We are the owners of a…

ERO number

019-0392

Comment ID

33701

Commenting on behalf of

Individual

Comment status

Comment approved More about comment statuses

Comment

We are the owners of a residential dwelling located on Cordukes Rd, Kingston which is within 500 meters of the applicant’s proposed quarry expansion lands. We have the following comments respecting the applicant’s amendment to the sewage ECA for the current quarry operation:
1. Applicant’s plan is to discharge the existing quarry’s sewage effluent to a sump pond located at the southwest corner of the existing quarry lands that will then “self-drain” to a tributary of Collins Creek at the toe of the southern escarpment. This tributary is located approximately 150 meters from the applicant’s lands. It would be difficult to monitor for any contaminants and discharge volumes. Given the rock geology of the lands, how feasible is it that the effluent would self-drain to the tributary and not emit contaminants to neighbouring property and the tributary itself?
2. Is there a Hydro Geology study that ensures there will be no detrimental impacts to area drinking wells and water table?
3. It is our understanding that the applicant intends to pump sewage from the sump pond to their proposed quarry expansion lands currently designated agricultural. This effluent would presumably be absorbed into the ground and/or become surface run-off travelling southward to the escarpment at the southern boundary of the lands passing 2 archaeological sites to the tributary of Collins Creek at the K&P trail. What assurances are there to ensure this effluent will not contaminate or adversely affect neighbouring properties drinking wells as the fractured rock geology would expose the water table to this industrial effluent. It is our understanding the applicant has already been discharging their sewage using these lands. Have these discharges been monitored for contaminants?
4. Given that the applicant would be responsible for monitoring their own sewage for toxins and contaminants, through three samplings annually from 3 designated locations, which is then self-reported once annually to the MECP, what would prevent the applicant from collecting altered or pre-filtered samples for testing or samples collected from off-site? There should be third-party verification of the sample collections.
5. As the applicant is intending to expand their quarry operations onto the lands to the west of their existing operations, how is the sewage ECA addressing expansion related volumes?