Incinerator meeting location hotly debated

OshawaExpress.ca
June 11, 2014
Lindsey Cole

The incinerator’s stack rises high into the sky almost resembling a large beacon, symbolizing that the facility is here and almost ready to be fired up permanently.

The facility itself has been a beacon of controversy, however, which only continues to grow as ongoing debate ensues about who is being allowed to comment on the centre and how much involvement the public has on the whole.

During a joint meeting of Works and Finance and Administration Committees in May, a report highlighted that the $285-million Durham York Energy Centre is about 80 to 85 per cent complete.

But while some questions were asked about the facility’s operations, committee members were gravely concerned with a public meeting that is to be held at the end of June for residents to ask questions about the centre before it’s up and running. The meeting concerns weren’t about who, what or why, but rather where.

A decision has been made to host the meeting at the Courtice Community Complex – Hall B, 2950 Courtice Road North, in Clarington on June 25, from 5 to 8 p.m.

To hold the meeting in the host community was the subject of much debate during the meeting, before a decision was made to have it in Clarington.

As part of the Ontario Ministry of Environment’s conditions, a meeting has to occur before the receipt of waste at the incinerator, states Commissioner of Works Cliff Curtis.

He previously told committee members the meeting would be held at Regional headquarters in Whitby near the end of June in order to accommodate both York and Durham residents who were curious about the facility.

“It involves participation from both York and Durham,” he told committee. “I expect a fairly large turnout. It has to accommodate both York and Durham.”

But councillors were adamant the meeting shouldn’t be held at the Region, but in Clarington where the incinerator is being built.

“I would suggest the location be held in the host community. They’ll (York residents) be interested enough to drive a little bit further,” says Pickering Councillor Jennifer O’Connell. “This is an important condition of the environmental assessment and the location of it is critical.”         

“You don’t have to hold a meeting in Clarington, you have to hold a meeting,” Regional Chair Roger Anderson told his colleagues at the time. “It’s a region-wide issue and it’s a central location.”                                   

The Durham York Energy centre is a project split 80-20 between the regions of Durham and York. But for some Regional councillors, the fact it’s a partnership means York should be willing to go the extra mile to have a meeting in the host community.

“Why would we get permission from York to have a public meeting?” asked Pickering Councillor Bill McLean. “Clarington’s 100 per cent of the host community. Why should we even give York the opportunity to say no? We have 100 per cent of this facility.”

When asked by Oshawa Councillor Amy England if Clarington was even considered for the public meeting, Mirka Januszkiewicz, the Region’s director of waste management services said, “We didn’t discuss having this meeting in Clarington at all. Every meeting…should be easy, accessible. We only looked at the meeting being held in this building.”
Commissioner Curtis then told committee he was happy to speak with York and propose moving the meeting to Clarington, which was later approved and confirmed.

When asked about the format of the meeting, the commissioner was quick to point out it would not be a formal question and answer process.

“ (It’s) non-confrontational. You don’t recall the dynamics of what we went through with the EA (environmental assessment). It gets hijacked. It just becomes performance theatre,” he says.

Durham and York regions will provide educational displays on current waste diversion programs, states a release. Covanta, the company operating the incinerator, will provide updates on the construction and operation of the Durham York Energy Centre. Staff from Covanta, Durham and York Regions will be on hand to answer questions about the centre and waste diversion programs.

“People can drop in, ask their questions and get the answers,” Commissioner Curtis adds. The incinerator is expected to be operational by the end of the year. It is slated to handle 140,000 tonnes of post-recycled waste per year and will be able to create 17.5 megawatts of energy, enough to power 14,000 homes, the Region states.

For more information, visit www.durhamyorkwaste.ca.