Proposed changes to…

Proposed changes to environmental approvals for municipal sewage collection works
ERO number: 019-1080
Notice type: Policy
Act: Ontario Water Resources Act, R.S.O. 1990
Posted by: Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks
Notice stage: Proposal
Proposal posted: July 8, 2020
Comment period: July 8, 2020 - August 22, 2020 (45 days) Open
Last updated: July 8, 2020

Consultation Closes at 11:59 p.m. on September 6, 2020

September 4, 2020
Comments to MECP

This is in response to the posting and the related supporting materials including 1) Consolidated Linear Infrastructure Questions and Answers, 2) Draft Design Criteria, 3) Draft Sanitary Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA Template, and Draft Stormwater Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA Template.

The comments and questions provided are organized based on the sections in the Notice and attached related files. There may be some redundancy in the questions and comments because similar issues are stated in difference sections of the documents.

1. Why Consultation isn't Required

The changes are indicated to be administrative and no changes to legislation are being proposed.

I note that the Prescribed Persons regulation (O.Reg. 208/19) was required to enable the proposed Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA. This regulation specifically references the Planning Act and Development Charges Act. Does this mean proposed sewage works that have an agreement not covered by these acts such as agreements under the Municipal Act, will not be covered under the Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA?

2. Core Components of the Proposed Approach

'Municipal sanitary collection systems' is referenced. Many municipalities have combined sewer components. Perhaps it would be more appropriate to consistently describe these collection systems as 'Wastewater collection systems' which include both sanitary sewers and combined sewers in partially separated drainage areas.

Regulation 208/19 – Environmental Compliance Approval Regulation in Respect of Sewage Works Regulation uses the terminology 'any person'. Therefore the language in this posting that references 'developers' may not be accurate.

I suggest that the MECP revise the posting to specifically communicate which entities the regulation is intended to apply to, and which entities it is not to apply.

3. Supporting Materials

Consolidated Linear Infrastructure Questions and Answers

Q&A No. 5.
How does a Consolidated Linear Infrastructure Permissions Approach benefit property development in my municipality?
• Once a municipality receives a Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA, property developers will no longer require a separate approval and will be able to undertake construction under the authority of the municipality’s approval.
• The proposed Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA will include updated conditions that will pre-authorize municipalities and prescribed persons (e.g. developers) to make future specified alterations in accordance with the proposed new Design Criteria to ensure quality and consistency in new construction.
• This will eliminate the need for developers to prepare and submit individual ECAs for sewage works that eventually will be owned by the municipality.

The Prescribed Person regulation (O.Reg. 208/19) specifically covers agreements under the Planning Act and the Development Charges Act which apply to; Subdivisions, Consent, Section 37 of the PA, Minor Variance, and front ending agreements. The explanation specifically references 'developers'.

However, the applicant could also be an entity who is not a 'developer' and 1) under agreement to perform work on a City right-of-way to construct rapid transit infrastructure for which sewer relocations are required, 2) a utility company needing to relocate a sewer to accommodate their plant, 3) a federal or provincial agency, or 4) installing servicing under an agreement for either; a site plan, municipal infrastructure, or sewer services.

The Q&A should discuss applicability of other scenarios other than just developers.

Q&A No. 12.
What authority is the ministry relying upon to allow developers to operate under a municipality’s Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA?
• Regulation 208/19, Environmental Compliance Approval With Respect to Sewage Works came into force on July 1, 2019 and prescribes persons for the purposes of Section 20.6 of the Environmental Protection Act as those with whom a municipality has an agreement under the Planning Act or the Development Charges Act to undertake alterations or additions to sewage works, where those works will be transferred to the municipality.
• If a municipality has a consolidated permission which authorizes future alterations to be carried out for works it owns or works constructed by persons prescribed by regulations, then neither the municipality or the property developer would require a separate permission from the ministry to construct the infrastructure.
• If the sanitary sewage collection and stormwater management works are associated with property development, ownership of the linear infrastructure is transferred to the municipality under an agreement pursuant to the Planning Act or the Development Charges Act.

Further to the query about Q&A 5, the Planning Act or the Development Charges Act is related to the agreements specifically covered under these acts.

If is the intent of the MECP for the Prescribed Persons Regulation under Bill 108 to cover all proposed sewer construction that will ultimately be owned by a municipality, we suggest this authority be reviewed in greater detail. It stands to reason that there would be some agreements under the Municipal Act that would apply.

