Conservation

Paul Lewkowicz

Posted May 2012

Highland Creek Incineration Plant Petition Update

To date, we have over 1,000 petition signatures in total and nearly 100 lawn signs protesting the trucking of sludge.

Our next steps will be to provide comment to the Ministry of Environment during a 30-day review period (expected in May or June) of the 2009 Highland Creek Biosolids Master Plan Environmental Assessment. The City will release a report that outlines City Council’s direction to truck sludge instead of incineration. The 30-day review period will begin once this report has been made public. We will need to submit our petitions and write in objections to trucking of sludge addressed to Toronto City Councillors and the Minister of the Environment.

In addition, in June 2012, City Council is expected to review its Toronto Water Budget (which allocates funding to build a trucking facility to accommodate the trucking of sludge). Due to increased capital and operating costs, the trucking of sludge (“beneficial use option”) has become even more expensive and undesirable. The CCRA will continue to monitor activities at City Hall and submit petition signatures and written submissions wherever possible and needed.

In the meantime, the CCRA and members of the Highland Creek Treatment Plant Neighbourhood Liaison Committee have made Councillor Moeser's office aware of our efforts (and continue to have his support). We have also met with our new Member of Provincial Parliament Tracy MacCharles to brief her on the issue and our efforts. We have also briefed Public School Trustee Jerry Chadwick and Catholic School Trustee Tobias Enverga on the issue.

What can you do?

1) Sign the online or paper petition

2) Encourage others to sign the petition

3) Email planning@ccranews.com to request a lawn sign or sign up for e-mail updates

4) Sign a petition or accept a sign from canvassers during our 2012 CCRA Membership drive

We may be in contact with those who signed the petition to ask you to ask the Ministry of Environment to authorize a full environmental assessment on the trucking of sludge before the City can proceed with its implementation of the plan. Check www.ccranews.com for more details.

Please note: Your name and contact information will be kept confidential and will not be shared with others.

Posted Oct 2011

Highland Creek Treatment Plant Update

Compiled by Paul Lewkowicz on behalf of the C.C.R.A. Executive

Dear Community,

The Highland Creek Treatment Plant multihearth incinerators are at the end of their service life. As a result, the City of Toronto’s Biosolids Master Plan (BMP), a six-year study and environmental assessment, recommended that fluidized bed incineration be the preferred method for processing future solid waste at the Highland Creek Treatment Plant.

Toronto City Council twice (in June 2010 and May 2011) went against the recommendation of staff to pursue fluidized bed incineration and instead directed staff to pursue trucking of sludge (“beneficial use option”). In May 2011, Councillor Moeser and Mayor Ford both voted against the beneficial use option.

Staff reports cite fluidized bed incineration as a better method than trucking of sludge (“beneficial use option”) on every single criterion including environmental impact, community impact and risks, onsite solutions, cost, biosolid end use, and proven technology.

Funding to build a new trucking facility will go to City Council for approval in November 2011. City staff will only pursue the “beneficial use option” once funding for the proposed facility has been approved.

Given the negative impacts of trucking of sludge through and around our community, the C.C.R.A. is circulating a petition that asks Council to reconsider its decision to pursue beneficial use, and barring that, require that a comprehensive and consultative environmental assessment be conducted on the beneficial use option.

We ask you to sign the paper petition and drop it off at one of the locations specified or sign the online petition.

We are also assisting with the Highland Creek Treatment Plant Neighbourhood Liaison Committee’s petition calling for an environmental assessment on the beneficial use option.

We realize that incineration may be a daunting term for some, however, after reading countless staff reports that reviewed numerous options and scientific evidence, we feel that fluidized bed incineration (which is used in Durham, York, Peel and Europe) has far less detrimental impacts than the trucking of sludge (“beneficial use option”).

Fluidized bed incineration would improve existing practice at the Highland Creek Treatment Plant and improve air quality, lower emissions, and continue to have a minimal impact on our community.

We ask for your support in our efforts to have City Council reconsider this issue.

The devil is in the details . . .

