(Editor’s Note: It may seem as though all problems with the Carp Road landfill have been quiet, but West Carleton resident Harold Moore tells us that As the provincial election is fast approaching this should be a key election issue for the voters of Stittsville’.Harold has been a strong voice in the fight against landfill expansion, and his concerns continue to be raised.
The Environmental Assessment (EA), which was approved by the province for the landfill, was completed in 2013. Many things have changed over the years and the assumptions and data used to support the EA may no more be valid.This is why any construction on the site must be completed before it can begin. provincial government should require a full review of all EA supporting materials To determine if there are any changes that should be made.
Waste Management of Canada initiated the process of an environmental assessment (EA), in 2006, for a new West Carleton Evironmental Centre(WCEC) landfill at their Carp Road facility.The data collection for the EA began in 2006, and was continued until the final reports were prepared in 2012. August 2013 saw the final EA approved.
The Auditor General of Ontario recommended this in 2016. The Ministry should conduct monitoring after the EA to determine the actual impacts of all projects being evaluated.. This monitoring should assess whether work is being held up unnecessarily, and whether assumptions and supporting data for the EA are valid in light of changes over time.
This type EA review was required in order to approve the 2017 EA for a new landfill east of Ottawa. 15.1 – If within 5 years of approval the proponent has not commenced construction of the undertaking, the proponent shall undertake a review of the EA. The proponent shall verify that the EA’s effects analysis, anticipated net effects, mitigation measures, and associated mitigation steps are accurate for the undertaking..
The lengthy timeline for preparation of WCEC/EA (2006 – 2012) and more than nine years without any construction activity since EA approvalThe Minister of Environment Conservation and Parks should ask the proponent for a review of EA in accordance with comments made by the Auditor General and the most recent EA approval conditions.
A few conditions that support a review
- NEED The rationale given for the new landfill was ” to provide additional waste disposal capacity for solid non-hazardous waste in the form of a new landfill footprint, which will enable WM to continue commercial operations and support its business following the closure of the Ottawa WMF in September 2011″. They said to “Do Nothing” would not satisfy the economic goals of WM in Ottawa and Eastern Ontario. The old landfill was closed for more than 9 years, but WM continues to operate in Ottawa. So maybe the EA should be reviewed to see if the new landfill is really needed or is “Do Nothing” the better option.
- DEVELOPMENT PRESSURESince 2006, the EA process began, the population in the area has grown by more than 40% (more than 35,000 people). Major development is planned for the future and continues to be built around the landfill site. The landfill property is located less than one kilometer from the city’s urban development boundary. To account for any significant changes in the area since approval, and to assess potential negative consequences of the undertaking, an EA Review is required.
- NEW LOCAL CAPACITYThe proposed undertaking is primarily intended for Industrial Commercial and Institutional and Construction and Demolition wastes. All residential waste from Ottawa goes to the city-owned Trail road landfill. Tomlinson Environmental Services has opened a modern CD-waste recovery facility on Carp Road, with a maximum annual capacity of 300,000. tonnes, since the WCEC / EA approval (2013). Taggart-Miller Environmental Services was also approved in 2017 to build an ICI waste disposal and recovery (10.7 million cubic meters), facility in east Ottawa. These new waste handling facilities have made it possible for us to estimate the landfill capacity at our proposed WCEC landfill. However, these estimates need to be updated and reviewed.
- REGULATIONSIn 2016, the provincial government implemented new and strict regulations Strategy for a Waste-Free Ontario. This Act and Building the Circular economy was designed to increase waste diversion, limit waste disposal, and achieve zero waste disposal. This new regulation will affect the need to build new landfill capacity. Therefore, it is important to review and modify the disposal assumptions in the 2012 WCEC / EA.
- ALTERNATIVESWaste Management examined a number alternative options to building a landfill. One option was to build a Waste To Energy facility that would dispose of the residual material from the waste recovery process and recover all metal waste. It would also provide local renewable energy. Plasco Energy was interested in a contract to plasma gasify city residual waste. Plasco’s 2015 contract was terminated, and the city began looking for other solutions. This means that the Alternatives to a New Landfill presented in the EA should now be reviewed to determine if a Waste to Energy solution would be better for the city than landfill disposal.
- CLIMATE CHANGEThe service area for the entire province has been approved and the city approved service area covers nearly 100,000 km from Sudbury to Durham to Eastern Ontario’s Quebec border. This will make garbage truck transport over long distances a significant contributor to Greenhouse Gas emissions. The Minister for Environment Conservation and Parks should request a complete review of the 2012-13 EA for West Carleton Environmental Centre landfill.
Rapid current and future urban growth is bringing closer to the landfill site. Major changes in provincial regulations encourage waste diversion and less landfill disposing. New significant local ICI waste processing plants; potential alternative disposal technologies; and a local president for landfill EA reviews If construction delays are significant after approval of EA, the Minister for Environment Conservation and Parks must request a complete review of the 2012-13 EA for West Carleton Environmental Centre landfill.
Waste Management of Canada Corporation was founded over 15 years agoA process was started to increase the size of the Carp Road landfill. The City and the local community disagreed with the EA. They claimed that the rapidly expanding west end communities of Stittsville Kanata, West Carleton and Kanata were not suitable for a landfill that could operate for decades and have a negative impact on the environment for many centuries.This large-scale landfill will act as an economic disincentive for diversion and recycling programs, and other environmentally friendly disposal methods.
TFor local needs, the landfill is not needed.The 94,000 sq. meter approved service area will provide the bulk of the waste. km. It stretches from Durham to Sudbury to the Quebec border and is not compatible the growing community.
The Liberal government of the day ignored the concerns of the community, and approved the Environmental Assessment for 2013. Over the last 9 years, Ottawa’s west side has seen growth and development explode. Any new landfill will undoubtedly be in conflict for future development.In the immediate vicinity.
If construction is delayed for more than five years after approval, recent Environmental Approvals required that before proceeding with construction.The proponent is asked to verify that the data, assumptions, net effects and associated mitigation measures in the EA are correct. This condition was applied in the recent approval of the EA for Capital Region Resource Recovery Centre landfill, east end Ottawa.
After June 2, a new government takes office. No matter which party forms the next government, there should be a commitment for a review of Environmental Assessment and a reconsideration on the data and assumptions used in justifying the Carp Road landfill expansion. So, Ask candidates about their jobThey should be informed about the potential effects of the future expansion at Carp Road landfill.
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