Q&A No. 19.
What steps will my municipality need to take to satisfy the pre-authorization conditions within the Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA?
• Where works are pre-authorized, they will need to be undertaken in accordance with conditions in the Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA. One of the conditions within the Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA will require alterations to be documented and retained onsite. This form will not need to be submitted to the ministry, but it will need to be made available during an inspection. Pre-authorized works must meet the requirements outlined in the Design Criteria.
• If the alteration changes the description of works included in the Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA, the owner will be required to notify the ministry of the change. An amended Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA will be issued that includes this change. There is no fee associated with notifying the ministry of this alteration.
• If the alteration is not included within the pre-authorization conditions in the Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA, an application to the ministry is required.

There is a reference to a 'form' to be made available during construction. Has this form been designed and can it be circulated for comment? Who will be required to sign this form and what are the verification statements?

Q&A 21.
As a property developer, what steps will I need to take to take advantage of the pre-authorization conditions within the Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA?
• Property developers enter into agreements with municipalities under the Planning Act or the Development Charges Act to undertake alterations or additions to sewage works, where those works will be transferred to the municipality.
• After the Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA is issued to the municipality, property developers will no longer be required to submit separate applications for their projects to the ministry. Instead, they will follow the pre-authorization process to be established by the ministry and retain such records that are needed to document compliance with the pre-authorization conditions. This work will also need to be done in accordance with the agreement between the municipality and the property developer.
• This is identical to the current process for watermains associated with property development under the Municipal Drinking Water Licensing Program.

This question is specifically from a property developer. However, as mentioned in previous comments, a municipality may enter into an agreement with a proponent for which the related sewage works is not explicitly covered under the Planning Act or the Development Charges Act. This issue should be clarified prior to implementing this new approval process.

Q&A 23.
What information will a municipality be required to provide as part of a complete application for a Consolidated Linear ECA?
As part of the approval application, municipalities would need to complete an ECA application form which will require an inventory of works that are currently in operation, including a map of the collection system.

Will this inventory need to differentiate between 1) works that are currently assumed by a municipality from 2) works constructed by a developer which have not yet been assumed? This new process will require amending a municipality's standard development agreement. Assumption of sewage works under an existing development agreement will be done under the terms and conditions in this agreement, which need to be complied with. Assumption of responsibility for all the terms and conditions on the issued ECA may not be possible until the development has been assumed.

The requirements for the completion of as-built drawings is tied into the process for the assumption of the subdivision, including the preparation of a digital map of the collection system. The Consolidated Linear ECA agreement between the MECP and a municipality will need to provide a period of time to allow for updating current standard agreements.

Q&A 29.
What will happen to ECAs that have been issued to property developers for works that have not yet been assumed by a municipality?
• Conditions in the Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA will incorporate all previously issued permissions by the ministry to municipalities or to developers who have agreements with municipalities.
• The legal authority to construct and alter works that are part of the Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA will continue, and therefore the works that have been previously approved by the ministry will not require any additional permissions.

The main issue is not about whether any additional permissions are required. It is about the terms and conditions on the ECA issued to the developer and when they are transferred to the municipality. Currently, the MECP requires 30-day written notice of when the change of ownership occurs.

A concern for a municipality when entering into a Consolidated Linear ECA is it will be considered as 'owner of the works' prior to the developer completing all of its commitments and obligations to the municipality. A municipality assumes the infrastructure through a Council Authority and the enactment of a bylaw. The conditions in the Consolidated Linear ECA may over-simplify the process, and create a liability issue for the municipality. Municipalities will have to update their standard development agreements to accommodate this new process.

Q&A 33.
How will the new Design Criteria impact property development in my municipality?
• Meeting the new Design Criteria and conditions within the Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA would provide assurance that the proposed works are properly designed.
• Although developers will no longer receive a separate approval, municipalities will be able to assure that the developer is making changes in accordance with provincial requirements.
• As part of the pre-authorization conditions, the developer’s Engineer will be required to attest that the works comply with the Design Criteria, and with the conditions in the municipality’s Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA.
• The municipality can then check the work of the design Engineer by using internal resources or by hiring a 3rd party Engineer to do a peer review, if necessary.
• Construction of the works cannot begin until the municipality signs off on compliance with the Design Criteria and pre-authorization conditions, and thus there will be ample time for the municipality to determine that the compliance conditions within the Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA have been met.
• If sewage works are not designed in accordance with the Design Criteria or do not satisfy the conditions of the Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA, then separate approvals, i.e. an amendment would be required.

This comment is pertaining to the 5th bullet point, which indicates that municipal sign-off is required prior to construction of the works. A situation may arise where construction proceeds municipal sign-off. In this situation, can the proposed sewage works still be covered under the Consolidated Linear ECA or would an ECA application have to be made to the MECP. If so, would the municipality or the developer have to be the applicant? It would be beneficial if the MECP addresses this possibility, as in practice, it does occur under the current permission system.

