Ontario has struggled for many years to provide clear, consistent, effective rules to govern the huge amount of soil that contractors move from place to place. Is it a product? a waste? Where can it go? How clean is clean? There is so much confusion that municipalities, such as Clarington, are now starting to pass bylaws forbidding the importation of soil to their jurisdiction.Now Ontario has released a Consultation document, Best Management Practices for Soil Management in Ontario. Despite the restrictions in Reg. 153/04, it proposes the following uses for excess soil:
• reusing the excess soil at the project site or other redevelopment sites where the quality of the soil is appropriate;
• use of the excess soil for site alteration or re-grading;
• the management of the excess soil at approved soil recycling or treatment facilities;
• placement at a commercial fill site; or
• disposal at a ministry-approved landfill site.
Written comments are invited by Thursday, May 31st, 2012.