An environmental advocate from the Township of the North Shore in northeastern Ontario is applauding a push from industry groups calling for increased use of recycled aggregates in infrastructure projects.
Rhonda Kirby is a member of the Reform Gravel Mining Coalition, and for nearly a decade has actively opposed a proposed quarry that would be located near the north shore of Lake Huron.
“If approved, it will have lasting devastating impacts on wetlands and local waterways and a number of species at risk,” she said.
A 2019 study from Laurentian University researchers determined that the area for the proposed quarry, located outside Blind River along the edge of Lauzon Lake, had among the highest reported densities for Blanding’s turtles in Ontario.
During their field research, scientists found 56 of the species in the area, for a density of 1.8 turtles per hectare.
Blanding’s turtles are recognized as a threatened species in Ontario and protected under the Endangered Species Act.
A group called the Reform Gravel Mining Coalition is calling for a moratorium on all new quarries in Ontario. (The Wilderness Committee)
Kirby said Darien Aggregates, the company that would build and run the quarry, is expected to submit its notice of completion for the project soon.
Ontario’s Ministry of Natural Resources would then review the application, which would become available for input from the public before final approval.
But Kirby said it’s her hope that an initiative from some gravel industry groups to use more recycled materials will reduce the need for new pits and quarries.
Environmental benefits
Using more recycled aggregate would also have environmental benefits.
The industry coalition — which includes the Toronto and Area Road Builders Association, the Ontario Sand, Stone, and Gravel Association and the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) — says mandating a 20 per cent recycled aggregate requirement would reduce greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to removing 15 million cars from the road every year.
Currently, less than seven per cent of aggregate used for infrastructure in Ontario is recycled.
Teresa Di Felice, assistant vice-president of government and community relations for CAA South Central Ontario, said it’s up to municipalities to decide how much recycled aggregate they use in their procurement agreements.
But the coalition is pushing for a provincial standard that would require municipalities to meet that 20 per cent threshold.
Di Felice said around 100 million tonnes of aggregate are used in Ontario every year and a majority of the waste ends up in landfills.
With recycled aggregate, she said, the source is often the project that is being repaired or upgraded.
A road upgrade, for example, might use recycled aggregate material from that same road.
“You could take those, do the cleaning that needs to be done within the parameters of the project itself,” Di Felice said.
She added that testing from the Ontario Society of Professional Engineers has shown that recycled aggregates meet the quality standards needed for roads and other infrastructure.
“These roads have not experienced, you know, potholes or any degradation of the pavement,” she said.
Mike Balkwill, vice-president of campaigns and engagement for the Small Change Fund, which is associated with the Reform Gravel Mining Coalition, said the move from the gravel industry to embrace more recycled aggregates is welcome news.
“What I want to hope to believe is that they recognize that we’re facing a climate crisis and that carbon emissions must be reduced,” he said.