Draft Design Criteria

Definitions

"service connection" means the pipe portion of a sewage works that extends from a sewer to the property line of a property serviced by the sewer;

Please note that this definition assumes that 'property' is an understood term. 'Property' can refer to Personal Property or to Real Estate Property. In addition, there are situations when a pipe is installed vertically as opposed to horizontally from a rail corridor and there is no clear 'Property Line'.

There are also situations where a pipe can service a stormwater management facility with a control maintenance hole at street line. The pipe can be considered as an outlet from a SWM facility or as a service connection.

I recommend that the MECP review this definition in greater detail as its interpretation can effect whether Ontario Regulation 525/98 can or cannot be applied. The design of on-site stormwater management facilities can impact the design of downstream municipal sewers.

Section 1.1.3
2. Uncommitted reserve capacity calculations for the downstream sewage collection system and treatment facilities has been prepared and submitted by the proponent to the Owner with the supporting documentation.

https://www.ontario.ca/page/d-5-1-calculating-and-reporting-uncommitted…

Under the current permission system for linear sewage works, downstream capacity is verified by the applicant providing a sewer design sheet showing all proposed legs of sewer and at least one leg of existing sewer. Prior to the ECA application being submitted for review, hydraulic modelling is required by the City's development engineering staff to confirm sewage capacity to the trunk sewer system. The applicant is not required to confirm uncommitted reserve capacity at the sewage treatment plant as part of the ECA application. I therefore suggest that this item be rephrased to the following:

'2. Calculations for the downstream sewage collection system has been prepared and submitted by the proponent to the Owner with the supporting documentation as required by the Owner.'

Each municipality can then post more detailed requirements on its website to applicants. These requirements may include a reference to sewer design sheets and a hydraulic analysis report as noted in the MECP Pipe Data Form.

A municipality most likely would not object to Section 1.1.3.3 which states; 'Municipality shall have a plan and process, as the owner of the system, to forecast and track uncommitted reserve capacity and verify the proposed alteration of the system can be accommodated.'

This statement could be incorporated in a verification statement on a standard MECP form. The municipal staff member who signs the verification can base the verification on the review of an annual report prepared by the municipality (as required by section 4.0 of the MECP procedure).

Section 2.0 Design of Sanitary Sewers

'2.10.6 A drop structure shall be provided for sewers entering a maintenance hole at an elevation of 610mm or more above the maintenance hole invert.'

This requirement could be problematic for sanitary sewers 1) located in a congested area where there is limited room for pipe crossings, and 2) designed to alleviate basement flooding in drainage areas where there is a very high infiltration and inflow and oversized pipes are used to lower the hydraulic grade line. I suggest the MECP rephrase this item to;

'2.10.6 A drop structure shall be provided for sewers entering a maintenance hole at an elevation of 610mm or more above the maintenance hole invert. This requirement can be omitted at the discretion of the municipality only where there is 1) congestion with other utilities or 2) oversized sanitary sewers designed for an I/I value greater than 0.26 L/s/ha for which there is no risk of solids disposition'.

This is not the type of issue for which a direct submission should need to be made to the Ministry if the requirement cannot be met.

3.2.1 – Typo – 'Willims' should be 'Williams'. 'Where data are not available' should be 'Where data is not available'.

'3.4.4 Act requirements and inspection, operation and maintenance needs.'
There appears to be a word missing.

Draft Sanitary Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA Template

Schedule A, Section 1.1
'The Owner shall, within thirty (30) calendar days of issuance of this ECA, submit a Municipal Wastewater System Profile Information Form'.

This is the only reference to the form in the document. It would be beneficial if the content of the form was made public prior to finalizing the documents.

Schedule D, Section 6.7.1
'Recorded on Form SS2 – Record of Alterations to a Municipal Sewage Collection System", as published by the Ministry;'

This form is not currently attached as an appendix to the draft agreement. It would be beneficial if the content of the form was made public prior to finalizing the documents.

Schedule D, Section 7.6.1
'The verifications and documentation required in condition 7.5 shall be:
Recorded on “Form A1 – Record of Addition, Modification or Replacement of Equipment Discharging a Contaminant of Concern to the Atmosphere from a Municipal Sewage Collection System”, as published by the Ministry, prior to the additional, modified or replacement equipment being placed into service;'

This form is not currently attached as an appendix to the draft agreement. It would be beneficial if the content of the form was made public prior to finalizing the documents.

Draft Stormwater Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA Template

Schedule B, Section 1.2.2 Classification of the Municipal SWM System at the date if issue of this ECA:
Table 3. Stormwater Management Facilities by Type

'Oil and Grit Separators' is listed. The current industry terminology is 'Manufactured Treatment Device – Oil Grit Separator'. A separate line item of 'Manufactured Treatment Device – Filter Unit'. The reason being is the operation and maintenance requirements are different and therefore they should be separate line items.

