Environmental assessment act

Section 9

Notice of approval to proceed with the undertaking

Re: An Environmental Assessment for City of Elliot Lake Solid Waste Management Plan

Proponent:
EA Reference No.:
EA File No.:

City of Elliot Lake
07052
02-08-01

Take Notice that the prescribed deadline for requiring a hearing, provided for in the Notice of Completion of the Ministry Review for the above-noted undertaking, expired on December 23, 2016.

Having considered the purpose of the Environmental Assessment Act, the approved Terms of Reference, the Environmental Assessment, the Ministry Review and comments received, I hereby give approval to proceed with the Undertaking, subject to the conditions set out below.

Reasons

My reasons for giving approval are:

  1. The Proponent has complied with the requirements of the Environmental Assessment Act.
  2. The Environmental Assessment has been prepared in accordance with the approved Terms of Reference.
  3. On the basis of the Proponent’s Environmental Assessment and the Ministry Review, the Proponent’s conclusion that the advantages of this undertaking outweigh its disadvantages appears to be valid.
  4. No other beneficial alternative method of implementing the Undertaking was identified.
  5. The Proponent has demonstrated that the environmental effects of the Undertaking can be appropriately managed and mitigated.
  6. On the basis of the Proponent’s Environmental Assessment, the Ministry Review and the conditions of approval, the construction, operation and maintenance of the Undertaking will be consistent with the purpose of the Environmental Assessment Act (Section 2).
  7. The government agency, public and Indigenous review of the Environmental Assessment has indicated no outstanding concerns that cannot be addressed through commitments made in the Environmental Assessment, through conditions set out below, or through future additional approvals that will be required. I am not aware of any outstanding issues with respect to this Undertaking which suggest that a hearing should be required.

Conditions

The approval is subject to the following conditions:

  1. Definitions

    For the purposes of these conditions:

    • “Construction” means physical construction activities, including site preparation works, but does not include tendering of contracts.
    • “City of Elliot Lake Solid Waste Management Plan” means the document titled City of Elliot Lake Solid Waste Management Plan dated February 2012.
    • “Date of Approval” means the date on which the Order in Council pertaining to the approval of the Environmental Assessment was signed by the Lieutenant Governor-in-Council.
    • “Director” means the director of the Environmental Approvals Branch.
    • “EAB” means the Environmental Approvals Branch of the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change.
    • “Environmental Assessment” means the document titled City of Elliot Lake Solid Waste Management Plan Environmental Assessment, revised July 2016.
    • “Environmental Compliance Approval” means an approval issued under Part II.1 of the Environmental Protection Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. E.19, as amended.
    • “Ministry” means the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change.
    • “Indigenous Communities” means: Mississauga #8 First Nation, Sagamok Anishnawbek First Nation, Serpent River First Nation; Thessalon First Nation; Métis Nation of Ontario – Region 4 (representing North Channel Métis Council and Historic Sault Ste. Marie Métis Council), and Bar River Métis.
    • “Proponent” means the City of Elliot Lake.
    • “Site” means the City of Elliot Lake Municipal Landfill Site consisting of a 7.41 hectare waste fill area within a waste disposal site of 15.7 hectares, located in Part of Parcel 8310, Algoma East Section, shown as Parts 1, 2, and 3, on Reference Plan 1R-4831.
    • “Undertaking” means the construction and operation of the horizontal expansion of the landfill in a southeast direction at the Site for an additional 375,000 cubic metres of waste disposal capacity (including cover) and associated works, as specified in the Environmental Assessment.
  1. General Requirements
    1. The Proponent shall comply with the provisions in the Environmental Assessment, which are hereby incorporated into this Notice of Approval by reference, except as provided in the conditions of this Notice of Approval and as provided in any other approval or permit that may be issued for this Site.
    2. The Proponent shall fulfill all commitments made in the Environmental Assessment.
    3. The conditions of the Notice of Approval do not prevent more restrictive conditions being imposed under other statutes.
  2. Public Record
    1. Where a document is required for the public record, the Proponent shall provide one hardcopy and one electronic copy of the document to the Director.
    2. The EA Reference Number 07052 and EA File Number 02-08-01 shall be quoted on all documents submitted to the Ministry pursuant to this Notice of Approval.
    3. For every document submitted to the Ministry, the Proponent shall clearly identify which condition of approval the document is meant to fulfill.
  3. Environmental Assessment Report
    1. The Proponent shall post the Environmental Assessment document dated July 2016 on the Proponent’s website for the Undertaking within 30 days of the Date of Approval.
  4. Compliance Monitoring Program
    1. The Proponent shall prepare and submit to the Director for the public record, an Environmental Assessment compliance monitoring program.
    2. The compliance monitoring program shall be submitted within one year from the Date of Approval, or 60 days before the commencement of Construction, whichever is earlier, or by another date agreed upon by the Director.
    3. The compliance monitoring program shall include a description of how the Proponent will:
      1. monitor implementation of the Undertaking in accordance with the Environmental Assessment with respect to mitigation measures, public consultation, and additional studies and work to be carried out;
      2. monitor compliance with the conditions in this Notice of Approval; and,
      3. monitor compliance with all commitments made in the Environmental Assessment and the subsequent review of and approval process for the Environmental Assessment with respect to mitigation measures, public consultation, and additional studies and work to be carried out.
    4. The compliance monitoring program must contain an implementation schedule for monitoring activities to be completed.
    5. The Director may require the Proponent to amend the compliance monitoring program at any time. Should an amendment be required, the Director will notify the Proponent in writing of the required amendment and the date by which the Proponent must complete and submit the amendment to the Director.
    6. The Proponent shall submit the amended compliance monitoring program to the Director within the time period specified by the Director.
    7. The Proponent shall implement the compliance monitoring program and any amendments to it.
  5. Compliance Reporting
    1. The Proponent shall prepare an annual compliance report outlining the results of the compliance monitoring program (Condition 5 above).
    2. The first compliance report shall be submitted to the Director for the public record no later than one year following the Date of Approval. Each subsequent annual compliance report shall be submitted on the date that is the anniversary of the Date of Approval thereafter. Each report shall cover the previous year to the date of report submission.
    3. The proponent shall submit annual compliance reports until all conditions are satisfied.
    4. Once all conditions in this Notice of Approval have been satisfied, the Proponent shall notify the Director in writing that the final annual compliance report is being submitted, and that all conditions in this Notice of Approval have been satisfied.  The Ministry will confirm whether all conditions have been satisfied and the Director will state this in writing to the Proponent.
    5. The Proponent shall retain either on the Site or in another location approved by the Director, copies of the annual compliance reports for each reporting year and any associated documentation of compliance monitoring activities.
    6. The Proponent shall make the compliance reports and associated documentation available to the Director or a designate in a timely manner when requested to do so by the Ministry.
  6. Complaint Protocol
    1. The Proponent shall prepare and implement a complaint protocol that sets out provisions for dealing with and responding to inquiries and complaints during all stages of the Undertaking.
    2. The Proponent shall submit the complaint protocol to the Director within one year from the Date of Approval, or 60 days before the start of construction, whichever is earlier.
    3. The Director may require the Proponent to amend the complaint protocol at any time. Should an amendment be required, the Director shall notify the proponent in writing of the amendment required and when the amendment must be completed.
    4. The Proponent shall submit the amended complaint protocol to the Director within the time period specified by the Director.
    5. The Proponent shall implement the complaint protocol and any amendments to it.
  7. Consultation with Indigenous Communities
