ESAA Weekly News – Week ending April 6th, 2022

 
 
 
 
 

The ESAA photo contest has returned.  Do you work for an ESAA Member company?  If so, they you are eligible to enter the 2022 ESAA Photo Contest.

The theme for 2022 is ‘Canadian Wildlife.’  No matter how big or small all of Canada’s wildlife is simply amazing.  Just remember to give wildlife space, don’t stress animals and don’t submit photos of any nesting wildlife.  Full details below.  Submission deadline – August 1st, 2022.

Prizes:

  • 1st Place – $250 Posterjack Gift Certificate
  • 2nd Place – $100 Posterjack Gift Certificate
  • The top 12 photos will be included in the first annual ESAA calendar.

 

Full contest details, rules, submission upload link and more can be found at: https://esaa.org/membership/esaa-photo-contest/

Get out and enjoy nature!

 

Site C, B.C. Hydro slapped with environmental non-compliance order over potential acid rock drainage

 

(Source: CBC News) British Columbia’s Environmental Assessment Office (EAO) has issued an order against B.C. Hydro’s Site C dam construction project for non-compliance with the acid rock drainage and metal leachate management conditions of its environmental certificate.

The order is dated April 21, 2022, and stems from an inspection eight months earlier in August 2021 that found problems related to the treatment of “excavated surfaces and fill areas that contain acid generating and potentially acid generating material.”

The EAO says B.C. Hydro needs to encapsulate potentially harmful material in natural material within 30 days of exposure and “capture, monitor, and, if required, treat any surface runoff” prior to discharge.

The Site C hydroelectric dam is the largest and most expensive infrastructure project in B.C. history with a price tag of $16 billion. Construction started in 2015 on the Peace River near Fort St. John with an expected completion date of 2025. 

According to Calvin Sandborn, legal director of the University of Victoria Environmental Law Centre, acid rock drainage is a major environmental problem.

“Exposed rock that has sulphur in it can form sulphuric acid and leach out heavy metals,” he said. “It’s a big deal and you have got to control it … and it’s a concerning thing that Hydro was not apparently doing this.”

According to provincial policy and guidelines, acid rock drainage and metal leaching has led to “significant ecological damage, contaminated rivers, loss of aquatic life and multi-million dollar cleanup costs for industry and government.”

Usually associated with mining, acid rock drainage wiped out salmon runs on Tsolum and Jordan River on Vancouver Island, and made the old Britannia Mine at Britannia Beach one of the most seriously contaminated sites in North America, said Sandborn.

B.C. Hydro manager of public affairs Greg Alexis said the public utility was aware of the potential for acid producing rock at the Site C construction site.

“We will be meeting with the Environmental Assessment Office as quickly as possible to get a better understanding of the order,” he said. “We’re currently reviewing it right now, and we’re going to do everything we can to make sure that the sites are compliant to their specifications.”

Alexis said the order is not expected to affect Site C’s environmental certificate and that there was no evidence of harm caused to fish or other aquatic life as a result of the non-compliance.

 
 

Husky Oil Operations Limited fined $600,000 for Fisheries Act offence

The Government of Canada is committed to protecting the health, safety, and environment of Canadians. Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) enforces several laws that protect Canada’s air, water, and natural environment, and we take pollution threats to the environment very seriously.

On April 29, 2022, Husky Oil Operations Limited was fined $600,000 in the Provincial Court of Saskatchewan for contravening subsection 36(3) of the Fisheries Act. The company pleaded guilty to one count of depositing a deleterious substance into water frequented by fish. The fine will be directed to the Government of Canada’s  Environmental Damages Fund.

The charge is in relation to the 2018 release of approximately 2.8 million litres of process water from the Westhazel pipeline into the environment. Process water is a by-product of oil and gas production and typically high in salt content.  

In July 2018, ECCC environmental enforcement officers responded to a notification of a rupture in the Westhazel pipeline leading to an ongoing release of process water. The process water travelled approximately 450 metres over land and entered the Englishman River, near Turtleford, Saskatchewan, a fish-bearing tributary of the North Saskatchewan River. While at the incident site, environmental enforcement officers inspected the area, gathering samples and other information pertaining to the spill. They observed dead vegetation along a 450-metre path from the point of release to the river. Laboratory analysis of the samples determined that the process water was deleterious or harmful to fish.

As a result of the conviction, the company’s name will be added to the Environmental Offenders Registry.

 

Ontario suspends certain excess soil requirements

 

(Source: EnvironmentJournal.ca)  Ontario’s Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks recently announced it is proceeding with a temporary suspension of legislative requirements
to comply with parts of Ontario’s Excess Soil  Regulation until January 1, 2023. The suspended requirements had come into effect January 1, 2022.

