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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013-10-17 ENVIRONMENTAL COMMITTEE MINUTES OCTOBER 17, 2013 CITY OF KITCHENER The Environmental Committee met this date commencing at 4:03 p.m. Present: Ms.A. McDonald,Vice-Chair Councillors Y. Fernandes and P. Singh, Ms. E. Donaher and S. Danckert and Messrs. C. Priddle and D. Hoshowsky Staff: B. Sloan, Manager of Long Range Planning B. Korah, Manager of Development Engineering B. Steiner, Senior Environmental Planner H.Anderson, Environmental Planner T. Jacobs, Project Manager of Development Engineering D. Saunderson, Committee Administrator 1. APPOINTMENT OF COMMITTEE CHAIR AND VICE-CHAIR Ms. D. Saunderson advised that due to the resignation of Mr. S. Crossman, the position of Committee Chair would need to be reappointed. She noted that the item would be added to the November 14, 2013 agenda for those members not present to have an opportunity to put forward their names forward for appointment. 2. CSD-13-101 - CLIMATE ACTION PLAN The Committee considered Community Services Department report CSD-13-101, dated October 3, 2013 regarding the Community Climate Action Plan and Corporate Greenhouse Gas Reduction (GHG) Initiatives. Mr. B. Sloan presented the report, advising that Kitchener became a member of the Partners for Climate Protection (PCP) in 1997. He stated that PCP is a partnership between the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) and International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) - Local Governments for Sustainability. He added that it is a network of Canadian municipalities who have committed to reducing greenhouse gases and acting on climate change. He advised that the next step in the PCP process is to complete a GHG emissions reduction target and further update the City's Action Plan. He noted that this would help the City achieve Milestones 2 and 3 of the FCM Partners for Climate Protection program. Ms. Sarah Brown, ClimateActionWR, and Mr. Mike Morrice, Sustainable Waterloo Region, presented a status update on the ClimateActionWR formerly known as the Climate Collaborative, a local partnership between the Region of Waterloo, REEP Green Solutions and Sustainable Waterloo Region. She advised that The Climate Action Plan was developed to help the local sustainability network accelerate action with focuses on: climate change mitigation through GHG emission reductions that contribute to the community's quality of life; achievable actions between now and 2020; initiatives that fall within the jurisdiction of local organizations within Waterloo Region; and, a collaborative approach that encourages local governments and community leaders to actively participate in a harmonized process to develop and implement the plan. Ms. Brown further advised that after consultations with the partners and the community through the ClimateActionWR process, a community GHG reduction target of 6% is recommended for Waterloo Region. She stated that this target was established using an approach that strikes a balance between a level that is achievable, based on initial GHG reduction estimates for actions and opportunities identified to date. In response to questions from Ms. S. Dankert, Ms. Brown advised that the Regional target of 6%was established by reviewing initiatives that can be affected by residents within the Region. She indicated that the 25% GHG reduction referenced in the Action Plan refers to the world- wide target and includes GHG reductions in areas outside the Region's jurisdiction; such as. air travel. In response to questions from Ms. A. McDonald, Ms. Brown advised that the Action Plan currently focuses on mitigation to seek initial results regarding the reduction of GHG. She noted that once the initial plan is adopted and has begun to produce results, it should be updated to include measures for adaptation to further reduce GHG. ENVIRONMENTAL COMMITTEE MINUTES OCTOBER 17, 2013 -25- CITY OF KITCHENER 2. CSD-13-101 - CLIMATE ACTION PLAN Councillor P. Singh advised that he was surprised to see the amount of GHG emissions produced by a single household. He noted that, in his opinion, Council should continue to promote infill development where possible and advised that he could support the Committee's endorsement of the Action Plan. On motion, the Committee expressed general support for Kitchener partnering with the Cities of Waterloo, Cambridge, the Region of Waterloo and other stakeholder groups to participate in the Climate Action Plan, to achieve the 6% Greenhouse Gas reduction target. In addition, support was also expressed for the presentation of Corporate related initiatives at the Planning &Strategic Initiatives Committee meeting. 3. OTTAWA-TRUSSLER AREA SEWAGE FACILITY CLASS ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT The Committee considered correspondence entitled "Ottawa-Trussler Area Sewage Facility, Class Environmental Assessment", dated September 25, 2013 regarding the preferred alternative for servicing the development of the Laurentian West Phase 3b Community and surrounding area. Messrs. Michael Pearce, James Jarrett and Ms. Heather Drost, MMM Group, and Mr. B. Korah presented the Environmental Assessment(EA), advising that the primary objective of the EA is to determine a preferred alternative for servicing the development of the Laurentian West Phase 3b Community and surrounding area. Mr. Jarrett reviewed the EA process indicating that the Study will: evaluate the alternatives for wastewater collection and pumping; identify alternatives for forcemain and routing; review the downstream capacity of the existing sanitary collection system and the Borden Truck; and, review the recommended collection, pumping capacity, pumping station location as well as forcemain route and any upgrades required in the existing downstream collection system. Mr. Pearce advised that during the development of the alternatives it was determined that a larger study area was needed to account for the potential infrastructure and associated environmental impacts. He reviewed the revised study area map in the circulated material, and advised that the complete study area now includes the Mannheim Estates and the area to the north and south of Ottawa Street, west of David Bergey Drive. Mr. Pearce further advised that the EA identified six preliminary alternatives which were presented in the first Open House, and further assessment led to Alternatives 3 and 6 being discounted. Mr. Jarrett highlighted the four alternatives that were identified for the detailed evaluation process. He noted that the evaluation categories include: natural environmental; soci-cultural environment; and, construction / financial /technical. He indicated that there were disciplined specialists that reviewed the categories and gave them a scoring from least preferred to most preferred. Mr. Jarrett further advised that overall, the preferred alternative is Alternative 2A, as it scored comparatively better than other alternatives across all of the criteria. Mr. B. Korah advised that a staff report recommending the preferred alternative would be submitted for consideration at the Planning & Strategic Initiatives Committee on November 18, 2013. He stated that following Council's endorsement, the full Environmental Study Report will be filed with the Ministry of the Environment for a 30-day public and agency review period. He noted that, providing there are no Part II Orders requested, the EA will be deemed complete prior to the end of 2013 and the project can proceed to construction. In response to questions from Councillor Y. Fernandes, Mr. Korah stated that any additional comments could be sent via email to binu.korah(_kitchener.ca by October 31, 2013 4. COMPASS KITCHENER ALL ADVISORY COMMITTEE GATHERING Ms. B. Steiner advised that Compass Kitchener has extended an invitation to all members of the City's advisory committees to participate in the annual All Advisory Committee Gathering on November 26, 2013 from 5-7:00 p.m., in the Conestoga Room at Kitchener City Hall. She further advised that the focus for the meeting will be on Open Government and the City's Official Plan. ENVIRONMENTAL COMMITTEE MINUTES OCTOBER 17, 2013 -26- CITY OF KITCHENER 5. ADJOURNMENT On motion, the meeting adjourned at 5:45 p.m. D. Saunderson Committee Administrator