Schedule D, Section 2.0 Applicability
'Section 2.3 The issuance of this ECA does not negate the requirements of other regulatory bodies, which includes but is not limited to, MNRF and the local Conservation Authority'.

Stormwater management works applications requiring a permit under the Conservation Act are typically submitted at the same time as an application under the Environmental Protection Act. Will an acceptance under a Stormwater Consolidated Linear Infrastructure ECA require prior Conservation Authority consent or will the order of the approval be left to the discretion of the municipality?

Schedule D, Section 4.0 Authorization of Future Alterations for Storm Sewers, Ditches or Culverts – Additions, Modifications, Replacements and Extensions
Section 4.2.2 'Has a nominal diameter greater than 2,400 mm, or equivalent sizing

There is a potential problem in stating a maximum diameter for the following reasons:
1. Open Channel Culverts which receive and/or discharge flows to pipe sections can have a greater capacity than the pipe sections. 2. Some pipe systems are twinned or even have greater numbers of parallel pipes. 3. Pipe systems can be designed for both detention and also conveyance, where the pipe upstream of the flow control can be greater than 2400mm.

I suggest that the Ministry consider increasing this pipe size limit for large municipalities/ watersheds and state that there are no restrictions for open channel sections which form part of a pipe system.

Schedule D, Section 4.0 Authorization of Future Alterations for Storm Sewers, Ditches or Culverts – Additions, Modifications, Replacements and Extensions
Section 4.3.1 Recorded on "Form SW1 – Record of Storm Sewers Authorized as a Future Alteration",

Form SW1 – Record of Storm Sewers Authorized as a Future Alteration is not currently attached to the template. This form is not currently attached as an appendix to the draft agreement. It would be beneficial if the content of the form was made public prior to finalizing the documents.

5.0 Stormwater Management Facility Additions, Modifications, Replacement and Extensions
Section 5.1, Stormwater Management Facilities in the Municipal Stormwater Management System may be altered by adding, modifying or replacing or extending the following components:
5.1.18 Filters

I suggest that this item be changed to 'MTD – Filters'.

5.1.19 Oil/grit separators

I suggest that this item be changed to 'MTD – Oil Grit Separators'.

Schedule D, 5.0 Stormwater Management Facility Additions, Modifications, Replacement and Extensions
Section 5.2.5
a) Any new oil/grit separators established with the alteration in condition 5.1 shall be: a) Credited a maximum of 50% suspended solids removal in achieving the water quality criteria specified in Appendix A.
b) In accordance with the City of _______’s Manufactured Treatment Device Guideline, dated X, as amended.

I suggest the terminology be changed to 'Manufactured Treatment Device – OGS' and the credit amount for TSS removal be increased to 60%.

I also suggest that a similar item be included for MTD – Filter Units.

Schedule D, 5.0 Stormwater Management Facility Additions, Modifications, Replacement and Extensions
Section 5.2.6
When it is necessary to use privately owned stormwater works in the stormwater treatment train to achieve Appendix A criteria as per condition 5.2.1.d, the following conditions apply: a) The Owner, through legal instruments such as the Drainage Act, has the right to access, operate and maintain the private stormwater works;
b) The Owner ensures on-going operation and maintenance of the private stormwater works; and
c) The private stormwater works have obtained separate approval under the OWRA, as required.

Item b) implies it needs access to private property. Under the Municipal Act there is authority for a municipality to inspect the discharge, conduct tests, and remove samples (Section 97). Would an inspection of the works be sufficient and acceptable to the MECP to ensure on-going operation and maintenance or does the municipality also have to have authority to actually maintain the works (which is not covered under the Municipal Act)?

Item c) may refer to private stormwater works that are exempt from OWRA approval by virtue of Ontario Regulation 525/98. Who would the MECP require to make this declaration? The MECP, Site Owner, or municipality?

Schedule D, Section 5.0 Stormwater Management Facility Additions, Modifications, Replacements and Extensions
Section 5.6.1 Recorded on "Form SW2 – Record of Modifications or Replacements to the Stormwater System",

Form SW2 – Record of Modifications or Replacements to the Stormwater System is not currently attached to the template. . It would be beneficial if the content of the form was made public prior to finalizing the documents.

Schedule D, Section 6.0 Third Pipe Collection System Additions, Modifications, Replacements and Extensions
Section 6.2.1 Recorded on "Form SW3 – Record of Third Pipe System Alterations",

Form SW3 – Record of Third Pipe System Alterations" not currently attached to the template. . It would be beneficial if the content of the form was made public prior to finalizing the documents.