The Excess Soil Regulation 406/19, the On-Site and Excess Soil Regulation, was finalized in 2019 and has been phased in over years, with the majority of the provisions already in place. But the ministry heard from developers and municipalities that they need more time to implement the most recent set of requirements, and to better understand their responsibilities.

Over the coming months the ministry said it aims to work with stakeholder on additional education, outreach and guidance needs to support successful implementation of the new requirements.

On March 11, 2022, the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks posted on the Environmental Registry of Ontario (“ERO”)  a potential “pause” of certain requirements under the regulation. This came as a surprise as phase in of the additional  requirements had come into force on January 1, 2022 and parties were already adjusting their practices to be in compliance with the requirements.

According to Janet Bobechko, a partner and Certified Specialist in Environmental Law with WierFoulds LLP, the excess soil community appeared fairly equally divided as to whether or not the pause should take place and when; if successful, it would take effect given the start of an active construction season.

On April 20, 2022, O. Regulation 388/22 (the “Amending Regulation”) came into effect pausing certain requirements of the Regulation until December 31, 2022.

Bobechko and a team of lawyers from WeirFoulds recently put together an overview of the updates.  The pause or temporary suspension until December 31, 2022 only relates to the following requirements of the Regulation (that came into force originally on January 1, 2022):

  • an operator of a residential development soil depot to file (and update) a notice on the Registry (s. 7);
  • a Project Leader to file (and update) a notice on the Registry prior to removal of excess soil from the project area; (s. 8-9);
  • any of the planning requirements to prepare an assessment of past
    uses (s. 11), a sampling and analysis plan, soil characterization report
    (s. 12) and an excess soil destination assessment report (s. 13) and
    any requirements to update those documents (s. 15);
  • any requirements to track each load of excess soil in accordance with the Soil Rules (s. 16); and,
  • to file a notice (and update) a reuse site on the Registry (s. 19).

 

All the other provisions of the Excess Soil Regulation and the Rules for Soil Management and Excess Soil Quality Standards remain in force, including all the key operative requirements in section 3, 4 and 5 to determine if excess soil is a waste, written consent from the
reuse site, the beneficial use and that the excess soil is dry (subject to exception).

It is also important to note that the provision relating to exemption afforded by grandfathering excess soil contracts is not paused.

Bobechko advises those involved in excess soil management to immediately review existing contracts that contain requirements relating to excess soil and understand the implications of any “pause”. Reuse sites may require the planning documents be provided whether or not they
were paused or exempted.

For more information on excess soils regulations, revisit the coverage of our most recent Excess Soils Symposium, including a panel of experts involving Janet Bobechko. Click here.

 

 
 
 

 


Remediation Technology News and Resource

(The following are selected items from the US EPA’s Tech Direct – http://clu-in.org/techdirect/)


 

Upcoming Live Internet Seminars

ITRC Integrated DNAPL Site Characterization – May 5, 2022, 1:00PM-3:15PM EDT (17:00-19:15 GMT). The
Integrated DNAPL Site Characterization Team has synthesized the knowledge about dense nonaqueous phase liquid (DNAPL) site characterization and remediation
acquired over the past several decades, and has integrated that information into a new document, Integrated DNAPL Site Characterization and Tools Selection (ISC-1, 2015). This guidance is a resource to inform regulators, responsible parties, other problem holders, consultants, community stakeholders, and other interested parties of the critical concepts related to characterization approaches and tools for collecting subsurface data at DNAPL sites. After this associated training, participants will be able to use the guidance to develop and support an integrated approach to DNAPL site characterization, including: identify what site conditions must be considered when developing an informative DNAPL conceptual site model (CSM); define an objectives-based DNAPL characterization strategy; understand what tools and resources are available to improve the identification, collection, and evaluation of appropriate site characterization data; and navigate the DNAPL characterization tools table and select appropriate technologies to fill site-specific data gaps. For more information and to register, see https://www.itrcweb.org or https://clu-in.org/live.

ITRC Long-term Contaminant Management Using Institutional Controls – May 10, 2022, 1:00PM-3:15PM EDT (17:00-19:15 GMT). Institutional controls (ICs) are administrative or legal restrictions that provide protection from exposure to contaminants on a site.
When ICs are jeopardized or fail, direct exposure to human health and the environment can occur. While a variety of guidance and research to date has focused on the implementation of ICs, ITRC’s Long-term Contaminant Management Using Institutional Controls (IC-1, 2016) guidance and this associated training class focuses on post-implementation IC management, including monitoring, evaluation, stakeholder communications, enforcement, and termination. The ITRC guidance and training will assist those who are responsible for the management and stewardship of ICs. After attending the training, participants will be able to: describe best practices and evolving trends for IC  anagement at individual sites and across state agency programs; use this guidance to improve IC reliability and prevent IC failures, improve existing, or develop new, IC Management programs, identify the pros and cons about differing IC management approaches; use the tools to establish an LTS plan for specific sites; and use the elements in the tools to understand the information that should populate an IC registry or data management system. For more information and to register, see http://www.itrcweb.org or http://clu-in.org/live.

