A company wanting to expand a landfill just north of Dresden will hold a presentation to update "immediate neighbours" about its plans for the site.
The presentation titled Introducing York1's Regenerative Recycling Facility will be hosted by York1 Environmental Waste Solutions Ltd. on Saturday at 1 p.m., but York1 said the venue has changed from Christ Church in Dresden to The Wheelhouse at 547 North Street due to public interest. A notice sent to neighbours of the facility said "this innovative facility will target the recovery and beneficial reuse of construction debris that would have otherwise gone to landfills, helping the environment, and conserving valuable materials."
The company said they will take questions about the proposal.
The company said immediate neighbours within 500 metres of the facility will be given priority. A spokesperson said seating will be limited to 100 people and if there's space left, other community residents will be admitted on a first-come, first-served basis.
A second community event has been added. York1 said the second event will be held Friday, March 1, 2024 at 6 p.m. at Ken Houston Memorial Agricultural Centre located at 1212 North Street. It's for Dresden residents and seating capacity will be limited to 300 people, according to York1. They said admission will be on a first-come, first-served basis as well.
On Wednesday, the municipality said administration is currently gathering more information and will be seeking advice from technical experts regarding the landfill's application to expand.
Chatham-Kent Mayor Darrin Canniff told CK Mornings with Chris, Allanah, and Matt on Wednesday that this application is a provincial matter and the province will have the final say, but not without due diligence by the municipality.
"We have very little to say, the province says it's zoned that way so therefore they licence it and they're going to be doing all those things. We've got the application, we're looking at it now to determine if there's any issues with the zoning, that's the piece that we have. Do they want to zone it properly, that's the piece that we'll be looking at, but beyond that it's provincial," said Canniff.
Canniff said the dump shouldn't smell stinky even if the expansion is approved because household garbage won't be part of the equation.
"They're not putting in household waste and stuff. It'll be other things that don't smell. So, that's a key piece there," the mayor noted.
Mayor Canniff said the dump has been zoned for that purpose and has been around for 50 years, but has been used "very minimally."
The proposed amendment is to allow operations at the waste processing site 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Dresden councillor Jamie McGrail told CKNewsToday.ca this week the 24/7 trucks proposed for the landfill at 29831 Irish School Road are a big concern for her and her constituents.
York1 Environmental Waste Solutions Ltd. said the proposed amendment to the waste processing facility will also allow a maximum daily receiving rate of 6,000 tonnes of non-hazardous solid waste, including construction and demolition waste, and excess soil for beneficial reuse, and 1,000 tonnes of residual waste for final disposal on an annual average basis.
The proposal also seeks the maximum storage volumes at the waste processing facility be amended to indoor storage of 1,800 tonnes of residual waste for transfer including source separated organics; outdoor storage of 3,000 tonnes of recyclable materials such as wood, brick, block, concrete, asphalt, shingles, metals, and drywall; and outdoor storage of 30,000 tonnes of non-hazardous solid waste consisting of unprocessed and processed soil.
The proposed amendment also includes construction of a new processing/sorting building capable of indoor storage of all incoming mixed solid non-hazardous waste with the associated leachate collection and storage system; addition of sorted blue box materials, source-separated organics, asbestos-containing materials, tires, and soil, soil-like materials and excess soil for beneficial reuse; installation of stationary equipment for processing construction and demolition waste into alternative low-carbon fuels in the new processing/sorting building; placement of mobile diesel-powered shredding/grinding equipment for wood/construction and demolition waste outdoors; installation of a soil treatment/soil washing system for processing solid and liquid soil to recover sand and aggregate material (optional); construction of a stormwater management infrastructure.
The municipality noted it understands and appreciates the concerns that have been raised from some community members regarding the proposed expansion to the waste facility.
The municipality said it just received notice from the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks that an application has been submitted for an amendment to an existing provincial environmental approval for the dump.
"The property does hold existing provincial approvals for some waste processing and landfilling activities at the site," the municipality said in a statement. "The Municipality is taking this matter very seriously."
Further updates will be provided as new information becomes available, according to the municipality.
York1 Environmental Waste Solutions Ltd. said it provides environmental services to both public and private sectors, with a focus on non-hazardous solid waste management, soil remediation and beneficial reuse, and liquid waste solutions.
They operate across Canada with a large presence in Southern Ontario.
"Our facilities and extensive fleet of collection vehicles support residential and commercial construction projects, municipal waste and recycling, and public infrastructure development," said York1. "We are committed to protecting the environment and promoting a sustainable future."
More details about the application can be found by clicking here.
The public has until March 16, 2024 to submit online comments directly to the province.