Petition updateCity of St. John’s - Clean Up Robin Hood Bay Landfill, Skerries Brook & Sugarloaf Path
Ian Froude
Friends of Sugarloaf Path
Oct 3, 2019
After careful review of the information presented with regards to the operation of Robin Hood Bay, we offer the following information.
Starting in 2007, the Robin Hood Bay site went through significant capital upgrades that cost approximately $56 million. Subsequent to these initial upgrades, millions more have been spent to further upgrade and maintain systems in place at the site. These works have transformed RHB from a dump site to a modern waste management facility. Upgrades to the site included a residential drop off facility, household hazardous waste receiving facility, a material recovery facility, a metal recycling facility, and upgraded landfill equipment and waste handling practices. Upgraded practices include minimizing the size of the tipping area, increasing compaction of waste, increasing the frequency of covering of waste and focusing on recycling to keep materials out of the landfill. All of these facilities and upgraded practices allow the safe and responsible handling of wastes and the ability to direct them appropriately.
Further to the construction of these facilities, many environmental controls were also added to the site. Environmental upgrades included a leachate collection system, a landfill gas collection system and flaring equipment, groundwater and leachate monitoring wells, stormwater collection improvements, and placement of interim cover material over areas of the landfill that will not be utilized for some time. The site employs a full time Environmental Technician on staff that monitors and maintains all of the environmental control systems on site. These systems ensure that the conditions documented in historical reports (such as the 2005 report identified here) do not exist today and have not existed since the upgrades were commissioned. As per our Certificate of Approval issued by the NL Department of Municipal Affairs and Environment; surface water, groundwater, and leachate samples are collected on a quarterly basis and analyzed by a third party laboratory for all required parameters. Results of the third party analysis are forwarded to the NL Department of Municipal Affairs and Environment when they are received. Results of downstream stormwater sampling show that water quality in Skerries Brook has improved drastically since environmental controls have been put in place.
This petition is focusing on leachate and its effects on Skerries Brook. The basis of many of the arguments come from a 2005 report written prior to the capital improvements on site and are no longer valid. Today, leachate is not discharged to the nearby marsh, Skerries Brook or the Atlantic Ocean. Leachate is collected through an engineered leachate collection system and discharged to the City’s sanitary sewer for treatment at the Riverhead Wastewater Treatment Facility. There is no flow leading to Skerries Brook.
While there is no disputing that there is plastic waste off-site from the landfill, we want to make clear that there are controls in place to reduce these impacts. One such improvement includes the installation of fixed and mobile litter fencing over the past number of years around the site in order to keep litter contained near the tipping area. Currently in use, there are 362 m of mobile fencing, and just a few days ago, the City purchased 150 m of additional mobile litter control fencing. It’s been a priority of the City and Council to make progress on this issue, and this additional mobile fencing is a part of that. There are also future plans for the site to include installation of more fixed fencing along the perimeter of the landfill.
Another improvement includes the hiring of dedicated full-time employees for the purpose of collecting wind-blown litter from the tipping area and landfill before it can reach the surrounding environment.
The information presented also makes the accusation that we are operating in violation of federal and provincial laws, as well as our own Certificate of Approval. The Provincial government inspects the site twice a year (at minimum) to ensure compliance with standards set out in our Certificate of Approval.
It is worth noting that RHB receives over 200,000 metric tonnes of waste per year and is situated in a very windy area. Even with the measures previously mentioned, the control of wind-blown litter is a challenge given the volume of material received and the windy conditions. City staff and Council are dedicated to continue to find ways to minimize and control wind-blown litter from the site.
Ian Froude
Councillor, Lead for Public Works and Sustainability
City of St. John’s
Starting in 2007, the Robin Hood Bay site went through significant capital upgrades that cost approximately $56 million. Subsequent to these initial upgrades, millions more have been spent to further upgrade and maintain systems in place at the site. These works have transformed RHB from a dump site to a modern waste management facility. Upgrades to the site included a residential drop off facility, household hazardous waste receiving facility, a material recovery facility, a metal recycling facility, and upgraded landfill equipment and waste handling practices. Upgraded practices include minimizing the size of the tipping area, increasing compaction of waste, increasing the frequency of covering of waste and focusing on recycling to keep materials out of the landfill. All of these facilities and upgraded practices allow the safe and responsible handling of wastes and the ability to direct them appropriately.
Further to the construction of these facilities, many environmental controls were also added to the site. Environmental upgrades included a leachate collection system, a landfill gas collection system and flaring equipment, groundwater and leachate monitoring wells, stormwater collection improvements, and placement of interim cover material over areas of the landfill that will not be utilized for some time. The site employs a full time Environmental Technician on staff that monitors and maintains all of the environmental control systems on site. These systems ensure that the conditions documented in historical reports (such as the 2005 report identified here) do not exist today and have not existed since the upgrades were commissioned. As per our Certificate of Approval issued by the NL Department of Municipal Affairs and Environment; surface water, groundwater, and leachate samples are collected on a quarterly basis and analyzed by a third party laboratory for all required parameters. Results of the third party analysis are forwarded to the NL Department of Municipal Affairs and Environment when they are received. Results of downstream stormwater sampling show that water quality in Skerries Brook has improved drastically since environmental controls have been put in place.
This petition is focusing on leachate and its effects on Skerries Brook. The basis of many of the arguments come from a 2005 report written prior to the capital improvements on site and are no longer valid. Today, leachate is not discharged to the nearby marsh, Skerries Brook or the Atlantic Ocean. Leachate is collected through an engineered leachate collection system and discharged to the City’s sanitary sewer for treatment at the Riverhead Wastewater Treatment Facility. There is no flow leading to Skerries Brook.
While there is no disputing that there is plastic waste off-site from the landfill, we want to make clear that there are controls in place to reduce these impacts. One such improvement includes the installation of fixed and mobile litter fencing over the past number of years around the site in order to keep litter contained near the tipping area. Currently in use, there are 362 m of mobile fencing, and just a few days ago, the City purchased 150 m of additional mobile litter control fencing. It’s been a priority of the City and Council to make progress on this issue, and this additional mobile fencing is a part of that. There are also future plans for the site to include installation of more fixed fencing along the perimeter of the landfill.
Another improvement includes the hiring of dedicated full-time employees for the purpose of collecting wind-blown litter from the tipping area and landfill before it can reach the surrounding environment.
The information presented also makes the accusation that we are operating in violation of federal and provincial laws, as well as our own Certificate of Approval. The Provincial government inspects the site twice a year (at minimum) to ensure compliance with standards set out in our Certificate of Approval.
It is worth noting that RHB receives over 200,000 metric tonnes of waste per year and is situated in a very windy area. Even with the measures previously mentioned, the control of wind-blown litter is a challenge given the volume of material received and the windy conditions. City staff and Council are dedicated to continue to find ways to minimize and control wind-blown litter from the site.
Ian Froude
Councillor, Lead for Public Works and Sustainability
City of St. John’s