This edition of The Buzz will discuss new land standards, parkade vapour standard, emerging contaminants and repeal of Schedule 7.
Changes to Contaminated Site Regulations
The Stage 10 (Omnibus) amendments to the Contaminated Sites Regulation (CSR) and the Stage 11 (Housekeeping) amendments to the CSR were approved on October 31, 2017. The Stage 11 amendments corrected errors in the Stage 10 amendments coming into legal force on November 1, 2017. A few of the changes are summarized below.
New Land Use Standards
Residential land use will now be split into two categories: High Density and Low Density residential land use standards. High density residential land use will encompass multiple-unit residential units with three or more storeys. Low density residential land use will encompass a single residence or a multi-unit residence facility of less than 3 storeys. There is a new Wildland use standard which is further separated into Natural Wildland standards (wildland areas protected under specific statutes for their high conservation value) and Reverted Wildlands (wildlands lacking designated statutory protection including land previously used for industrial uses, which have or will revert to wildlands land use).
Parkade Vapour Standard
Generally, vapour standards for the new parkade vapour standard is less stringent than the previous residential land use standards. This is a welcome relief for developers.
Emerging Contaminants
The Stage 10 amendments include a number of new substances added as “Contaminants of Emerging Concern” to the water and soil standards schedule. Examples of substances included are perfluorinated compounds (e.g., PFOS) a
nd specified additives to natural gas processing (e.g., sulfolane).
Repeal of Schedule 7
The Stage 10 Amendments will repeal the CSR Schedule 7 and the CSR Part 8. The use of the new soil and vapour standards will streamline soil relocation. The details of the new soil relocation rules will be issued in the near future.
Updates Every Five Years
The ministry has adopted a mandatory review of the environmental quality standards in the CSR on a fixed term cycle of every five (5) years. The new fixed term cycle will work towards ensuring a regime that is up to date with the relevant science.
We would like to thank Keystone Environmental Ltd. for their insights into this edition of The Buzz.
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