Criteria

Trucking “Beneficial Use Option”

Fluidized Bed Incineration

Use in other municipalities

· Most large municipalities do not use trucking but rather incineration

· Trucking is used in Waterloo but the method is found to be problematic

· Proven technology used in many large municipalities (Durham, York, Peel, London)

· Used widely in Europe (which has tougher environmental regulations)

Environmental Impact

· Increased landfill disposal

· Greenhouse gas emissions:

5,500 tonnes of CO2/yr (1,080 cars)

· Greenhouse gas emissions from:

- increased truck traffic

- tractor emissions

- field biosolids decomposition

- natural gas from anaerobic digestion

- landfill emissions

· Increased presence of toxic chemicals

· Increased negative impacts on surface, soil and water ground quality

· Lowest release of air pollutants

· Unclear whether this method will meet future more stringent environmental regulations

· Energy efficient process

· Greenhouse gas emissions:

4,100 tonnes of CO2/yr (804 cars)

· Higher removal of heavy metals (90%+ removal of mercury, dioxins)

· Ash is less toxic than sludge

· No visible emission plume

· Enhanced emissions control system would result in significantly cleaner emissions and air quality

· Emissions reductions exceed Ontario Ministry of Environment (MOE) regulations and U.S. Environmental Protection Act (EPA) requirements

Risk

· Greater potential for biosolid spills during transport due to daily trucking (4-5 times per day) and potential for more truck accidents

· Solid waste is processed onsite, reducing risk to community

· Reduced risk of spills due to less trucking (1-2 weeks per year)

Community Impact

· Increased odour

· Increased noise concerns

· Increased diesel emissions

· Increased traffic (+13-30%)

· Logistical issues with trucking (traffic lanes, schools, potholes)

· Low odour impacts

· Low noise impacts

· Lower diesel emissions

· Little impact on traffic

Cost

· Total Capital Cost: $97 M

· Annual Operating Cost: $8.4 M

· Total Cost (20Y): $188-222 M

· Need to build new trucking facility

· Need for odour treatment control and additional digestion capacity

· Maintenance costs associated with truck fleet and trucking facility

· Total Capital Cost: $120 M

· Annual Operating Cost: $3.7 M

· Total Cost (20Y): $164 M

· No need to build a new facility.

· No odour treatment control costs

· No trucking facility costs

· Lower truck fleet maintenance costs

· Cost savings lost from not pursuing this method earlier

End Product

· End Product: Sludge

· 40,000 additional wet tonnes of biosolids per year going to landfill

· City staff admit that supply outweighs demand for sludge

· Regulations limit where and how long sludge can be used

· Need for new facility to accommodate increased trucking

· Unclear whether this method will meet future more stringent environmental regulations

· End Product: Ash

· Limited but growing market for ash (such as to make cement)

· Considerably less of the end product (ash) ends up in the landfill

· Additional incinerator is proposed to meet potential increases in biosolid management capacity (population growth and increases in solid waste)

· Fluidized beds will ensure facility (which is at end-of-life) meets and exceeds future more stringent environmental regulations

Timeline

· Trucking facility built by 2015

· No requirement for additional environmental assessments from Ministry of Environment

· Major repairs have occurred since 2009 to existing hearth incinerators to meet current regulations and extend service life by 5-10 yrs

· First fluidized bed installed in 2015

· Second fluidized bed installed in 2020

· No need for further environmental assessments due to existing practice

Sources:

Biosolids Master Plan – Highland Creek Treatment Plan Main Website

http://www.toronto.ca/wes/techservices/involved/wws/biosolids/

City of Toronto Public Information Session: Biosolids Master Plan Update (October 3, 2011)

http://www.toronto.ca/wes/techservices/involved/wws/biosolids/pdf/2011-10-03_presentation.pdf

Minutes of May 17-18 City Council decision

http://app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgendaItemHistory.do?item=2011.PW3.4

Toronto Water General Manager Biosolids Master Plan Update – Highland Creek Treatment Plant

(April 7, 2011)

http://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2011/pw/bgrd/backgroundfile-37354.pdf

Medical Officer of Health Rapid Health Impact Assessment for Biosolids Management at Highland Creek Treatment Plant (April 7, 2011)

http://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2011/pw/bgrd/backgroundfile-37363.pdf