Comment ID: 194995 EBR-012…

Comment ID: 194995

EBR-012-8124 – COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC Colacem wants to build a cement plant within our rural area, in very close vicinity of agricultural and residential zones in L’Orignal, on a site where a cement plant is not permitted as per the current Township Zoning By-Law and the UCPR Official Plan. If this project is approved, it would be built and operate 24/7, almost each day of the year, and for decades to come. Us and residents of L’Orignal in Champlain, the air, the soil, the water, the Ottawa River would be the most affected by the negative and significant impact of dust emissions, contaminants and particulate matter which would emanate not only from the cement plant itself but even more from the increased quarry activities to supply the cement plant, and the intense circulation of heavy trucks along County Road 17. Do the approving authorities know about the very toxic nature of the dust or particulate matter that could emanate from the quarry, the cement plant and heavy truck circulation? Do they know that dust or particulate matter can affect very seriously the health of human beings? And compromise the socio-economic development of a community under such prejudice? From 2011, at the time of the first announcement of this project, many people of Champlain and the UCPR, made a lot of research, to discover what nobody promoting this project, not even our counsellors or mayor, would tell us. Even more, recent studies, from Europe for instance, where regulations are much more stringent than in North America, are reporting high risks for the human life on many kilometres around the site of a cement plant. What follows is only a selection of scientific facts and various references that the approving authorities should verify and/or take into consideration before making their decision. Important facts about dust, or particulate matter, and certain contaminants This cement plant with its adjacent quarry and heavy trucking could release contaminants and particulate matter even with anti-pollution systems in place, systems which are designed to respect the norms and limits of emissions as per the provincial government regulations. The particulate matter, in the order of 10 microns (PM10) or 2,5 microns (PM2.5) could be released from the cement plant and more massively from the quarry, floating in the air in the vicinity of the site, and over great distances brought there by winds, to be inhaled by citizens across a vast territory. Particulate matter PM10 (or less in size) can be inhaled and are considered toxic as per the Environmental Protection Act of Canada. Particulate matter PM2.5 is the most threatening. The particulates are so fine that they can penetrate the blood vessels through the lungs and seriously affect the health of human beings. Certain contaminants that could be released from a cement plant and quarry could be very harmful to the human health: Mercury and vanadium emissions can increase the risk of many types of cancer, including breast, lung, and intestinal cancers. Crystalline silica, a particulate matter released by a limestone quarry is a known carcinogenic. Nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide emissions and other particulate matter can increase the risk of respiratory problems such as cough, asthma, bronchitis, pneumonia. There is unquestionable evidence that increased PM 10 is related to increases in cardiopulmonary disease, asthma, bronchitis, emphysema, pneumoconiosis and premature death in those with pre-existing conditions. Sulfur dioxide is a suspected mutagen that can alter the genetics of human foetus. Mercury can also affect the neurological / cognitive development in a foetus and children. Young children, the elderly and people with existing health conditions are the most vulnerable when exposed to such harmful contaminants. Frequent disturbed sleep can also lead to health problems. Excess cancer mortality can be detected in the vicinity of cement plant. With the highest levels of cancer seen in the area of L’Orignal – one of the highest per capita in Ontario – this project would just put the local population at a much greater risk of many types of cancers and premature death . Also of importance nowadays: CO2 emissions For every tonne of cement produced, more than three-quarters of a tonne of CO2 is released into the atmosphere. This cement plant would have the capacity to produce 4,000 tonnes of cement powder per day. With an estimated annual production of 1.16 Million tonnes of cement, this means that 3,000 tonnes of CO2 would be released in the atmosphere per day or 1.09 Million tons per year. Colacem would burn petcoke instead of coal, to generate the extreme heat necessary to produce cement powder, creating a much larger amount of greenhouse gases, when the province is trying to reduce them... Adverse effects on tens of kilometres around As per a recent study, the impacts of a cement plant having a chimney of close to 50 meters could affect the quality of air and agricultural soil in and around a 15 km radius. The height of the proposed cement plant chimney being approximately of 125 meters, the particulate matter being extremely light, the impact on the quality of air could easily surpass the mentioned area of 15 km radius. According to the above, not only those living at less than 2 km of the site would be heavily affected, but many communities in eastern Ontario, and many others across the Ottawa River, in the province of Quebec, could be affected. Cumulative effects This cement plant would be the third heavy industry within a 5 km radius in L’Orignal, with IVACO Steel Mill and the L’Orignal Quarry, now owned and operated by Colacem. Do the approving authorities consider in their evaluation the cumulative effects of the cement plant and those of other industries in the area? How can cumulative effects of many industries be effectively monitored, and environmental and health protection efficiently provided, with multiple heavy industry sources, the cement plant adding its massive adverse effects to those of two other ones? In 2011, when the threat of a cement plant struck us, in the middle of a rural zone, organic