting and gravel trucks would force the only bear rescue in the province to close, said she received the invitation from Bushie just hours after an official statement went up on the RM’s website explaining its vote last month to approve a 730-acre limestone quarry extraction project.

The project, which would be less than a kilometre from the bear rescue site, is to be owned and operated by Amrize Canada Inc.

The RM’s statement said it wanted “to provide clarity and context” about the recent decisions involving both Amrize and another quarry decision involving Heidelberg Materials, as well as another recent quarry approval for Maple Leaf Construction after an almost five-year legal battle.

The statement said that after the RM’s council rejected a proposal by Maple Leaf Construction in 2022, the company appealed to the province’s Municipal Board and then the courts.

The matter finally concluded in March, with the Municipal Board overturning the RM’s original decision to deny the proposal, but not before it cost the municipality more than $120,000 in legal fees and resulted in the company’s loss of about $500,000 in annual quarry hauling and transportation revenue.

The RM said it made the decision on Amrize and Heidelberg with that Municipal Board ruling in mind. It also noted the companies stood to lose about $40 million in revenue over the next two decades, while the municipality could have to raise property taxes up to 20 per cent per year to make up for reduced quarry revenue.

“Council remains committed to balancing responsible economic development with the protection of community well-being and quality of life,” the statement says.

“The RM of Rockwood will continue to monitor quarry operations closely, uphold regulatory standards, and engage openly with residents as this work progresses. Through ongoing oversight, transparent communication, and a willingness to listen, council aims to ensure that decisions made today continue to serve the best interests of the broader community over the long term.”

Stearns, who has lived on the property for more than 20 years and, with her husband, has lived in the municipality for more than 40 years, said they are still considering legal action to stop the quarry proposal.

“We’re the province’s only bear rescue — we’re it,” she said. “If the quarry goes in and we have to close, what will happen the cubs?”

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca