Halifax Harbour Cleanup Inc. - Halifax Regional Municipality

continuing sources of inputs to the Harbour waters and sediments.
The quality and quantity of wastewater entering the
collection system and the Harbour are important issues.
The Halifax Harbour Task Force established a set of water
quality objectives and guidelines for the Harbour, and concluded
that a reasonable strategy for meeting these was “to
begin with primary treatmant, a rigorous controls-at-source
program, and a monitoring program.” Upgrading to chemically
enhanced (advanced) primary treatment or secondary treatment
could be implemented in the future if environmental
considerations demanded it.
The public, all levels of government, HHCI and the Panel
endorsed the requirement for controls at source for
• toxic and hazardous substances from industrial, commercial,
domestic, and institutional sources
• water use through implementation of water conservation
measures by all users
• extraneous flows (infiltration/inflow) into sanitary and combined
sewer systems
• stormwater inflows to various catchment areas and retention-at-source
systems
Instead of the traditional engineering practice’ of attempting to
solve problems at the end of the pipe, the present approach,
is to focus on the concept of controls at source. Although
everyone subscribes to this philosophy, the modes of achieving
these worthwhile objectives constitute complex, challeng
ing and controversial issues and requirements.
4.4.2 Whose Responsibility?
HHCI repeatedly pointed out that developing controls-at-source
programs was not within its mandate. As presently
structured in the Province of Nova Scotia, the
municipalities are responsible for the management of all four
areas requiring controls at source listed above, with the exception
of toxic and hazardous discharges that enter the receiving
environment directly (as opposed to those discharged
into a wastewater collection system). Direct discharges to the
environment are provincially controlled under the Nova Scotia
Environmental Protection Act.
The failure to include the development of controls-at-source
programs in HHCl’s mandate was heavily criticized by the
public. HHCI emphasized that it was prepared to work with the
three levels of government and other institutions to encourage
the implementation of programs related to controls at source.
The burden of evidence and experience in other jurisdictions
indicates that it is most appropriate to designate the Province
as the lead agency in developing controls-at-source programs,
although all stakeholders must participate.. Relative to
the development, implementation and monitoring of controls
at source for the Halifax Harbour sewersheds, the federal,
provincial and municipal governments need to sort out their
respective jurisdictional responsibilities and how they will integrate
their regulatory, technical and public educational roles.
Universities and other research institutions have research and
educational roles. Harbour users who dispose of waste materials
into the Harbour, such as HHCI, have design, prevention
(implementation) and monitoring roles. Other interested
stakeholders have monitoring and public education roles.
The Panel believes that controls-at-source programs are the
foundation for maximizing the environmental protection and
enhancement of the Project.
10. The Panel recommends that comprehensive
controls-at-source programs be developed
and implemented in the Halifax Harbour
sewersheds. The Province should be the
lead agency, but the’devetopment of the programs
should include HHCI and other public
and private organizations with pollution control
and Harbour enhancement interests.
Regular reporting to the public should be an
integral feature of the controls-at-source
programs.
11. The Panel recommends that provision of
funds for the development of the controls-at-source
programs be a condition of
the decision to proceed with the Halifax-Dartmouth
Metropolitan Sewage Treatment
Facility Project, and that agreements
be amended as appropriate.
12. The Panel recommends that the years between
1993 and the commissioning of the
Project be used by the Province and municipalities
to implement the controls-at-source
programs as outlined in this Report. The
Province should be the lead agency. The
controls-at-source programs should include
education of all participants, and develop
ment of mutually consistent municipal
by-laws and initiatives.
4.4.3 Characteriring the Wastewater Streams
When undertaking development of new wastewater treatment
systems, as for Halifax Harbour, or when instituting remediation
procedures for old and damaged systems, it is important
to know what is being disposed of where, when, by whom and
in what quantity.
This knowledge is essential for the protection of living organisms
in the receiving waters and sediments, including organisms
eaten by people, as well as for process and
performance purposes and to establish certain design criteria.
Pollution charges, regulatory standards and programs are
based on these considerations; they are not abstract numbers
and activities.
The inputs of toxic and hazardous chemicals are the primary
reason to undertake detailed wastewater characterization, because
of the following risks: