Letters from the Ministry of The Environment
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Proposed Ruby Road Waste Disposal Site
May 2011 Update
Following the final public consultation event held on May 7, 2011, Wilf Ruland sent a letter to the Township on May 19 seeking clarification of a number of issues.
GLPOA sent a letter to the Ontario Ministry of the Environment seeking clarification on the Environmental Screening Process under which approval would be given to establish a landfill in Ruby, and the Ministry’s response, here.
February 2011 Update
The GLPOA contracted with professional hydrogeologist, Wilf Ruland, to tour the site, review all the documentation supporting the Proposed Ruby Road Landfill, and to prepare a report for the Board of Directors. The report is now complete and you can read about it here:
Why is GLPOA involved in discussions about the proposed Ruby Road waste disposal site?
The GLPOA Board of Directors does not oppose locating a municipal landfill behind the old Ruby Road site.
It has given a limited mandate to those directly involved on its behalf to ask questions and seek clarification with the objective of determining for the Board whether there would be any chance that the proposed landfill could have a negative impact on Lake water quality or on the drinking water of those who live around it or on the wildlife that live in water or on land.
Here are maps showing the location of the Ruby Road site
November 2010 Update
The GLPOA Board hired consulting hyrdogeologist, Wilf Ruland, to review documentation related to the proposed Ruby Road facility. He visited the proposed site November 1, 2010 and was accompanied by several GLPOA members and two Bonnechere Valley Township councilors.
On November 6, Mr. Ruland submitted a list of questions that he would need to have answered by the Township’s consultant to allow the independent review he was asked to conduct. His correspondence was forwarded to the Township on November 8.
Here is a side-by-side presentation of Wilf Ruland’s November 6, 2010 request for further information and the response by BV Township.
October 2010 Update
To get a better idea of the impact of locating a waste disposal site within one kilometer of Golden Lake, the GLPOA Board of directors has contracted with hydrogeologist, Wilf Ruland, to conduct an independent review of the technical documentation for the Ruby Road site. This step is a little like getting a second opinion after one doctor says your health concern is nothing to worry about.
Mr. Ruland has deep experience in this kind of work and his services come highly recommended. Here are his credentials.
Hiring a consultant was a difficult decision for the Board because, on one hand it didn’t want to appear to criticize the Bonnechere Valley Township council, but on the other hand it had to provide assurance to its members that the waste site would cause no negative impact on water quality, either in the Lake or in the drinking water of those who live around it.
Mr. Ruland will tour the proposed site in the Fall of 2010 and submit his independent review to GLPOA in due course.
September 2010 Update
In response to questions from a GLPOA member and others about the approval process for the Ruby Road site, Councilor Cairine Cybulski wrote an article that appeared on the editorial page of the Eganville Leader in August 2010. You can read it here (1 MB pdf).
At the August 23, 2008 members meeting and social at Golden Lake Park, a resolution was passed by the membership that a letter be sent to the Township of Bonnechere Valley urging it to research the relative costs of the Ruby site and the Ottawa Valley Waste Recovery Centre option and to report the findings publicly. Read the letter here. And read the Township Council’s response here (graphical image).
Does the planned landfill threaten Golden Lake?
This is how the Township of Bonnechere Valley describes the plan in its April 2008 Waste Matters Newsletter:
“The collective waste disposal capacity within the Township of Bonnechere Valley will be exhausted within the next 4 to 5 years. In recognition of that fact, the municipality has made the decision to pursuea capacity expansion at an existing waste disposal site; the Ruby Road Waste Disposal Site (WDS). The capacity expansion will not exceed 100,000 m3 which is expected to contribute at least 25 years of solid, non-hazardous, waste disposal capacity to the Township of Bonnechere Valley.”
This means that all the waste from the Township, including the town of Eganville, will be trucked to the Ruby Road site from transfer stations around the Township. You can read all the information the Township has made public on the issue at its web site.
The GLPOA hosted a public meeting; July 19, 2008
The GLPOA Board sees the Association’s role as helping to inform its members of the issues involved so they can come to their own conclusions on the merits of the Township’s plan for the Ruby Road site. The Association hosted an information meeting on Saturday, July 19, 2008 at St. Andrews Church in Killaloe.
The Association invited Cambium Environmental (the Township’s consultants), Bonnechere Valley Township Council and those who have been involved in the consultation process through the Public Liaison Committee. About forty people attended the meeting, during which there was a thorough discussion of the issue.