    1. The Proponent shall prepare, in consultation with Indigenous Communities, an Indigenous consultation plan that sets forth:
      1. how, during the planning, design, Construction, operation, and monitoring of the Undertaking, the Proponent will consult with the Indigenous Communities;
      2. how the Proponent will notify the Indigenous Communities, using a notification protocol, if archaeological resources or Indigenous remains are encountered during the life of the Undertaking; and,
      3. how the Proponent will issue notices and updates on key steps in the planning, design, Construction, and operation of the Undertaking.
    2. 90 days before the start of Construction or by such other date as may be agreed to in writing by the Director, the Proponent shall submit the Indigenous consultation plan to the Director, with an outline of how the Proponent consulted on it as per Condition 8.1 above.
    3. Once the Director is satisfied with the Indigenous consultation plan, the Proponent shall implement the Indigenous consultation plan during the planning, design, Construction, and operation of the Undertaking.
  8. Archaeological Assessment
    1. If during the life of the Undertaking any archaeological resources are discovered, all Construction activities within 100 metres of the archaeological resources will cease immediately and a licensed archaeologist will be retained to carry out the necessary fieldwork in compliance with Section 48(1) of the Ontario Heritage Act.
    2. Archaeological resources that require removal from the place where they are discovered will be transferred to a public institution selected through consultation with the Indigenous Communities, in consultation with the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport. A Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport collection transfer form will be completed by the surrendering licensee and the institution accepting the materials. Collection shall be curated to current standards.
  9. Groundwater and Surface Water Protection
    1. The Proponent shall include the following in its application for an Environmental Compliance Approval under Section 20.2 of the Environmental Protection Act:
      1. A feasibility study of alternate leachate collection and treatment options and stormwater management that identifies the preferred leachate and stormwater management option for the expanded landfill.
      2. A Spill Contingency and Pollution Prevention Plan, should leachate transfer to the municipal wastewater treatment plant be selected as the preferred leachate treatment option.
      3. An improved groundwater and surface water monitoring program with specified locations for additional monitoring well installations and sampling points to assess the efficacy of the following:
        1. the Site’s existing leachate and stormwater management system and whether there are leachate and stormwater effects on the wetland to the west of the approved landfill area; and,
        2. the leachate and stormwater management system proposed to service the landfill expansion.
      4. A contingency plan for predictive water quality monitoring with triggers to avoid groundwater and surface water impacts, and contingency measures.
  10. Air Quality and Odour
    1. The Proponent shall include an air emissions and dispersion modelling report with detailed information on landfill gas, fugitive dust, and odour emissions from the expanded landfill site in its application for an Environmental Compliance Approval under Section 20.2 of the Environmental Protection Act.
    2. The Proponent shall prepare a dust management plan for the site and shall submit the plan to the Ministry as part of the application for approval under Part II.1 of the Environmental Protection Act. The plan shall include fugitive dust from all sources on the site.
    3. The Proponent shall develop an odour abatement plan detailing the measures for addressing the potential odours that may emanate from the site. The proponent shall submit the plan to the Ministry as part of the application for approval under Part V of the Environmental Protection Act. 
  11. Climate Change
    1. The Proponent shall review the landfill gas production rates determined in the detailed air emissions and dispersion modelling report (Condition 11) and examine the feasibility of landfill gas collection to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The proponent shall include a discussion of the assessment and the potential use of the landfill gas collected at the Site in the design and operations report that will be submitted in support of the Proponent’s application for an Environmental Compliance Approval under Section 20.2 of the Environmental Protection Act.
    2. The proponent shall include the following in its application for an Environmental Compliance Approval under Section 20.2 of the Environmental Protection Act:
      1. An assessment of whether the proposed stormwater management and leachate collection and treatment systems for the expanded landfill have the resiliency to withstand impacts from weather events of increased frequency and intensity as a result of climate change. The assessment will include a discussion of potential contingency plans to address extreme weather events.
      2. An assessment of landfill vulnerability to side slope failure due to extreme weather events and identification of appropriate mitigation and contingency measures to address such a failure.
  12. Waste Diversion
    1. The Proponent shall set targets and timelines for implementing the solid waste diversion recommendations outlined in the City of Elliot Lake Solid Waste Management Plan to decrease the annual solid waste disposal rate of 12,000 cubic metres. These targets and timelines must be submitted to the Ministry to support the Proponent’s application for an Environmental Compliance Approval under Section 20.2 of the Environmental Protection Act.
    2. The Proponent shall report annual waste diversion rates in the annual compliance report (Condition 6).
    3. The Proponent shall develop strategies and programs to encourage industrial, commercial and institutional waste diversion for inclusion in the City of Elliot Lake Solid Waste Management Plan.
    4. The Proponent shall submit the revised City of Elliot Lake Solid Waste Management Plan to the Director with the compliance monitoring program (condition 5).
    5. The Proponent shall implement the City of Elliot Lake Solid Waste Management Plan and any revisions to it.
  13. Duration of Approval
    1. If after 5 years of the Date of Approval Construction has not commenced, the Proponent shall conduct a review of the Environmental Assessment and submit that review to the Director. The review will look at the potential environmental effects and mitigation measures, and identify any changes to these components. If Construction has not commenced within 10 years of the Date of Approval, this Notice of Approval will expire.

Dated the 18th day of October 2017 at Toronto.

[Signed by]
Minister of the Environment and Climate Change
77 Wellesley Street West
11th Floor, Ferguson Block
Toronto, Ontario
M7A 2T5

Approved by O.C. No. _______

Date O.C. Approved _______