ITRC Connecting the Science to Managing LNAPL Sites a 3 Part Series: Part 1 – May 12 and June 7 & 14, 2022. The newly updated LNAPLs (Light Non-Aqueous Phase Liquids) 3-part training course series is based on the ITRC guidance: LNAPL Site Management: LCSM Evolution, Decision Process, and Remedial Technologies (LNAPL-3, 2018) and focuses on connecting the science to managing LNAPL sites and helping you: build upon your understanding of LNAPL behavior in the subsurface (Part 1), develop your LNAPL conceptual site model and LNAPL remedial goals (Part 2), and select/implement LNAPL technologies (Part 3). After this training series, the expectation is that you will have the skills and understanding to use ITRC science-based resources to improve decision making at your LNAPL sites. For regulators and other government agency staff, this improved understanding can hopefully be incorporated into your own LNAPL programs. It is expected that participants will attend this 3-part training series in sequence. For more information
and to register, see https://www.itrcweb.org or https://clu-in.org/live.

Utilizing Innovative Materials Science Approaches to Enhance Bioremediation: Session III – Plant and Fungal-based Bioremediation – May 13, 2022, 1:00PM-3:00PM EDT (17:00-19:00 GMT). The NIEHS Superfund Research Program (SRP) is hosting a Progress in
Research webinar series to showcase new breakthroughs to advance sustainable solutions for hazardous substances in the environment. The three-part series will feature SRP individual research projects funded in 2020, who are incorporating new advances in materials science to optimize bioremediation of contaminants in soil, sediment, or water. In each session, awardees will describe their research
projects, accomplishments, and next steps. The third and final session will focus on strategies to improve how plant and
fungi remove hazardous substances from soil. For more information and to register, please visit https://clu-in.org/live.

ITRC 1,4-Dioxane: Science, Characterization & Analysis, and Remediation – May 17, 2022, 1:00PM-3:15PM EDT (17:00-19:15 GMT). 1,4-Dioxane has seen widespread use as a solvent stabilizer since the 1950s. The widespread use of solvents through the 1980s suggests its presence at thousands of solvent sites in the US; however, it is not always a standard compound in typical analytical suites for hazardous waste sites, so it previously was overlooked. The U.S. EPA has classified 1,4-dioxane as “likely to be carcinogenic to humans.” Some states have devised health standards or regulatory guidelines for drinking water and groundwater standards; these are often sub-part per billion values. These low standards present challenges for analysis, characterization, and remediation of 1,4-dioxane. The ITRC team created multiple tools and documents that provide information to assist all interested stakeholders in understanding this contaminate and for making informed, educated decisions. For more information and to register, please visit https://itrcweb.org/ or https://clu-in.org/live/

ITRC Vapor Intrusion Mitigation (VIM-1) – A Two Part Series – June 2 and 14, 2022, 1:00PM-3:00PM EDT (18:00-20:00 GMT). When certain contaminants or hazardous substances are released into the soil or groundwater, they may volatilize into soil gas. Vapor intrusion (VI) occurs when these vapors migrate up into overlying buildings and contaminate indoor air. ITRC has previously released guidance documents focused on VI, including the “Vapor Intrusion Pathway: A Practical Guidance” (VI-1, 2007) and “Petroleum Vapor Intrusion: Fundamentals of Screening, Investigation, and Management” (PVI, 2014). However, ITRC has received multiple requests  for additional details and training on mitigation strategies for
addressing this exposure pathway. The ITRC Vapor Intrusion Mitigation Team (VIMT) created ten fact sheets, 16  Technology  information sheets, and 4 checklists with the goal of assisting     regulators during review of vapor intrusion mitigation systems, and helping contractors understand the essential elements of planning, design, implementation, and operation, maintenance and monitoring (OM&M) of mitigation systems. The Vapor Intrusion Mitigation
training is a series of eight (8) modules, presented over two sessions. For more information and to register, see https://www.itrcweb.org or https://clu-in.org/live.

