Notice of approval

Proponent: The Corporation of the Township of McDougall
Environmental assessment file number: EA-02-08

Take notice that the period for requiring a hearing, provided for in the Notice of Completion of the Review for the above noted undertaking, expired on November 11, 2005. I received five submissions before the expiration date. Two submissions requested a hearing by the Environmental Review Tribunal.

I do not consider it advisable or necessary to hold a hearing. Having considered the purpose of the Act, the Environmental Assessment, the Review and submissions received, I hereby give approval to proceed with the undertaking, subject to conditions set out below.

Reasons

My reasons for giving approval are:

  1. On the basis of the proponent’s Environmental Assessment and the Review, the proponent’s conclusion that, on balance, the advantages of this undertaking outweigh its disadvantages appears to be valid.
  2. No other beneficial alternative method of implementing the undertaking was identified.
  3. Issues raised in the submissions regarding details about the landfill design will be addressed at the Environmental Protection Act approval stage.
  4. On the basis of the proponent’s Environmental Assessment, the Review and the conditions of approval, the construction, operation and maintenance of the undertaking will be consistent with the purpose of the Act (section 2).
  5. The Government Review Team has indicated no outstanding concerns. The public review of the Environmental Assessment did not identify any outstanding concerns which can not be addressed through these conditions of approval or conditions of a Provisional Certificate of Approval.
  6. The submissions received after the Notice of Completion of the Review was published are being dealt with through conditions where appropriate. I am not aware of any outstanding issues with respect to this undertaking which suggest that a hearing should be required.

Conditions

For the purposes of these Conditions

  1. proponent refers to The Corporation of the Municipality of McDougall.
  2. MOE refers to the Ontario Ministry of the Environment.
  3. Director refers to the Director of the Environmental Assessment and Approvals Branch.
  4. the environmental assessment refers to the approved Environmental Assessment For One or More Waste Disposal Solutions for the Municipality of McDougall and Other Area Municipalities.

The proponent shall retain either on-site or in another location approved by the Director, copies of the Compliance Monitoring Report for each reporting year and any associated documentation of compliance monitoring activities. The proponent shall make the documentation available to the ministry or its designate upon request in a timely manner when so requested by the ministry during an on-site inspection, audit, or in response to a pollution incident report or when information concerning compliance is requested by the ministry.

  1. The proponent shall comply with all the provisions of the environmental assessment submitted to the MOE which are hereby incorporated in this approval by reference except as provided in these conditions and as provided in any other approvals or permits that may be issued.
  2. These conditions do not prevent more restrictive conditions being imposed under other statutes.
  3. Where a document is required for the Public Record, the proponent shall provide the document to the Director for filing within the specific Public Record file maintained for the undertaking. Copies of the documents should also be provided to:
    1. the Director of the MOE Northern Regional Office;
    2. the Manager of the MOE North Bay Area Office;
    3. the Clerk of the Corporation of the Municipality of McDougall; and
    4. the Public Liaison Committee, if applicable.

    These documents may also be provided through other means as considered appropriate by the proponent.

  4. The proponent shall prepare and submit to the Director for the Public Record, an Environmental Assessment Compliance Monitoring Program. This Program shall be submitted one year from the date of approval of the undertaking, or 60 days before the commencement of construction, whichever is earlier. The Program shall be prepared for.the monitoring of the proponent’s fulfilment of the provisions of the environmental assessment for mitigation measures, public consultation, and additional studies and work to be carried out, and of all other commitments made during the preparation of the environmental assessment and the subsequent review of the environmental assessment for mitigation measures, public consultation, and additional studies and work to be carried out.
  5. The Program must contain an implementation schedule. A statement must accompany the Program when submitted to the Director, indicating that the Program is intended to fulfill this condition. The Program, as it may be amended by the Director, must be carried out by the proponent.
  6. The proponent shall prepare an annual Compliance Report which describes compliance with the conditions of approval set out in this notice and which describes the results of the proponent’s Environmental Assessment Compliance Monitoring Program. The first Compliance Report shall be issued no later than one year following the date of this approval, and on the date that is the anniversary of this approval each year thereafter, for which the Compliance Report shall cover the previous year to that date. The proponent shall submit to the Director, for placement on the Public Record a copy of the Compliance Report. The proponent shall submit Compliance Reports until all conditions are satisfied. When all conditions have been satisfied, the proponent shall indicate in the Compliance Report that this is its final submission.
  7. The proponent shall review the need for establishing a Public Liaison Committee. If there is no interest from the public in establishing and participating in such a Committee (once sufficient notice has been given), the need for such a Committee should be reviewed yearly. If established, the Committee shall serve as a focal point for the dissemination, review and exchange of information and monitoring results relevant to the operation of the landfill.
  8. The proponent shall develop, in consultation with the Public Liaison Committee, a procedure for responding to complaints. If a Public Liaison Committee is not formed, then the proponent is solely responsible for developing the procedure for responding to complaints. The proponent shall keep records of the complaints received, the actions taken, and the results or outcome of these actions. The proponent shall ensure this record is maintained to facilitate compliance with the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, and subject to that Act, make it available for inspection upon request of the Public Liaison Committee, the public or MOE.
  9. The proponent shall post an electronic copy of the draft Design and Operations Plan (that is, detailed design information about the 'landfill expansion, prepared as part of the application for a Certificate of Approval under Part V of the Environmental Protection Act) on its website and make a printed copy available for public viewing at its municipal office. The proponent shall publish a Notice in an area newsplaper, at a public meeting of Council and on the proponent’s web site indicating the availability of the draft document for review. Prior to the posting of the draft document on its website, the proponent shall directly notify those members of the public who provided comments during the review of the EA, and any First Nations communities who were previously contacte'd and did not expliCitly state that they wished to have no further involvement in the approvals process, about the opportunity to review the draft document. No less than 30 calendar days, from the date of the posting ofthe Notice, will be provided by the proponent to all interested persons to review and provide comments on the draft Design and Operations Plan. As part of the final application for Part V Environmental Protection Act approval, the proponent shall indicate in writing to the Signing Director that consultation has occurred and how any comments received have been considered.

Dated the 13th day of February 2006 at Toronto

Original signed by:
Minister of the Environment
135 St. Clair Avenue West, 12th floor
Toronto, Ontario
M4V 1P5