EJQ7 - Winter 2026 - Journal - Page 30
Public bodies may now coordinate soil movement among themselves,
even without concurrent or coordinated project timelines, enhancing
e昀케ciency across municipal infrastructure projects.
stormwater management ponds, eliminating the prior requirement to
sample stockpiled sediment. This change reduces handling, time, and
cost. The Soil Rules set out speci昀椀c frequencies and required parameters for in-situ testing. Post-dredging con昀椀rmatory sampling requirements were removed following stakeholder feedback that such measures were duplicative.
4. Reduced reuse planning requirements
6. Development of regional background concentration mapping
When soil is moved from an infrastructure project area to an infrastructure reuse site, project leaders are now exempt from most reuse planning
requirements, such as past use assessments, sampling and analysis, destination assessment reports, and tracking system obligations.
MECP will develop regional mapping of naturally occurring local
background concentrations to support soil reuse decisions and reduce
unnecessary testing. Municipalities expressed strong support for
this approach, encouraging the province to take a leadership role
in creating region-level data standards. Details will be provided as
the initiative progresses, but we know that this will be a challenging
undertaking.
likely to be contaminated. The Soil Rules specify which infrastructure
projects are considered a similar type.
A notice 昀椀ling in the Excess Soil Registry remains required if triggered.
This exemption applies even where the reuse site is privately owned, signi昀椀cantly reducing administrative burden for infrastructure proponents.
7. Clari昀椀cations, corrections, and minor amendments
5. In-situ sampling for stormwater pond sediment
The regulation now permits in-situ sampling of sediment directly from
The amendments also include several updates aimed at improving
clarity and reducing regulatory uncertainty. The MECP clari昀椀ed that
E N V I RON M E N T J OURN A L QUA RT E RLY RE PORT • W I N T ER 2 02 6 • P AGE 3 0
