Four proposals were filed on the Environmental Registry of Ontario late Friday; residents have until Dec. 21 to submit comments

Heather Wright/The Independent

Officials in Chatham-Kent say there have been “no significant changes” to York1 Environmental’s plan for the former Dresden dump to the first plan it submitted in 2024.

That as the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks released four applications for the project on the Environmental Registry of Ontario Friday afternoon.

The proposals revise the Environmental Compliance Approvals already in place which allowed for 75 tonnes of material in total to enter the facility daily. Initially, the company said up to 6,000 tonnes of waste and recyclable would be coming to Dresden.

The new proposals call for up to 1,000 tonnes of garbage, including residential waste, to be landfilled at the site daily ; up to 3,000 tonnes of recyclable materials to be brought to Irish School Road daily. At that rate, York1 says the 20-acre landfill – which sits on over 84 acres of land – would be filled in eight years.

Another ERO proposal regulates three proposed storm water ponds to deal with ground and surface water, which after it is treated, will flow into Molly’s Creek.

The Ministry is also creating a new Environmental Compliance Approval for noise and air for the operation of the landfill, recycling facility and soil treatment.

It says processing activities including shredding and crushing of construction and demolition waste; recovering recyclable materials such as metals, wood and plastics; producing wood mulch, wood chips and alternative low-carbon fuels; processing asphalt shingles; handling and bulking excess soil; debris removal; and the bioremediation of chemically impacted soils. 

That, according to York1’s reports will create contaminant emissions including compounds such as benzene, ethylbenzene and toluene, carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides, and suspended particulate matter. The American Lung Association says suspended particulate matter “triggers or worsens chronic conditions like asthma, bronchitis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease” commonly known as COPD.

“The Municipality of Chatham-Kent is reaffirming its strong opposition to York1’s proposed landfill development near Dresden,” officials said on the municipality’s Defend Dresden website.

Based on the Municipality’s initial review, there have been no significant changes to the proposal compared to the original applications submitted in 2024. There have been some minor changes to time of the day when waste can be accepted and types of waste, but the overall proposal is largely unchanged.”

Officials say the municipality is working with a team of experts to review the proposal looking at concerns like traffic impacts, groundwater, how the landfill is engineered and operated, surface and stormwater management, the effects on the environment and noise and air quality issues.

“The Municipality will formally request an extension to the public comment period for the ERO postings. This additional time would allow residents, community organizations, and technical experts more opportunity to review the applications and provide meaningful feedback.,” officials said.

Right now, residents have until Dec. 21 to make comments on the proposal. And, for the time being, they’ll have to rely on the ERO postings which contain few details about the plans. The registry normally contains supporting documents for projects, however in each of the four dealing with the Irish School Road facility, anyone interested in combing through the technical details will have to contact the ministry in Toronto to arrange a time to view the records.

Chatham-Kent released documents related to York1’s project in the summer, however it is not clear if those documents, found on the Defend Dresden webpage, are the same as the supporting documents available for the ERO.

“While the province is responsible for reviewing and making decisions on the environmental applications, the Municipality of Chatham-Kent will continue advocating for the community and ensuring that concerns about the proposal are thoroughly examined,” officials said in a news release.

York1 will also be required to obtain local land use planning approvals for any proposed project, which is separate from the Environmental Compliance Approval permitting process, Chatham-Kent officials added.