Item - 2023.IE4.1

The Infrastructure and Environment Committee recommends that:  

1. City Council approve the Residual Waste Management Work Plan, presented in Attachment 1 (Residual Waste Management Work Plan) to the report (May 19, 2023) from the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services.

2. City Council direct that the information in Confidential Attachment 1 to the report (May 19, 2023) from the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services, remain confidential in its entirety until January 1, 2030, as it involves a position, plan, procedure, criteria or instruction to be applied to any negotiation carried on or to be carried on by or on behalf of the City. 

3. City Council direct that the information in Confidential Attachment 2 to the report (May 19, 2023) from the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services, remain confidential in its entirety until January 1, 2030, as it involves a position, plan, procedure, criteria or instruction to be applied to any negotiation carried on or to be carried on by or on behalf of the City. 

4. City Council authorize the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services, until December 31, 2029 for the purpose of redirecting waste from the Green Lane Landfill and the implementation of the short- and medium-term actions of the Residual Waste Management Work Plan, to negotiate and enter into one or more non-competitive residual waste (garbage) disposal agreements or to amend and extend existing waste disposal agreements with landfills located in Ontario, subject to the conditions set out in Confidential Attachment 1 to the report (May 19, 2023) from the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services, and on terms and conditions acceptable to the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services, and each in a form satisfactory to the City Solicitor.

5. City Council authorize the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services to negotiate terms and conditions:

a.  to purchase landfills through the non-competitive process, and

b.  to partner with public and / or private sector organizations to build and / or operate a landfill,

and direct the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services to report back to City Council with details of the negotiated terms and conditions for approval.

6. City Council authorize the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services, to adjust Solid Waste Management Services staff complement by up to 10 positions, funded through Capital project CSW960 – Landfill Capacity Development / Energy from Waste, to expedite the work outlined in the Residual Waste Management Work Plan, and direct the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services to report back to City Council on the related staff complement change through the appropriate Standing Committee.

7. City Council direct the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services, to provide an interim report to City Council, through the Infrastructure and Environment Committee, no later than June 2024, with a final report to be provided by June 2025, on an updated Long Term Waste Management Strategy that maximizes waste diversion, takes every practical step to keep inappropriate waste out of garbage, and is consistent with TransformTO and the City’s carbon budget carbon accountability mechanism, for City Council Consideration. This Strategy shall include:

a.  Strategies that get organics out of the garbage stream, especially in multi-residential buildings, including increased education, disposal bans and mandatory separation for all buildings regardless of service provider;

b. Strategies that discourage single-use and take-away packaging and support a shift to reuse, including a requirement for reusable foodservice ware for dine-in at restaurants; and

c. Strategies to increase diversion of construction and demolition waste.

8. City Council direct the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services to provide an interim report, through the Infrastructure and Environment Committee, no later than June 2024, with a final report to be provided by June 2025, with a strategy and policy framework for the circular economy transition in Toronto that is consistent with TransformTO and the City’s carbon budget carbon accountability mechanism.

9. City Council authorize the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services, until June 30, 2026, to negotiate and enter into new service agreements and amend and extend any existing service agreements with various Producer Responsibility Organizations (PROs) for the purpose of the City providing waste management and related services for waste recovery materials regulated under the Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act, 2016, as amended, such as hazardous and special products, electrical and electronic equipment, batteries, tires, and any new waste recovery material introduced through regulation, with the total term of each new service agreement and each extension of an existing service agreement not exceed five (5) years and on terms and conditions acceptable to the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services, and each in a form satisfactory to the City Solicitor.

10. City Council direct the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services to:

a. conduct public and stakeholder outreach regarding long-term residual waste planning activities in advance of any legislated consultation process;

b. continue advocacy efforts directed towards the non-profit and for-profit sectors on behalf of the City to encourage their alignment and work towards a circular economy transition that delivers a more resilient, inclusive, green, and prosperous future for Toronto residents and businesses;

c. continue to advocate on behalf of the City to the Government of Ontario, the Government of Canada, and to industry associations and to other stakeholders, on all aspects of the Long Term Waste Management Strategy; and

d. continue on behalf of the City to participate - where appropriate, permissible, and feasible - as a member of multi-stakeholder organizations involved in efforts that advocate for the goals and principles in the Long Term Waste Management Strategy, including without limitation as a voting member of such organizations.

11. City Council direct the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services to report back to City Council, through the Infrastructure and Environment Committee prior to negotiating any agreements with energy from waste facilities, with the following:

a. The facility's location, age, and technology used;

b. Its environmental compliance approvals for waste and for air, including reporting requirements;

c. Details of its environmental compliance history and status, including five-year compliance statistics, ash analysis and most recent inspection report;

d. Emission data for the last five years from all monitors (required and voluntary);

e. Comparison of the facility’s actual and permitted air emissions to top international emission standards that are protective of human health (European Union emission standards or World Health Organization recommended standards);

f. Details of how any resulting ash is disposed of and monitored;

g. Scope 1, 2 and (if available) 3 greenhouse gas analysis, including all related transport and processing (e.g. trucking ash to landfill); and

h. The results of public consultation on the use of energy from waste facilities.

The Infrastructure and Environment Committee:

1. Directed the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services to revise the Residual Waste Management Work Plan, as presented in Attachment 1 (Residual Waste Management Work Plan) to the report (May 19, 2023) from the General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services, by removing any authority to negotiate Energy from Waste contracts, and add community consultation on Energy from Waste, and to report directly to the June 14, 15 and 16, 2023 meeting of City Council with a revised Attachment 1 (Residual Waste Management Work Plan).

Landfill space in the province of Ontario, and at the City of Toronto's Green Lane Landfill, is expected to reach capacity by approximately 2034/2035.

While the City has a number of successful waste reduction and diversion programs in place to support the Long Term Waste Management Strategy's¹ aspirational goals of zero-waste and moving towards a circular economy, long-term solutions for the disposal of residual waste (e.g. garbage) beyond the lifespan of Green Lane Landfill are still required.

It's critical that the City continue planning for the future long-term disposal of Toronto's garbage as building new waste disposal infrastructure can take more than 10 years to complete given the estimated planning, regulatory, and construction timeframes, and recent Government of Ontario amendments to the Environmental Assessment Act make the process for establishing new landfills more challenging by requiring applicants to obtain the local, and in some cases, adjacent municipal support.

As part of this work, Solid Waste Management Services recently completed two technical studies that explored options to manage the City's residual waste including a Mixed Waste Processing Study and a Residual Waste Disposal Study. This report summarizes the key findings from those studies and proposes a Residual Waste Management Work Plan outlining short- and medium-term actions that the City can initiate to extend the lifespan of Green Lane Landfill as well as strategic long-term planning activities to manage the City's residual waste.

¹ Long-Term Waste Management Strategy, link: https://www.toronto.ca/services-payments/recycling-organics-garbage/long-term-waste-strategy/overview/