New Documents and Web Resources

Technology Innovation News Survey Corner. The
Technology Innovation News Survey contains market/commercialization information; reports on demonstrations, feasibility studies and research; and other news relevant to the hazardous waste community interested in technology development. Recent issues, complete archives, and subscription information is available at https://clu-in.org/products/tins/. The following resources were included in recent issues:

      • Leveraging Machine Learning to Predict Toxicity
      • An Electrocoagulation and Electrooxidation Treatment Train to Degrade Perfluoroalkyl Substances and Other Persistent Organic Contaminants in Groundwater
      • Field Assessment of Abiotic Attenuation Rates Using Chemical Reactivity Probes and Cryogenic Core Collection
      • Case Study Review of Optimization Practices at Navy Petroleum Sites
      • Forensic Techniques for Differentiating PFAS Sources
      • New Technique Yields Promising Results for Uranium Removal in the Field


Research Brief 328: Sampling Device May Predict Methylmercury Accumulation in Wetlands. 
NIEHS
Superfund Research Program (SRP)-funded researchers, led by Heileen Hsu-Kim, Ph.D., of the Duke University SRP Center, showed that a small plastic sampling device can efficiently predict the potential for methylmercury — an environmental contaminant — to form in freshwater wetlands and to accumulate in organisms living there. In aquatic ecosystems, inorganic mercury changes to methylmercury through microbial activity. Inorganic mercury occurs naturally in the environment but can also be found in some consumer products, as well as in emissions from coal-fired power plants and other industrial activities. The contaminant can build up in animal tissues, with toxic effects to the nervous system. Because methylmercury occurs in greater amounts up the food chain, humans who eat large fish can also be exposed. To view the brief, please visit https://tools.niehs.nih.gov/srp/researchbriefs/view.cfm?Brief_ID=328

 
 

 Upcoming Events


 
 
 

RemTech East

June 1-3, 2022
Fallsview Casino and Resort
Niagara Falls, ON

https://esaa.org/remtecheast/

Starts in 4 Weeks – Program Available – 50 Delegate Passes Remaining

ESAA is pleased to announce that the Program for the inaugural RemTech East is now available.  The program features 43 technical talks covering a number of topic areas.  The program also features keynotes by: Nik Nanos of Nanos Research, Robert Swan of the 2041 Foundation and Simon Jackson of the Spirit Bear Youth Coalition.   The conference also features 45 exhibits, numerous networking opportunnities and registration add-ons including a reception at Table Rock Restaurant and the Water’s Next Award Dinners.

Program details can be found at: https://esaa.org/remtecheast/agenda/

In addition, registering for RemTech East will give you access to the Canadian Water Summit program at no extra charge.  The Canadian Water Summit is being held on the same dates and in the same venue.

Full conference details at: https://esaa.org/remtecheast/

RemTech East Includes:
  • 3 Keynotes
  • Technical Sessions
  • Full Access to the Canadian Water Summit
  • Breakfast and Lunch each Day
  • 1 Reception
  • and much more

RemTech East Extras:
  • Reception at Table Rock Restaurant and Behind the Falls Journey
  • Water’s Next Awards Dinner – Celebrating Canadian Water Leaders and Champions
 

ESAA looks forward to seeing you at the Falls!

 

BEST 2022 – Program Now Available  – Early Bird Rates End April 4th

May 25 – 27, Fairmont Whistler

REGISTER Now

Join us for the eighth annual Bettering Environmental Stewardship & Technology (BEST) Conference!

The British Columbia Environment Industry Association’s BEST Conference attracts environmental professionals every May for two days of technical sessions, networking opportunities, and a sponsor exhibition.

Register now! You don’t want to miss out on the “BEST” opportunity to network and learn about the current environment industry in BC.

The Abstract Selection team reviewed dozens of abstract submissions and have put together an outstanding program of technical presentations. Preview this year’s program at: bceia.com/best/#program-timetable.

 

 

ESAA Job Board

Check out the new improved ESAA Job Board.  Members can post ads for free.


 
Current Listings:
  • Reclamation Coordinator – Arletta Environmental Consulting
  • Senior Technical & Reporting Lead – Arletta Environmental Consulting Corp.
  • Intermediate Report Reviewer – North Shore Environmental Consultants Inc.
  • Intermediate Environmental Scientist – Trace Associates Inc.
  • Environmental Scientist – Biology – SUMMIT, An Earth Services Company
  • Intermediate/Senior Environmental Specialist – SUMMIT, An Earth Services Company
  • Intermediate REM/REC Scientist – JMH Environmental Ltd.
  • Junior Environmental Scientist or Geologist – Ballast Environmental Consulting Ltd.
  • REMEDIATION AND RECLAMATION FIELD SUPERVISOR – Matrix Solutions Inc.
  • RCA Operations Manager – Recycling Council of Alberta
  • Environmental Engineers/Scientists/Technologists – Nichols Environmental (Canada) Ltd.
  • Project Technologist, Environmental Due Diligence & Remediation – Pinchin Ltd.
  • Environmental Protection Officer (Job Requisition ID: 24174) – Government of Alberta – Alberta Environment and Parks
  • Environmental Specialist – SUMMIT, An Earth Services Company
  • Intermediate Environmental Specialist – SUMMIT, An Earth Services Company

 

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