Introduction

Proponent

County of Northumberland

Location

Municipality of Brighton

Type

Waste Management

Reference number

10217

Contact

Environmental Approvals Branch

Current status

Environmental assessment: approved, February 11, 2015

Project summary

The purpose of the undertaking is to provide additional disposal capacity to allow the County to continue to operate the landfill through the year 2023.

Project history

Environmental assessment: approved
Date submitted: September 6, 2013
Expiry of public comment period: October 25, 2013
Expiry of public comment period for ministry review: September 3, 2014
Decision date: February 11, 2015

Terms of reference: approved
Date submitted: January 28, 2011
Expiry of public comment period: February 28, 2011
Decision date: April 20, 2011

Environmental assessment

The County of Northumberland has undertaken an environmental assessment (EA) the expansion of the Brighton Landfill site, located in the Municipality of Brighton, County of Northumberland, Ontario. The purpose of the undertaking is to provide additional disposal capacity to allow the County to continue to operate the landfill through the year 2023. To achieve its lifespan goal for the landfill, an expansion of approximately 500,000 cubic metres of disposal capacity is anticipated. Two types of alternative methods were considered in the EA: three landfill expansion alternatives and five leachate management alternatives. Factors including geotechnical considerations, natural groundwater levels, visual impacts and available land within the site were considered and used to identify potential expansion alternatives. The preferred alternative method for expanding the landfill site and the preferred alternative method of leachate treatment has been identified in the EA.

The preferred expansion alternative involves the lateral expansion along the west and north sides, maintaining a 40 metre buffer between the waste limits and existing west and north property boundaries. Approximately 107,750 cubic metres of soil would need to be excavated to construct this expansion, resulting in an increase in airspace of approximately 524,350 cubic metres and increasing the licensed waste disposal area by approximately 2.8 hectares. The continued use of Cobourg’s No. 2 Water Pollution Control Plant was identified as the preferred alternative method for the treatment of the collected leachate.

The ministry review was available for public and government agency comments from July 30, 2014 to September 3, 2014 during normal hours of operation at the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change, the Municipality of Brighton and the County of Northumberland’s clerk’s offices, and other municipal offices specified in the notice of completion of ministry review.

Terms of reference

The County of Northumberland (County) submitted a proposed terms of reference for an environmental assessment of the expansion of the Brighton Landfill in Brighton, Ontario for review as required under the Environmental Assessment Act (EAA). The ToR submitted for approval by the Ontario Minister of the Environment has been prepared in accordance with subsections 6(2)(c) and 6.1(3) of the EAA, which enables the proponent to focus the EA with respect to the consideration of project alternatives to address its specific needs and circumstances. The purpose of the proposed undertaking is to provide approximately 500,000 cubic metres additional disposal capacity at the Brighton Landfill by expanding the current landfill footprint to allow the County to continue to operate the landfill through the year 2023.

Study area

Two study areas—the on-site study area and site-vicinity study area—will be used in the preparation of the EA. The on-site study area includes lands owned by the County of Northumberland within the boundary of the Brighton Landfill site property boundary. The landfill site is located on part of Lots 31 and 32, Concession 2, in the Municipality of Brighton. The generic site-vicinity study area will be modified during the EA to suit the requirements of each environmental component.