Every year, Ontario moves roughly 26,000,000 cubes (cubic meters) of excess soil. Despite much of that soil being clean, roughly half of it still ends up in landfills; wasting valuable landfill capacity and a large amount of clean usable soil. This lack of awareness and connectivity often results in logistical inefficiencies, unnecessary costs, illegal and irresponsible disposal, and a culture of distrust over concerns about contamination liability – just to name a few problems most of us see regularly.
Ontario has finalized and is implementing new regulatory changes that will make it safer and easier for more excess soil to be reused locally and will reduce barriers to revitalize historically contaminated lands. The following have been finalized, all of which fall under the Environmental Protection Act (EPA):
- a new On-Site and Excess Soil Management Regulation
- complementary and burden reduction amendments to O. Reg. 153/04 (Records of Site Condition)
- complementary amendments to Regulation 347 (General: Waste Management)
- complementary amendments to O. Reg. 351/12 (Registrations under Part II.2 of the Act - Waste Management Systems)
- a document adopted by reference in the On-Site and Excess Soil Management Regulation titled "Rules for Soil Management and Excess Soil Quality Standards"
- Beneficial Reuse Assessment Tool and Related Guide
These regulatory changes support the delivery of our Made-in-Ontario Environment Plan commitment to protect our land by:
- taking steps to properly manage local soil and brownfields, ensuring valuable resources don’t go to waste
- reducing the risk of contaminants
- redeveloping brownfield
This regulatory framework:
- provides clear rules on managing and reusing excess soil
- limits soil being sent to landfill
- reduces greenhouse gas emissions from soil transportation
- reduces current burden and cost of excess soil management, while continuing to ensure strong environmental protection
- removes barriers to brownfields redevelopment
- The regulatory changes will do the following:
Reuse of soil - The On-Site and Excess Soil Management Regulation will clarify requirements for the reuse and management of excess soil, including risk-based standards for safe reuse. The regulation also clarifies when the waste designation applies to the movement and disposal of excess soil and replaces or simplifies waste-related approvals with regulatory rules for low risk soil management activities. These provisions will come into effect on July 1, 2020.
Excess Soil Planning Actions - Subject to exceptions, project leaders of certain projects generating or receiving excess soil will be required, starting January 1, 2022, to conduct excess soil management actions before any excess soil leaves the project area, including in some cases characterizing the soil to determine the concentrations of contaminants in the soil. It would also include identifying appropriate reuse sites and tracking excess soil movements. Key information would be required to be registered on a public registry.
Landfilling of excess soil - The On-site and Excess Soil Management Regulation will restrict the deposit of clean soil at landfill sites, unless the soil is needed for cover or functions beneficial to the functioning of the landfill. This requirement will come into effect on January 1, 2025.
Brownfields redevelopment - Brownfield properties are vacant or underutilized lands previously used for industrial or commercial activities and that typically require the filing of a record of site condition before being redeveloped. The amendments to O. Reg. 153/04 include reduced requirements associated with filing a Record of Site Condition. This includes a reduced need to fully delineate contaminants for properties going through the Risk Assessment process, flexibility on meeting standards in specific circumstances, and removing the requirement for a Record of Site Condition for specific low risk redevelopment situations. These changes came into effect immediately.
Anticipated outcomes
The anticipated outcomes of this regulatory framework include a reduction in construction costs by making it easier and safer to reuse excess construction soils. This will enhance housing supply while providing greater certainty of environmental protection through flexible, risk-based rules and soil reuse standards. It is also anticipated that this regulatory framework will reduce waste stigma by clarifying when excess soil would not be considered a waste.
A reduction in burden on developers is anticipated by replacing waste-related approval with regulatory rules for low-risk soil management activities, such as soil hauling, low-risk processing, and temporary storage. A new online registry for larger and riskier movements will provide transparency and accountability for those responsible for managing excess soil, such as generators, haulers and receivers, which will assist in addressing concerns about illegal relocation of soil. Larger reuse sites will also be required to register. Finally, a reduced loss of landfill capacity is anticipated by redirecting the deposit of soils away from landfills and towards beneficial reuses.
To better align with the On-Site and Excess Soil Regulation, complementary and clarification amendments have been made to O. Reg. 153/04, Regulation 347, and O. Reg. 351/12, all of which are made under the EPA. These amendments address practical challenges and remove unnecessary barriers to redevelopment and revitalization of brownfields and clarify when Environmental Compliance Approvals are or are not needed for certain activities related to soil
