Introduction

Proponent

Green Lane Landfill, a division of Green Lane Environmental Group Limited

Location

Township of Southwold, County of Elgin

Type

Waste

Reference number

01080

Contact

Current status

Environmental assessment: approved, May 26, 2006

Project summary

The purpose of the undertaking is for the optimization of the Green Lane Landfill.

Project history

Environmental assessment: approved
Date submitted: July 15, 2005
Expiry of public comment period: September 2, 2005
Expiry of public comment period for Ministry Review: November 17, 2005
Decision date: May 26, 2006

Terms of reference: approved
Date submitted: June 22, 2001
Expiry of public comment period: July 27, 2001
Decision date: March 28, 2002 (approved with amendments)

Environmental assessment

Green Lane has submitted an environmental assessment (EA) for the optimization of the Green Lane Landfill, located in the Township of Southwold. A Terms of Reference for the undertaking was approved on March 28, 2002. The proposed undertaking involves the easterly and westerly expansion, and a deepening expansion and an increase in elevation for both the currently approved and proposed landfill areas. The optimization would be entirely within the existing property boundary, and would provide landfill capacity over the next 15 years, depending on the current rates of landfilling and operational best practices.

The public, applicable government agencies and potentially affected aboriginal peoples were invited to comment on the EA for a seven-week period, which ended September 2, 2005.

The ministry Review of this project was completed on October 13, 2005 and the Ministry of the Environment (MOE) concluded that the proponent had met the requirements of the Environment Assessment Act. On October 13, 2005, the MOE issued a Notice of Completion of ministry Review for this environmental assessment. The five-week public comment period expired on November 17, 2005, during which time comments about the proposed undertaking, the environmental assessment and the ministry Review were made. Upon the expiry of this comment period, submissions were evaluated and a recommendation on whether to approve the undertaking was forwarded to the Minister. The Minister decided to approve the undertaking with the necessary concurrence of the Lieutenant Governor in Council.

All those who comment on the environmental assessment or the ministry Review will receive notice of the Minister’s decision.

Terms of reference

Background

The Green Lane Landfill Site, owned by Green Lane Landfill, a division of St. Thomas Sanitary Collection Service Limited (Green Lane) is located on a 129.7 ha site consisting of parts of Lots 21, 22 and 23, Concession III north of Highway 401 in the Township of Southwold, County of Elgin (the Site). The Site has been successfully operated at that location since 1978. Green Lane is a Canadian enterprise owned and operated by the McCaig family, which has been involved with waste management, including waste disposal, in the Middlesex-Elgin area for more than 50 years.

In 1998 the Minister of the Environment approved an environmental assessment (EA) for the long-term expansion of the Green Lane Landfill, within its approved Site boundaries. The EA was conducted under Environmental Assessment Act (the Act) provisions requiring the Proponent to justify and restrict the capacity of the long-term expansion on the basis of population and waste volume estimates within a limited study area. The resulting approval meant that the optimal capacity of the Site was not realized.

As a result of Green Lane being granted a Province-wide service and amendments to the Environmental Assessment Act enacted in January, 1997, Green Lane now wishes to pursue an environmental assessment for the optimization of the unused capacity within the existing, approved, boundaries of the Green Lane Landfill Site.

As required by the Act, the proposed Terms of Reference for the EA have been prepared in consultation with the general public, property owners and tenants living within 2 km of the Site, the Green Lane Landfill Public Liaison Committee, area municipalities, key agencies (including the Ministry of Environment) and the Oneida of the Thames First Nation. The EA will proceed during 2001 on the basis of the Terms of Reference as approved by the Minister of the Environment.

Description of the undertaking

The undertaking being considered is an optimization of waste disposal capacity of the Green Lane Landfill Site within existing, approved boundaries of the site to provide province wide, non-hazardous solid waste disposal service.