Jul. 9, 2004.

Big pipe hits new snag
Environmental groups launch Fisheries Act prosecution

Opponents say it will 'subsidize 35 years of urban sprawl'

 The legal action is a technical challenge based on the project's impact on Robinson Creek, a trout stream and tributary of the Rouge River which, in turn, flows along Toronto's eastern border and into Lake Ontario through North America's biggest urban wildlands park.

"This is one of the largest dewaterings in Canadian history, into one of Canada's most sensitive watersheds," says David Donnelly, a Toronto-based lawyer representing the lobby group Environmental Defence.

It "makes a mockery" of the provincial government's recent commitment to get tough on permits to remove underground water for bottling and other purposes, says Jim Robb, general manager of Friends of the Rouge Watershed.

Opponents hope if they derail work on this phase, they could impede plans for the entire $800 million project, intended to flush about 740 million litres of sewage a day from rapidly expanding communities north and east of Toronto to a treatment plant at Pickering, on Lake Ontario.

The overall project, "is a plan to subsidize 35 years of urban sprawl all the way to Lake Simcoe," Robb says. "Governments are handing developers money to destroy the environment ... in breach of the law."

A York Region justice of the peace is to hear submissions Wednesday on whether the case is solid enough to proceed.

Today, however, the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority is expected to approve five permits to remove the underground water, as recommended by its staff.

And the provincial environment ministry is also likely to announce its approval by the end of the month.

The federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans, however, is still studying the issue. York Region is seeking federal authorization although it isn't required. The department could lay charges after construction starts, with fines of up to $300,000 a day, if fish habitats are disturbed.

It has already laid charges against the region in connection with the first phase of the sewer project. Those charges are still outstanding.

Meanwhile, water is being pumped out of the ground to ensure Phase II can go ahead if it's approved. Plans include a main pipe, 2.7 metres in diameter, up Leslie St. to communities north of Newmarket.

It would twin a system, built in the late 1970s under Yonge St., that is almost filled to capacity with sewage. Several housing developments face delays because the existing pipes can't handle their wastes.

Brian Denny, chief administration officer for the Toronto & Region Conservation Authority, and Anne Neary, manager of technical support for the ministry's central region, acknowledge problems with the project's first phase, which included a branch line along 16th Ave. in Markham from the 9th Line to west of Markham Rd., and another short section along the 9th Line, finished this spring.

The sewer system mainly uses gravity to propel wastewater down toward Lake Ontario. The main or "trunk" pipes must be buried up to 50 metres deep in the ground to create enough slope for smaller feeder lines.

At that depth, the pipes are in an aquifer, a layer of sand and gravel saturated with water — water that must be removed before the pipe can be built.

An environmental assessment — which a 2002 York Region report describes as only "cursory" — was conducted before Phase I. But once work started, it became clear the amount of water to be pumped out was far greater than estimated, Denny says.

Some streams went dry. Others, with torrents of water discharged into them, flowed much higher and faster than normal, causing erosion and damaging rare fish. The underground water, at a constant 10C, is colder than surface water in summer and warmer in winter, which may harm fish, and contains iron, phosphorous and other substances that poison fish.

On top of that, at least 100 wells went dry as the water table dropped from five to 50 metres over 65 square kilometres.

Charges against York Region were laid under the federal Fisheries Act in connection with construction along the 9th Line; the fisheries department is considering more charges because of impacts along 16th Ave.

But officials with the conservation authority say they're satisfied with the corrective measures for Phase II — which continues west along 16th Ave. to Warden Ave — proposed by York Region after months of discussions and negotiations. "We think we've got a pretty good solution ... that we're prepared to recommend," Denny said.

The provincial environment ministry says it has all the information it needs for a decision. "Because of our experience with Phase I, we went back to York Region and said we wanted very detailed assessments of impacts or potential impacts," for Phase II, Neary said.

The new plan spreads discharges among more streams. The water will be given time to warm up in summer or cool in winter before it's dumped. If necessary, it will be heated in summer, Denny said.

As well, the region must monitor the impact of the project for several years after it's built.

The extra cost is at least $8 million and could go much higher.

But opponents say the measures are inadequate, untested, and haven't undergone an environmental assessment.

"While the proposed mitigation plan is ingenious and intriguing from an engineering point of view, (we are) unaware of any similar undertaking being tried elsewhere, let alone achieving success," Ron Christie, chair of the Rouge Park Alliance and a former assistant deputy minister with the provincial Ministry of Natural Resources, stated in a letter to the federal fisheries minister.

The Fisheries Act prosecution couldn't stop the project, but it could force a costly and time-consuming reconsideration of the mitigation measures, said lawyer Donnelly. If the environment ministry approves dewatering for the pipe, the group will seek an injunction under the province's Environmental Bill of Rights, he said.

Great Lakes United, a joint American-Canadian environmental lobby group based in Buffalo, other environment groups and a local member of Parliament, Tom Wappell, have demanded a full environmental assessment of the project.

Opponents believe York should look after its own sewage. Further, because the proposed pipe is so deep in the ground, the pressure outside the pipe would be greater than inside. That means as leaks inevitably develop, underground water would flow into the pipe and be carried with the sewage to Lake Ontario. Such "infiltrated" water would make up as much as 20 per cent of the flow, according to engineering reports prepared by the region. That would have a significant impact on the underground water supply, say the groups.

Opponents recommend smaller, pressurized pipes close to the surface that don't interfere with underground water and can be easily repaired. They also suggest smaller, local treatment plants and marshes that naturally cleanse sewage.

Toronto Star