Clarington approves permit to backfill pits at former Goodyear lands in Bowmanville

The Municipality of Clarington has approved a Site Alteration Permit to allow previously excavated pits on the former Goodyear lands in Bowmanville to be backfilled, the municipality said in an update posted November 5, 2026.

The approval is limited to that backfill work, and no other site alteration activities are authorized under the permit, according to the municipality.

The permit follows a stop-work order issued October 29, 2026, after the municipality received a complaint on October 27 about soil grading at 45 Raynes Avenue on the former Goodyear property. A municipal law enforcement officer attended and observed unauthorized site alteration work, and the order was issued under the Municipality of Clarington Site Alteration By-law 2024-017.

The Goodyear lands, just south of downtown Bowmanville, are a 15.5-hectare brownfield site containing the former Goodyear manufacturing plant, which operated for nearly a century before closing in 2016. The site is privately owned, and the municipality says it has worked with the property owner for several years to address safety, security and compliance concerns.

"The safety of our community is our top priority. While this property is privately owned, the Municipality will continue to use every available legal and regulatory tool to address serious safety concerns and hold the owner accountable for complying with municipal orders," Mayor Adrian Foster said in the municipality's update.

Clarington says it continues to pursue all available legal and enforcement measures at the site, including 24-hour security patrols around the property perimeter that have been in place since August 11, 2026, and an urgent court injunction to authorize the municipality to make the property safe, including demolition, and recover the costs from the owner.