The Municipality of Grey Highlands has engaged with B.M. Ross and Associates Limited to provide engineering services for the reconstruction of Brackenbury St and Lawler Dr in Markdale to meet municipal standards for urban roadways, including watermain and sanitary sewer replacements, and to investigate options to improve the existing stormwater management outlet in the catchment area.

The Municipality of Grey Highlands has initiated a Municipal Class Environmental Assessment (Class EA) process to address stormwater drainage deficiencies in the north quadrant of Markdale, in the vicinity of Lawler Dr and Brackenbury St, as shown on the Class EA Notice dated October 25, 2023. Planned upgrades to the existing road infrastructure will require improvements to existing drainage systems that service these areas. The Class EA process will include an evaluation of various alternatives available to improve existing drainage infrastructure and ensure that storm drainage facilities are sized appropriately and have a suitable outlet.

EA Process

The planning for this project is following the environmental screening process established for Schedule ‘B’ activities under the Municipal Class Environmental Assessment (Class EA) document. Schedule ‘B’ projects are approved subject to the completion of a screening process. The purpose of the Environmental Assessment process is to identify any potential environmental impacts associated with the proposal and to plan for appropriate mitigation of any impacts. The process includes consultation with the public, stakeholders, Indigenous communities, and review agencies.

The most recent updates for this project will be found at the top of the page.

The stormwater management system will be designed to achieve the “Enhanced Protection” level as per the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP) Stormwater Management Planning and Design Manual. The manual notes that this level of protection should be used when “sensitive aquatic habitat will be impacted by end-of-pipe discharge”, such as those with “high permeability soils” and “habitat sensitive to sediment and siltation (such as gravel bottom used for bass or brook trout spawning)” etc. “Enhanced Protection” is the highest level of protection noted in the manual, and “corresponds to the end-of-pipe storage volumes required for the long-term average removal of 80% of suspended solids”. It is important to note that this 80% would be determined on an average annual basis, not on an individual storm basis.

The design will incorporate whatever measures are necessary to achieve this “Enhanced Protection”. Currently, the design is considering a single Oil and Grit Separator (OGS) for the entire system to perform this quality control. It is possible that upon further detailed design we will discover that a single OGS may be insufficient, and a combination of multiple OGS’s and/or other measures may be required. Regardless of the solution, the design criterion is to achieve “Enhanced Protection” as defined above.

Following the Public Open House on November 21, 2024, the presentation boards have been uploaded to the Document Library.

The project team is welcoming written comments on the preliminary preferred alternative until Friday December 6th. Please submit comments to either Kelly Vader (kvader@bmross.net) from BMROSS or Shawn Moyer (moyers@greyhighlands.ca) from Grey Highlands.

A Public Open House has been scheduled to obtain input from residents on the project. The meeting will provide details about the Class EA process, investigations completed to date, and the preliminary preferred design alternative. Municipal staff and the project engineers will be available to answer questions.

Date: Thursday, November 21st, 2024
Location: Markdale Hall – 75 Walker Street, Markdale
Time: Open House – 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m

Notice of Public Open House uploaded to Document Library.

B.M. Ross and Associates Limited presented the Class EA alternative solutions to Council on October 16, 2024.

The presentation slide deck has been added to the Document Library, and the meeting recording is available following this link.

The consultation program for the Class EA process will include several opportunities for public input and involvement including a public information meeting. For the initial phase of the project, public input into the planning and design of this study will be accepted until December 1th, 2023. You may use the contact information below or go to www.connectgreyhighlands.ca to provide input. Any comments collected in conjunction with the Class EA process will be maintained on file for use during the project and may be included in project documentation. With the exception of personal information, all comments will become part of the public record.

For further information on this project, or to review the Class EA process, please contact the study engineers:

B.M. Ross and Associates

206 Industrial Drive, Box 1179

Mount Forest, ON, N0G 2L0.

Telephone: (519) 323-2945.

Attn: Kelly Vader, Environmental Planner (e-mail: kvader@bmross.net)