agricultural fields and residential properties, we made research about this heavy industry because we just could not believe that this could be permitted there. We discovered a lot of facts , many of those being confirmed and or developed by more recent studies. We discovered that the last revision of guidelines for the implementation of industrial facilities next to sensitive land use, was July 1995… These are outdated and obsolete with regards to the knowledge available today. Residents of the rural area, the Village of L’Orignal, and the real estate developments to the east, as far as 4.5 km away, can hear noises and smell odours from IVACO Rolling Mill, day and/or night, although the influence zone was reduced to 600 metres… This rolling steel mill went through a refurbishment including the installation of anti-pollution control systems (bag-house) that should meet the standards required, completed sometime in 2014. According to governmental reports, in 2012 the off-site emissions of mercury particulates were of 7.4 kg; after the bag-house work, in 2015, the emissions of mercury particulates were of 10 kg. Before this change, this heavy industry was often evaluated as being amongst the most polluting of all industries within Ontario, with important emissions of mercury particulates. For years, we were told that nothing would be done to stop the harmful dust escaping from this plant. It was reported to us that people in the village would find in the morning a colored dust on cars, outdoor furniture, house siding, etc. People would not talk openly about this, even if they suspected that something was not right. Things started to change as the refurbishment work started: some people would tell others about what they knew, maybe because the problem was being corrected. Nobody around us can say if the problem was resolved or not, but results before and after are not encouraging. And people are still reporting colored dust on boats and vehicles. In this beautiful countryside setting, it is a real shame that you cannot keep your windows opened in the summer time… or if you find yourself kayaking on the river, walking or cycling on Bay Road or in the Village of L’Orignal, you would want to avoid or flee the noise or smell as quickly as you can. Had we known these facts about IVACO at the time, we would have never bought a residential lot along the Ottawa River and never built a house there. Now the Township of Champlain is asked to change the existing Zoning By-law (rural, agriculture and residential), to brutally shift our day-to-day life and the rural and countryside nature of our environment to a heavy industrial zoning for the benefit of a huge polluting heavy industrial facility that would include a cement plant, a quarry and an intense heavy trucking, and expose us as well a great number of residents to a greater risk for our health. Huge and harmful heavy industrial facilities are not, by far, the environment that the residents (who would be heavily impacted by those) chose when they decided to establish themselves in L’Orignal. The cement plant would reduce significantly the value and attractiveness of homes in a beautiful region located along the Ottawa River with great potential for tourism and socio-economic development and conveniently located half way between Montreal and Ottawa. According to an assessment done by the Ontario’s Municipal Property Assessment Corporation, the price of properties could be reduced by as much as 25% to 35%. Who would buy these properties even at a fraction of the true value? Who will compensate the impacted residents? Will all the impacted residents be compensated? Will the compensation be covering for the full extent of their loss? Scientific Facts and Studies According to the US Environment Protection Agency (EPA), the cement industry is the 3rd biggest polluter in North America. EPA says also that cement plants could be responsible “… of visual impairments, respiratory cardiovascular diseases, damage to lung tissues, adverse effects on central nervous system, children and elderly more strongly affected”. An Italian study confirmed this in 2011: “Results show an association between exposure to cement plant emissions and the risk of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases: this association is particularly strong for children”. A recent study conducted in Spain concluded in 2015 that “…excess cancer mortality was detected in the vicinity of these installations (heavy industries) as a whole and principally in the vicinity of cement installations”. According to Environment Canada, mercury (Hg) can be released into the air by cement kilns. In 2013, Ontario had the highest level of mercury emissions, representing 27% of total national emissions in Canada which came mainly from the iron and steel, cement and concrete industry. Mercury and its compounds are included in the list of toxic substances under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act Environmental Protection (1999) (CEPA 1999). According to a recent article in the Toronto Star, “Ontario had the fourth-highest level of releases to air of carcinogens out of 60 state and provincial jurisdictions in Canada and the United States in 2012”. This shows that the people of Ontario are not adequately protected with the existing regulations and laws. About the nuisances We do not know much about the extent of the effects of dust emissions due to the activities at the existing quarry, such as the amount, the nature and toxicity of particulate matter emissions and the consequent risks to our health. Nobody would inform us, just to say that activities there are within the norms and limits. But what we see or read doesn’t reassure us: huge clouds of dust emanating from the quarry at each blast and other heavy equipment movements. In the last four or five years, we reported to the Ministry of Natural Resources a number of very violent blasts that occurred in the existing quarry, some of them were felt as if a plane had crashed near our house. They always say that these blasts and emissions of dust or particulate matter are within the norms and limits…? Do any of the approving authorities have some true answers for us? What are the consequences