SUPPORTS ITEM NO. 1
P&E COMMITTEE AGENDA
MARCH 28, 1996
ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT
Date: February 27, 1996
Dept. File No. H193-30
TO: Standing Committee on Planning and Environment
FROM: General Manager of Engineering Services
SUBJECT: Liquid Waste Management Plan - Report Approval
RECOMMENDATION
THAT Council advise the GVS&DD Board that the City of Vancouver
endorses the draft LWMP report entitled "Liquid Waste Management
Plan - Statement of Progress and Approach to Planning" dated
November 1995.
COUNCIL POLICY
Council has previously approved a number of recommendations concerning
the Liquid Waste Management Plan. Directions under the City Plan
approved by Council in June 1995 include:
- consider environmental impacts when making decisions on land
use, transportation, and City services;
- establish spending priorities for City and regional sewer,
water, and transportation improvements.
PURPOSE
This report discusses the GVS&DD's draft Liquid Waste Management Plan
(LWMP) submission to the Province, dated November 1995, and recommends
its endorsement by Council.
BACKGROUND
In accordance with the provincial Waste Management Act (WMA), the GVRD
began a process to develop a LWMP to regulate liquid waste discharges in
the region in 1986. The Stage 1 report was completed and forwarded to
the Province in 1989. In response to the submission, the Province
mandated a number of measures including: the provision of secondary
treatment at the Annacis and Lulu Island (albeit contrary to the
recommendations of the submission); fast tracking of CSO reductions;
implementation of a regional source control program; and implementation
of an environmental assessment program.
Since that time, considerable effort has been expended throughout the
Region in meeting these requirements. Construction of secondary
treatment is now well underway at Annacis Island and is about to start
at Lulu Island. CSO reductions in Vancouver have been achieved through
continued sewer separation and through the Burrard Inlet operational
plan which reduced CSOs at Clark Drive by over 30%. A source control
program for the region has been established and is managed in Vancouver
by our Permits and Licences Department. Environmental assessments have
also begun with particular emphasis on the Clark Drive CSOs, stormwater,
and pre-discharge monitoring at the Annacis Island plant.
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Given the large amount of additional resources needed to meet the
provincial measures, a new cost allocation formula was required to
distribute the costs across the municipalities. Fundamental to this
process was the definition of cost allocation principles which laid out
the planning and decision making framework for liquid waste issues in
the region and identified the respective roles of municipal members.
This process, which was completed in 1995, covered all aspects of the
LWMP and provides a foundation on which to develop a regional plan.
The attached* draft report outlines the planning and decision making
framework based on the principles adopted in the cost allocation
agreement and details a comprehensive LWMP approach for the region. The
report was approved in principle by the Regional Engineers Advisory
Committee (REAC), the Regional Administrators Advisory Committee (RAAC),
and the GVS&DD S&D committee in November 1995. The GVS&DD Board
subsequently requested that it be circulated to member Councils for
comments and endorsement.
Following member councils' endorsement of the report in March 1996, the
GVS&DD Board plans to approve the final LWMP report and forward it to
the Province in May 1996.
DISCUSSION
The report updates progress on all LWMP components including: the
Annacis and Lulu Island secondary treatment projects; combined sewer
overflow management; source control; residuals management; urban
stormwater management; infiltration and inflow; and infrastructure
maintenance and replacement. Furthermore, it sets out terms of
reference, schedule, and approach to the next phase of the LWMP
including engineering evaluations and environmental assessments.
* Limited distribution - on file in the City Clerk's Office
Under the proposed plan, technical committees, made up of municipal and
regional staff, will play a key role in developing the detailed work
plan by recommending LWMP tasks and budgets. All recommendations will
be forwarded to the Technical Policy Committee, made up of senior
regional and municipal staff, who will advise the district on what work
should be included in the District's budget for the next year. There
will be a number of opportunities for the public and other stakeholders
to comment directly to the GVS&DD during the public consultation
program.
Some points in the proposed LWMP process of significant interest to
Vancouver are:
a) LWMP as Local Regulation
GVRD staff have the understanding that the provisions of the WMA allows
for a region specific solution to waste management issues which, when
approved, will become local regulation. This includes site specific
discharge regulations based on the new information gained in the LWMP
process. To this end considerable funds have been identified for
environmental assessment work ($4 to $8 million). GVRD staff are
recommending that this understanding be confirmed with the Province
before proceeding with the comprehensive scope presented in the report.
City staff believe we should proceed with the LWMP as outlined in the
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report and that issues related to local regulation will be resolved as
part of this process.
b) LWMP as Legal Certainty
Given that the LWMP approach outlined in the report is acceptable, it
still does not preclude additional regulation to meet federal
requirements. The GVRD is therefore pursuing legal certainty through a
harmonization in the administration of Provincial and Federal
environmental legislation. The Federal Government is supportive at this
time. The GVRD propose to continue to pursue legal certainty through
the LWMP process. City staff concur with this approach.
c) Accountability Through Sewerage Areas
Arising from the new GVS&DD cost allocation agreement, authority on
issues specific to, and funded within, a sewerage area is now delegated
to the Area rather than the entire Board. In Vancouver s case, this
gives our Directors direct accountability on CSOs. This accountability
is recognized in the proposed LWMP process.
d) Financial Implication for Vancouver
Given that the exact scope of work remains to be determined through the
technical committee process, the existing cost estimates are broad in
nature. The estimated cost to develop the LWMP is in the order of $10
to $20 million over the next 4 years. A preliminary cost breakdown is
shown on page 66 of the draft report. Based on the cost allocation
principles, costs to Vancouver are estimated to be $3 to $6 million.
The major costs to Vancouver are CSOs ($0.7 to $1.5 million) and
environmental assessments ($0.8 to $1.6 million). The remaining costs
to Vancouver are primarily attributable to our share of overall costs
for items such as stormwater discharges, source control, public
consultation and project co-ordination ($1.5 to $3 million).
Looking ahead to the completion of the LWMP study, the capital resources
to implement the LWMP could be as much as $1 billion. Given this
magnitude, particularly in light of our existing commitments and the
ability of the taxpayer to pay, liquid waste initiatives will need to be
well integrated with other municipal needs. The LWMP proposes to
achieve this by finding an acceptable balance between regulatory
objectives, public values, environmental science, costs, and protection
of the environment.
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