The release of Regulation 406/19 (On-site and Excess Soil Management) in late 2019 has changed the landscape of how we deal with Excess Soils in Ontario. Although there is a current “pause” on a portion of the regulatory requirements until January 1, 2023, there are still many aspects of the Regulation that remain. Further, the majority of infrastructure projects have many of the “paused” provisions of the Regulation within the contractual requirements.
XCG’s staff continue to provide their expertise to contractors, developers and municipal governments around Excess Soil Management.
XCG Knows… Boulevard Soils Characterization
XCG was invited to bid on a soil characterization project to support the planned boulevard excavation work for tree planting with the Region of York Forestry Division, and was the successful candidate.
The original 2021 project scope included getting a road work permit and sampling the upper 0.5 metres of soil in the boulevards at 13 sites that were planned for tree planting. Soil analyses included metals and hydride metals, other inorganics [pH, electrical conductivity (EC), sodium adsorption ratio (SAR), benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes (BTEX) and petroleum hydrocarbons (PHCs) (Fractions F1 to F4), volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs)]. Leachate analyses through modified synthetic precipitation leaching procedure (mSPLP) were also completed.
The soil characterization was completed to ensure compliance with Ontario Regulation (O. Reg.) 406/19 but also to determine the reuse or disposal options for the excess soil. Assessing the topsoil quality was also completed to determine the success of the tree growth. In addition, XCG was requested to visit three boulevard sites to sample and analyze the engineered growing media placed with trees to confirm the quality against the Region of York specifications.
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XCG Knows… Qualified Person Services for Excess Soil
When D’Orazio Infrastructure Group (DIG) secured the excavation and earthworks portion of Region of Halton contracts R3309A-20 and R3309A-21 with Brennan Paving, the project contracts specified the Contractor to secure the services of a Qualified Person (QP-C). DIG selected the excess soil expertise of XCG Consulting Limited to provide the QP-C services for all excess management activities and to ensure compliance with Ontario Regulation (O. Reg.) 406/19. The projects are net-fill undertakings with a combined total of over 250,000 cubic metres of fill required to adjust the grades to meet the design specifications for the widening and partial re-alignment of Britannia Road from Highway 25 through to James Snow Parkway and then along to the 407 ETR (a 9-kilometre stretch).
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XCG Knows... BRAT Modelling for Excess Soil Reuse
In 2021, XCG was retained to conduct a desktop study to evaluate the upper limits of concentrations that would be potentially acceptable for soil imported for the rehabilitation of a former gravel pit operation to future farmland use. The Client was previously approved for the generic Table 2 standards, but wanted to determine if the site characteristics would support concentrations that the local municipality wanted to impose (O. Reg. 406/19 Table 2.1 agricultural standards).
Following a detailed review of existing hydrogeological and annual monitoring reports to determine the actual site conditions (versus using book value ranges), XCG used the Beneficial Reuse Assessment Tool (BRAT Model), as prepared by the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP), to determine the upper limits of concentrations of various chemical parameters in soil that could be considered acceptable for the placement given the site-specific conditions present. The BRAT Model was used to develop site-specific excess soil quality standards by modifying (1) a limited number of physical characteristics of the excess soil and the reuse site; and/or, (2) the soil to groundwater exposure pathways through the use of leachate analysis.
XCG modelled a variety of site use characteristics, such as capping, site building constraints, and land use, to simulate multiple scenarios and generate associated outputs of site-specific soil quality standards.
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XCG Knows... Contacts
To talk about your excess soil management needs and to learn more about XCG’s capabilities in this area, please contact Grant Walsom or Kristian Peter at XCG.
D. Grant Walsom, B.A.Sc., P.Eng., QP Kristian Peter, B.Sc. (Eng.), P.Eng., QPESA
Partner Senior Project Manager
519-741-5774 ext 7246 519-741-5774 ext 7291
820 Trillium Drive 820 Trillium Drive
Kitchener, Ontario N2R 1K4 Kitchener, Ontario N2R 1K4