Proposed changes to organic curing facility to be going to Peel council
By Anneleen Naudts

Peel Regional councillors will soon be hearing ideas their waste management staffers have for dealing with odours at its King curing facility.

The Region's waste management division hosted a fifth public meeting last Wednesday to update residents on improvements to its organic waste curing facility after complaints about the smells resulted in the site's temporary closing last year.

The curing facility, located on King Street, just west of Dixie Road, was shut down after neighbours began noticing smells in the summer, allowing Regional staff time to investigate the source of odours and to come up with solutions.

At the meeting, held at Mayfield United Church, Regional staff presented a summary of the report it will present to council. They also provided summaries on improvements to site design and its contingency plan, and outlined the next steps in getting the project back on track.

In the report, staff is recommending council approve the installation of a gore cover system and associated equipment to control smells from the compost curing process.

In addition to infrastructure improvements, staff will also suggest improvements to waste collection and to the primary processing phase.

Eliminating excess moisture from organic material collection vehicles marks the first step in a comprehensive approach to minimize odours, stated the report.

At the primary processing phase, improved mixing and shredding of organic material, increasing yard waste to balance the ratio of kitchen to yard waste, and injecting fresh air in composting biocells, are expected to go a long way in alleviating the problem.

These improvements will result in a 76 per cent odour reduction, which is "an important change in itself, but not enough," said Andy Pollock, director of Peel's waste management division.

To further reduce smells, proposed improvements to infrastructure at the curing facility include the gore cover system, a covered screening facility and a conveyor system.

The gore cover system will be used to cover the organic material in the curing windrows. Gore, a material known for being breathable and waterresistant, is "the one proven system in the world today," said Pollock, adding it is expected to result in odour reductions of 95 per cent.

These results are based on a simulation study in which organic material from Peel underwent a standard eight week curing cycle at All Treat Farms in Arthur.

Staff and Regional Councillor Allan Thompson, who visited facilities using the gore cover system, reported being impressed with the system and said people at these facilities were very pleased with it.

An enclosed screening operation, which is used to filter out larger chunks in the compost, is expected to prevent both dust and odour emissions from being released. Enclosing this process will also make it possible to operate yearround.

The installation of a conveyor system to transport compost material will reduce carbon emissions and increase operations efficiency.

Pollock explained how a loading conveyor will transport material from a central location to the screening facility, thereby eliminating the use of vehicles and increasing processing times. Two more conveyor loaders will transport finished compost to covered storage units.

Peel staff have prepared a contingency plan outlining the response protocol for potential problems.

The object is to outline a process which ensures this experience will not have to be repeated, said Waste Operations Manager Larry Conrad.

The plan includes responses to problems ranging from equipment failure to disruptions to normal operating conditions, severe weather conditions and factors that could cause an increase in odours.

Particular emphasis is to be placed on responding to odour or noise complaints, said Conrad. "Our plan is to put a lot more emphasis on complaints," he said, adding that these are events that need to be monitored, followed up and reviewed.

One resident at the meeting wanted to know how many trucks would be entering and exiting the site. Though this will vary from week to week, about eight loads could be delivered to the facility per day, in addition to trucks carrying finished compost, said Conrad. The in-loads are expected to be received by noon.

Another resident wanted to know how loud windrow turners would be. Conrad explained they are "relatively quiet and quickmoving." The windrow turners are expected to spend 30 to 40 minutes turning each row, and six to nine rows will have to be turned weekly, while occasionally installing new rows. The anticipated operation time of the windrow turner is 400 hours per year.

Questions also arose on the construction of berms around the site. Staff said the berms will be noisy to construct, so moving quickly is important. They speculated the construction process will span one summer month and will require a significant number of loads to deliver approximately 50,000 cubic metres of dirt.

One resident asked if staff still considered the site on King Street appropriate in retrospect, to which Pollock responded that despite considerable costs, this is still the least expensive option, especially taking into account the site's competitiveness among other Greater Toronto Area municipalities. Although restructuring the site increased system costs to $71 per ton (up from $55), Peel still has the lowest cost among all municipalities, he remarked.

The curing facility is the only one in Peel and has the capacity to cure all of the Region's organic kitchen and yard waste.

The next steps will be to meet with the Ministry of the Environment, to finalize the contingency plan, and to report to councillors Feb. 7. If approved, construction to the site will get under way this summer and the curing facility may be operational by October.