News clips: County OKs Springwater site for organics facility

By Patrick Bales, The Orillia Packet & Times

A last-ditch effort spearheaded by Springwater Township representatives failed to delay Simcoe County from moving forward in its attempt to build an organics-processing and material-management facility in Springwater

Councillors overwhelmingly voted in favour Tuesday of going forward with a committee-of-the-whole recommendation to pursue additional engineering studies and an environmental-impact statement on the Horseshoe Valley Road site to arrive at a comprehensive business analysis.

Springwater Mayor Bill French first called on his colleagues to defer their decision on the matter, saying more information needed to be solicited on the proposal before responsible action could be taken. At most, he said, a delay would only push the project “a couple of months” and could potentially save taxpayers money.

His suggestion was shot down by Warden Gerry Marshall, who said a deferral would go against the will of council, which had previously set out a process regarding the proposal that it was to adhere to. A formal disagreement between the chair and the councillor forced a vote to overrule the warden, which failed.

That left councillors seeking to stop the process to try to convince their colleagues this was the wrong time to move forward at the proposed site. The anti-contingent was led by councillors from Springwater, including Deputy Mayor Don Allen. He was concerned a thorough analysis of the proposal had not been undertaken.

“We are moving too far down a path without adequate information,” he said. “When one is looking to enter a new business segment or product line… the first thing you do is complete a thorough feasibility study and business case analysis to justify the potential investment.”

That hasn’t been done yet for the organics-processing and material-management facilities, he said, despite approximately $230,000 of county money being spent. That could jump to as much as $1 million before council gives a final approval to the project.

French stressed council should have held off until the business case was complete.

“You’re in for a penny or you’re in for a pound,” French said, referring to the reluctance of politicians to step away from projects after spending significant public dollars. “My background is business. I never anything without a business plan knowing what it is going to cost me.”

Marshall, however, preached the patience of his colleagues, in an interview after the meeting. He said the plan, as outlined by councillors previously, is the most prudent way of moving forward.

“To understand our costs, we actually had to have a site in mind,” Marshall said. “Rather than speculate and throw darts at the wall, we’re actually now going to get facts in front of us. We’ll have concrete evidence in front of council in terms of traffic, in terms of environmental, in terms of trees, in terms of costs. Then council can make an educated decision vs. guestimates or debating speculation.”

French also said his council had concerns about the location that had been selected.

“We’ve chosen a location that would address worst-case of lowest technology and that’s not what the county’s known for,” he said. While the proposed site ranked first out of more than 500 initially in the running, French feels the plants would be better situated in an urban area, similar to the one found near Pearson International Airport.

The proposed site is located 2796 Horseshoe Valley Rd. W., in a Simcoe County Forest tract. The dual waste management facilities proposed to be built there would take up approximately 11 acres of the 207 acres in that location.

In a recorded vote on the motion, only seven councillors stood opposed. During the discussion on the motion, other ways the Township of Springwater can show its opposition to the proposed project were brought up, through questions posed by Bradford West Gwillimbury Mayor Rob Keffer and Allen. Among the most significant, the county would have to apply to the township to re-zone the property to permit construction of the facilities.

County general manger of engineering, planning and development Debbie Korolnek said upper-tier staff are already working with the municipal planning to staff to ensure all processes are followed properly. Still, the township council will have to vote on any application.

“Should local council decided to not approve the local planning applications, then the county will have the choice to abandon the proposal, change it or resort to remedies through the Ontario Municipal Board,” she said.

Council’s decision Tuesday directs staff to proceed with a number of environmental and engineering studies on the preferred location. A procurement process and request for proposal will follow. As well, two public meetings will be held on the issue, April 19, at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. at the Simcoe County Museum.

County council will decide on approving the development in 2017, following the results of the request for proposal and business case.

“We did the right thing”: County Warden about organics processing plant

County marching on with plans for waste management facilities, despite opposition from host municipality

By Laurie Watt Barrie Today

Simcoe County will begin environmental, engineering and economics studies to develop an organics processing facility and waste transfer station in Springwater Township – work that will be needed to satisfy provincial environmental regulations and perhaps defend the plan at the Ontario Municipal Board.

“We have to hit all the benchmarks, dot all the I’s and cross all the T’s. We did the right thing,” Warden Gerry Marshall said in an interview.

“Rather than speculate and throwing darts, we will have specifics in terms of trees, traffic, technology and cost. Evidence-based planning is the way to go in my opinion.”

County council approved locating both at 2976 Horseshoe Valley Rd, a county-owned site located between Hwys. 27 and 400 – despite attempts from Springwater to stop the work.

The county, however, needs to rezone the site it owns and for that, it needs approval from Springwater, which has been vocally opposed to the county’s plan.

