An illegal dump site in the Columbia Valley is discharging leachate into the ground that could contaminate ground water, according to a report from the Ministry of Environment.
Concerned residents in the Lindell Beach and Cultus Lake neighbourhoods felt vindicated last summer when the Agricultural Land Commission ordered all the waste removed from the site.
The Abbotsford-based company Fraser Valley Renewables (FVR) was given until May 31 to remove the huge piles of waste from the agricultural property owned by Bruce Vanderwyk at 810 Iverson Road. It did not have the required permits to deposit what was classified as business waste, and later found to be contaminated with “foreign matter” like plastics.
The removal started last year but then stopped short after less than 50 truckloads.
Now the company could be facing “administrative penalties,” after a recent inspection by Ministry of Environment looked into the leachate and runoff pooling at the base of the partially covered waste piles.
“FVR must immediately cease the unauthorized discharge of waste into the environment and implement additional measures to reduce the risks to the receiving environment,” the MOE report says.
The site is in a high precipitation area and “over a vulnerable aquifer recharge area” in Chilliwack, the MOE report underlined, and situated on silt loam, or well-drained soil.
“Based on this information and a review of the ALS sample data, the discharge of leachate to the ground at this site could be a potential source of contamination for groundwater.”
Resident D’Arcy Henderson said it has been “beyond frustrating and infuriating” living across from the dump site where the massive piles of malodorous waste are awaiting removal, knowing they could be polluting their drinking water sources.
Some neighbours formed the group, Cultus-Columbia Valley Action Committee, to push for more decisive action by the regulatory agencies.
The company admits to dumping about 1,500 truckloads in total in 2022, but the action committee estimates it’s more like 2,000 to 3,000 truckloads over a period of months, only to subsequently be ordered for removal last year by the ALC by the end of May 2024.
The first truckloads started removing the illegal waste in June 2023.
“But there no indication that it’s all going to be moved by the deadline,” Henderson said, given how much material still remains.
READ MORE: Pace of illegal waste removal too slow
The initial story residents were told was that the waste company would be bringing in 300 loads of “compostable” organic waste materials that would sit for a while on the agricultural property, and then be applied to the land and be composted, and or sell the compost.
“In that context it sounded like a reasonable suggestion,” Henderson said.
The waste was later classified as “business waste” not compost, when it failed to meet the quality criteria, due to “foreign matter” such as drywall and plastic contaminants that were mixed in with the other organic materials.
Company reps were ordered to stop trucking in more garbage in September 2022, and to cover the piles with plastic to prevent runoff and leaching, and to stop the blowing plastic from polluting. The company applied to the FVRD for a permit to treat the materials on-site, such as sifting out the plastic, but that was flatly denied.
Cultus resident Coralea Towler, a member of the action committee, said they hope the report spurs action.
“This appears to be good news because the MOE has recognized that there is contamination, leaching and that this is a concern for Aquifer 20.”
The company has been referred for “administrative penalties” but it’s not clear what that means, or how much they could be fined, Towler said.
But the real question for the residents is what happens after May 31 if the garbage is still there, and will taxpayers money have to be used to remove the waste and remediate the site.
“An equally disturbing question is, if they take it away, where is it going?” Towler said.
“With more than 25 illegal dump sites in the Fraser Valley Regional District, and the deplorable situation of garbage being dumped in Hatzic Lake area, there is cause for concern for everyone.”
The neighbours not only want the site cleaned up, but are pushing for legislation to prevent this from ever happening again.
“Illegally dumping has become such as provincewide problem,” Henderson said. “The provincial government needs to step up their game. We need a better plan.”
