Heather Wright/The Independent

Peter Pickfield says a full-time inspector at Twin Creeks landfill is “not a large investment in something that helps” ease community concerns about its expansion.

Pickfield is the head of Warwick Township Technical Review Team which keeps track of the WM operation. It’s also representing the township as the company plans a massive expansion of the Nauvoo Road site just outside of Watford. 

WM wants to extend the life of the landfill by 12 years by building 285 feet berms and piling more waste on top of the cells that are already there.

That’s the equivalent of a 24-story wall.

The company has been working through the Environmental Assessment process for years already and it was Pickfield’s team’s job to take a deep dive into what the company has planned. It produced 14 reports on everything from air quality to water and methane issues, which spawned 105 recommendations.

Pickfield told council Monday WM has already agreed to act on 77 of those recommendation – although more than half of the solutions still haven’t been pinned down.

But Pickfield says there are a number of outstanding issues “that we think are significant” that his team wants to talk to the company about.

One of the big concerns is just what will happen if WM starts piling waste on top of the landfill cells that are already filled since there is important infrastructure for water and leachate beneath them.

“What’s going to be the impact on those systems, because they’re the ones that prevent surface water, groundwater pollution and gas and glass gas escaping from the landfill, which can cause odor issues,” he told council.

The company has also not explained how its going to control the surface water on the site as its height increases. 

“There’s no real plan in place in terms of the expanded landfill to deal with the ongoing surface water monitoring and mitigation that needs to be done to prevent these sediment laden surface water runoff issues just to be brought under better control, and that’s going to become worse as the landfill continues to operate over time.”

Pickfield says the company has to realize that the gas collection system is an important aspect of pollution control. When it is shutdown, as it was this year for a time, the odor issues increase. 

“How can you can you assess the effectiveness of the gas collection system as a pollution control system, and how can you improve it?”

And he wants better reporting when the collection system isn’t working.

“We’ve noticed there has not been good reporting to the township when there’s a potential odor issue that comes up. 

“That reporting system is also problematic for the municipality, because then municipality receives the complaints, they have to turn them back to WM.”

Pickfield says the company needs to deal with the dust control problem. He says its part of the operation of the landfill, but WM contends its part of construction and doesn’t need to be addressed separately.

“They’re constantly developing new cells. They’re constantly deal moving earth…if those are viewed as construction issues… you’re giving yourself a bit of a free pass to deal with impacts.”

Pickfield added WM’s plan doesn’t deal with traffic issues nor does it look at the economic impact odor issues have had on Watford in the past and how that will change in the future.

Pickfield’s team will go back to WM with those concerns. And it is also recommending again that a full-time inspector be on site daily. Pickfield says the experts see “lower number of issues with a more increased frequency of inspection.”

Mayor Todd Case pointed out the township has been asking for a full-time Ministry of the Environment employee on site for years and even WM says its okay with them. Case says the province is dragging its feet on the issue.

Pickfield agreed. “There is an ongoing need for landfill space in the province. 

“This community is shouldering the burden – a large burden – for that, because landfills have impacts. 

“It’s a case that warrants the ministry to recognize the importance of this asset to the province, and recognize that having a daily inspection is not a large investment in something that helps in terms of the well being and comfort level of this community that they know that and our team is telling you that compliance levels are improved when you have daily inspections,” Pickfield said.