"We've been good neighbours for almost 100 years, so this really took us by surprise," said Jesuit Father Peter Bisson.

The Jesuits have teamed up with Huronia Historical Parks to launch a "Protect Martyrs' Shrine/Sainte-Marie Among the Hurons" Facebook page.

"We think this could really damage the prayerful atmosphere of Sainte-Marie, especially the church where the grave sites are, as well as the shrine," said Bisson.

Midland Mayor Gord McKay told The Catholic Register he regrets the lack of consultation prior to rezoning.

"That was not done and I feel badly about that, and I think many people wish that it had been done," McKay said. "We are still in the process of working with the Jesuits and Jan Gray (director of Sainte-Marie Among the Hurons) on this. Does that mean reversal? I'm not saying that."

Recycling Specialties Inc. would employ 10 to 15 people running its operation in Midland.

"In these economic times, we need every job we can get," said McKay.

Finding another location for the operation would certainly cost the municipal government money, said the mayor.

"I can't really speculate about how much it would be, but you can imagine that the proponent here would be aggrieved and probably rightly so, that they have probably made some decisions and advanced some of their own money based on that decision."

Recycling Specialties president Dan Kozina was away in Florida and unavailable for comment.

McKay said he understood the Jesuits' consternation because he was chair of the Martyrs' Shrine board of trustees for three years.

Town of Midland director of planning Wes Crown said he has not received direction from council to prepare a report on alternative sites or the cost of reversing council's decision.

"We don't have other lands that are zoned industrial that would accommodate this site," Crown said.

It would be unfair to characterize the Recycling Specialties' operation as a scrap yard even though metal recycling is the company's primary business, according to Crown.

"A scrap yard in my mind is a fairly narrow description of a use that would accept cars and metal and recycle that kind of stuff," he said. "This is much broader in that they recycle cardboard, paper, wood, metal, concrete — anything that has a potential downstream market."

The site is not zoned to accept household recycling or waste, but "only inert, recyclable materials," said Crown.

The town is consulting with the Jesuits, Huronia Historical Parks and Recycling Specialties about the site plan — a process that could result in the town imposing certain conditions on Recycling Specialties' operation.

The Jesuits have commissioned a noise assessment to find out what Recycling Specialties would have to do to allow pilgrims to pray peacefully on the shrine grounds.

"The mitigations would be strong," said Bisson. "Our noise assessment so far suggests that they would need a noise attenuation fence at least 12 metres high (40 feet)."

Recycling Specialties could get away with a shorter fence if it opted for a berm, but for every meter the berm goes up it requires five metres of area at the base — significantly reducing the space available for the operation.

The Jesuits aren't trying to paint the company as the bad guy in the scenario, said Bisson. The Fathers feel recycling has important benefits to society.

"We have nothing against what they want to do," said Bisson. "We just feel this is the wrong place for such activity, as do many people in the area."

The next meeting for the Jesuits and town councillors is Dec. 7.