you are here: home > Environment > Organics Report

Report of Jack Heath - Organics Plant on our Boarder

Regional Councillor Jack Heath and I have worked hard to implement the Green Bin system for picking up our organic waste.  I'm proud of the work that Ward 5 residents did in the pilot projects to pave the way for the Town wide system.

The City of Toronto is way behind in its percentage of diverted waste, but it is working to reach the benchmark that the Town of Markham has set.

One of the sites they have chose to look at for an organics processing plant is just south of our border.

A meeting was held in Toronto, and this is Jack's report:

"Toronto is looking at the possibility of constructing a new facility to process Source Separated Organics in north-east Scarborough at 3301 Markham Road.

Councillor Logan Kanapathi and I attended their Open House on March 19th.  Markham staff members, Peter Loukes, Claudia Marsales included, also attended.  The proposed location is one property south of Steeles on the east side where a golf driving range used to be.  Councillor Chin Lee, the newly elected local Toronto Councillor, attended as well.  He seems to favour having such a facility in his ward.

They have 5 different locations as potential sites within Toronto, all these properties are City owned, and 3 in north Durham Region.

The Dufferin Waste Management Facility, near Dufferin and Finch, is already operational.  Expanding this site is on the list of 5.  I have visited.  I have not heard of any odour leaks to the surrounding community, but it reeks inside!

Toronto wants to increase their total capacity for SSO treatment from a current 110,000 tonnes to 180,000 tonnes.  At the same time they want to increase the amount treated at city owned facilities from a current 25,000 tonnes to 110,000 tonnes.  To ensure fall back options if problems occur, such as odour issues which can easily attract MOE attention and possible closure notices, they want to build more than one new facility.  Possible an addition to Dufferin of 50,000 tonnes and a brand new one to handle 25,000 tonnes.  Dufferin, they say, does not have enough land to take the 110,000 tonnes alone.

My guess?  Toronto is gun-shy about trying to site facilities outside their borders, and residential opposition to such a facility would create major opposition in the Township of Brock in north Durham.  They will probably recommend expanding Dufferin and select one other Toronto location as the second.  There is a chance they may select a third in Etobicoke at 120 Disco Road so that transportation is less of an expense.

The Markham Road site is down-wind from Markham as far as prevailing winds go, but there are residential homes 500 meters to a kilometer away in Markham on Holloway, Ferncliffe, etc.  We also have lands zoned for high density, possibly condo apartments(?), on Markham Road just north of the Markham African Caribbean community centre building, and a recently opened No-Frills plaza on the east side.  Some of the trucks would use Steeles Avenue for sure.

This is not the place for an SSO facility.

One cannot stop the process at this point, and Toronto does need this extra capacity, but I think staff and the Mayor should speak to the appropriate people in the City to say that we would appreciate this not being one of the recommended sites.  A formal letter should also be sent to Toronto’s Public Consultation Unit to register the Town’s opposition as early as possible.  

The potential site should be a matter for discussion at our Toronto – Markham Committee meetings.  If a second meeting ever occurs!

For most of the plants I know of, odour has been a serious issue at least once.  Newmarket’s Halton Recycling is a good example.  The Region is now dealing with the complications odour can create as the new destination, in Quebec, is closed for the same reasons.  It should re-open next week.  One of the staff members at the Toronto Open House told me that their system, as employed at Dufferin, is better than the others and that odour will not be an issue at the new locations.  He questioned the Region’s new Orgaworld location and implied that it too may have difficulties when it comes on stream.

Who knows?  Better to stay well away from these places.

I have all the documentation if needed.

Regional Councillor Jack Heath

Top of Page