of the impacts and the tremors on the foundation of our house, those of our neighbours, on the unstable slopes on which some residential properties are built? A very nervous affected citizen recently reported a significate movement on his property. These major adverse effects on people living on County Road 17 and Bay Road, within 2km from the site would only multiply with the cement plant, as the quarry will supply the new cement plant with limestone and continue to supply its existing clients, including the Kilmar/Grenville-sur-la-Rouge cement plant also owned by Colacem. Nuisances due to the activity of the cement plant, such as dust, rumble and ground vibrations, as well as noises would be perceptible kilometres around, day and night due to the continuous industrial processes of a heavy cement plant industry, including open-air loading /unloading operations, movement of material and goods by heavy machinery and trucks. More than 1300, and up to 2600 heavy trucks per day will enter the site to deliver raw materials from one of the ports on the Saint-Lawrence waterway, or exit the site with finished products to be transported toward Montreal or Ottawa. This very intense trucking activity would be 16 hours long every day, from 3:00am to 7:00pm as well as occasionally 24 hours per day, on County Road 17 which offer only one lane to the east, and one lane to the west. It is obvious that this will bring an increased concentration of dust, diesel trucks pollutants emissions and noise, in addition to be a significant source of stress for many road users and roadside property owners, and could increase the risk of severe road accidents. It is known and well documented that transport is a huge contributor of CO2 emissions, or greenhouse gases. Monitoring the compliance to norms and emissions limits We are not reassured by what happened with IVACO, nor by the emissions control plan developed by the cement plant promoter, which is a lot less than what was verbally said to us by its Facility Manager in Late April 2016: “… there will be real time control of emissions from the chimney by the MOECC… “ The potential for outputs of contaminants, harmful dust or particulate matter exist not only from the 125-metre chimney but from all the other processes of a cement plant, quarry and intense heavy trucking. Colacem proposal indicates that surveillance of the performance of pollutants control systems at the cement plant (only) would be done by the company itself, which would produce a monthly report submitted to the MOECC authorities for the first two years, after which time annual reports would be made available. This is not sufficient in consideration of the potential adverse effects of emissions on human health. Colacem says that this project meets the norms and emissions limits for environmental pollution. Who will monitor the outputs of this cement plant? Who will ensure our environment and health protection? We do not understand what meeting the norms and emissions limits, or monitoring those, really means when we learn that Canada has ranked in last positions for environmental protection in the recent years. “Canada ranks 24th out of 25 OECD countries in environmental performance.” – Gunton and Culbick, 2010; “Canada dead last in ranking for environmental protection” – Globe and Mail, 2013 The residents of L’Orignal are very concerned by the compliance on all conditions and monitoring practices. Impacts on agriculture Agriculture is the region's main industry. A farmer in the vicinity of the targeted site grows organic produce. The announcement of a cement plant possibly being built in the region lead to the rumor that he had already lost his organic certification. The Ontario Ministry of Agriculture’s website mentions something about the impact of a cement plant on agriculture the approving authorities should consider before making their decision: “Particulate matter such as cement dust deposited on vegetation can inhibit the normal respiration and photosynthesis mechanisms within the leaf. Cement dust may cause chlorosis and death of leaf tissue by the combination of a thick crust and alkaline toxicity produced in wet weather. The dust coating also may affect the normal action of pesticides and other agricultural chemicals applied as sprays to foliage. In addition, accumulation of alkaline dusts in the soil can increase soil pH to levels adverse to crop growth.” Lower productivity of agricultural fields could have a direct impact on revenues from agriculture activity. Costs and required input in areas affected by a cement plant could be higher in comparison to control areas. What is done about cement plants today? It is known that cement plants and quarries in North America and Europe are often the source of regular complaints as per their contamination or excessive pollution. No industry of this nature is safe from accidents, of accidental dispersion of contaminants normally retained by the pollutants control systems. The knowledge of the impacts of a cement plant and a quarry on the environment and human health has greatly increased in the last decades, and advanced technology in cement plants are now available to better protect the environment and the human health. But this is obviously not enough. The best practices and precaution principles would require building any new cement plant with the most advanced production technology, far from inhabited zones, surrounded by forests, with a highway passing nearby and a direct access to a large waterway and a port for ships delivering raw materials and expediting finished products. In the province of Quebec, a new cement plant is being built in a remote area, Port-Daniel, right on the Atlantic sea front. They will be implementing the most advanced production technology; transportation of raw materials and finished products will be using ships, creating a lot less adverse effects than heavy trucking. But even then, it was said in 2014 to be the most pollutant project in the history of the province of Quebec. This proposal of implementing a cement plant at this location is clearly and simply not reasonable considering the above information and should not be accepted at any level of approving authorities.