August 24, 1998

To:Works and Utilities Committee

From:Angelos Bacopoulos, General Manager - Solid Waste Management Services

Subject:Old Landfill Sites in the City of Toronto

Purpose:

To provide The Works and Utilities Committee with an interim list of old landfill sites in the City of Toronto.

Funding Sources, Financial Implications and Impact Statement:

There is no funding request associated with this report.

Recommendations:

It is recommended that this report be received for information.

Council Reference/Background/History:

The Works and Utilities Committee on May 20, 1998, had before it a report (May 7, 1998) from the Interim Functional Lead for Solid Waste Management.

The Committee requested the Commissioner of Works and Emergency Services, in conjunction with other appropriate departments, to submit a report to the Committee within three months with an interim list of old landfill sites.

Discussion and Justification:

For purposes of this exercise, in order to distinguish between landfills and brown field sites, old landfills were defined as land which is owned by the municipality and which has been documented as having been used for the disposal of municipal solid waste under the authority of the municipality. The attached list does not include brown field sites which are generally considered as sites that have been contaminated in some manner and for which decommissioning may be required.

Staff who have responsibilities for the old landfill sites within the six community council areas (CCAs) in the City of Toronto and those formerly under the control of the former Metro Toronto assisted in compiling the attached list of old landfill sites. The ownership of the sites in the attached list requires verification before further study is conducted on these sites.

A list from the Ministry of Environment's (MOE) Waste Sites Database was obtained and was cross-referenced with the list provided by Toronto Staff.

The attached list includes:

(1) seven sites identified by the Etobicoke CCA, six of which are in the MOE database;

(2) nine sites identified by the East York CCA, all of which are in the MOE database;

(3) twenty-five sites identified by the North York CCA, eight of which are in the MOE database;

(4) fifteen sites identified by the former Metro Toronto, thirteen of which are in the MOE database;

(5) sixteen sites identified by the Scarborough CCA, nine of which are in the MOE database;

(6) thirty-seven sites identified by the Toronto CCA, two of which are in the MOE database and eighteen of which need to be confirmed as former landfills; and

(7) eighteen sites identified by the York CCA, three of which are in the MOE database.

The attached list also includes thirty-five sites provided in the MOE database which have not been identified by the six CCAs. The ownership of fourteen of these sites is not identified in the MOE database.

Further investigation is needed in order to make the attached list a comprehensive one. There is a need for a team of staff from each of the CCAs to co-ordinate actions and to compile and prioritize the sites considering the environmental, health and safety risks associated with each site.

Conclusions:

The attached list of old landfill sites in the City of Toronto is a compilation of information which is readily available at this time. A committee has been struck comprised of staff of the CCAs and former Metro Toronto to oversee and report follow up action required to ensure that any risk associated with the sites is managed appropriately. Legal staff will participate in the risk assessment report.

Contact Names:

Andrew C. Heit, P. Eng.

Operations Engineer

Solid Waste Management Services

Works and Emergency Services

Phone: 392-3701

Fax: 392-4754

E-mail: andrew_heit@metrodesk.metrotor.on.ca

Angelos BacopoulosBarry H. Gutteridge

General ManagerCommissioner

Solid Waste Management ServicesWorks & Emergency Services

AH/NP/oldlf