Mayor Bill French and Deputy Mayor Don Allen have repeatedly tried to delay the process, even suggesting county organics should be processed in Innisfil or Essa or perhaps outside Simcoe County minutes before the vote took place this morning,

They also argued the county shouldn’t proceed with environmental studies and a business case that would consider technology, demand and cost – which is what the county plans to do over the next year.

“The project is based on current population patterns,” said French, who argued the county should be looking south for a site. “This is premature and being fast-tracked for no good reason.”

French and Allen, however, were part of the county council that approved the process in March 2015 and set in motion the study that looked at 502 sites for an organics facility and a transfer station. That study narrowed the focus to the Springwater, Clearview and Oro-Medonte last year and finally resulted in the Horseshoe Valley Road site, located between Hwys. 27 and 400, as being the best.

Collingwood Mayor Sandra Cooper said the county’s site selection process included a lot of public input and environmental examination.

“We have learned from site 41 and had open public engagement. (That) has helped me in the decision to move forward and look for more information. We have to be good stewards,” Cooper said.

The proposal would use 11 acres of the 207-acre site and be designed to allow continued recreational use of the Freele Tract of the county forest.

The next phase of work looks at the site in spring, summer and fall, as well as technology options and projections of the cost of contracting out based on the Ontario market. A business case is to be presented to county council in spring 2017.

“I believe the methodology we chose was flawed,” said Allen, who was on council when it approved the process for site selection. “We need to revisit… and look at other sites closer to demand, to traffic and other services.

Allen also said the county shouldn’t be focused on managing its own waste – a policy that dates back several years – but instead considering to keep trucking it out if that’s cheaper. The county’s organics are now processed in Hamilton.

“I believe we are to be good stewards and should be looking after our own waste,” said Innisfil Deputy Mayor Lynn Dollin. “I understand the idea of cost, but to me this is a very small part of what we should be considering. The most economical (way) is to dig a hole in put everything in it.

“It’s not so much how cheaply can we do it. When it comes to picking technology, I’ll vote in favour of the best. We owe it to ourselves to invest in the best.”

The county’s environmental assessment will examine the site in spring, summer and fall, said the county’s environmental general manager Debbie Korolnek as it assesses factors including water, winds wildlife habitat impact.

The proposal would use 11 acres of the 207-acre site and be designed to allow continued recreational use of the Freele Tract of the county forest.

The county is forecasting saving $13 million over the next 20 years, based on current contract and trucking costs.

The county will meet with neighbouring landowners tomorrow night.

Two public information sessions are slated for April 19 at the Simcoe County Museum – at 2 p.m. and at 6 p.m.

Further approval is required from the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, as well as from Springwater Township on zoning and site plan.

Simcoe County decides on site for organics and waste collections facility

CTV Barrie March 22, 2016
Simcoe County council has decided on the location for the new Organics Processing Facility and Materials Management Facility.
Councillors approved the site at 2976 Horseshoe Valley Road West in Springwater which is part of the Simcoe County forest. The site was the preferred location for the facility.
“Approving the best location was an important milestone in this process as we look to manage and control our waste in a more responsible way,” said Warden Marshall. “Our staff will now focus their efforts on determining site-specific requirements, work to identify technology and continue to engage our neighbours and stakeholders in an open and transparent manner.”
However, people who live in the area have expressed concerns about the truck traffic that will be coming to and from the facility.
“We are not against the technology, but we are firmly against putting it in a forest in a neighbourhood,” said resident John Spencer.
The county said the facility will be built on 11 acres on the 207 acre site and that the large property will help create buffer zone.
“No neighbours are sleeping within 500 meters of where we are anticipating locating the facility,” said Rob McCullough, director of solid waste management.
The decision on the site was not unanimous. Springwater Township need to rezone the land before it can happen. The township doesn`t like the idea of putting an industrial facility in an agricultural area and wants to see a business plan before the land is rezoned.
“We are going to go through the same tests if somebody was making an official plan amendment and rezoning, but at the end of the day it`s going to be councils will that prevails,” said Springwater Mayor Bill French.
The county currently diverts almost 60 per cent of its waste away from the landfill through blue box and green bin programs. The materials gathered curbside is transported to a central location in Barrie, before being shipped out of the region.
Right now all of the diverted materials are handled by a private contractor, but Rob McCullough, the director of solid waste management for the county, says developing two centralized processing facilities one for organics and the other for recyclable materials could save taxpayers millions over the long term.
If the county and township can`t come to an agreement the matter could end up at the Ontario Municipal Board.
In the meantime, the county is moving forward with its environmental and engineering studies.
The County will host two public information sessions on April 19, 2016 at the Simcoe County Museum at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m.