Randle Reef contaminated sediment remediation project
Backgrounder
In 1985, Hamilton Harbour was identified as an Area of Concern under the Canada-United States Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement due to significant water quality impairment.
Randle Reef is an area of contaminated sediment located in Hamilton Harbour that is approximately 60 hectares in size. It contains 695,000 cubic metres of contaminated sediment at the bottom of the harbour—a volume that would fill a major hockey arena three times over.
The clean-up project will cost $138.9 million and will be completed in 2022. Environment and Climate Change Canada, and the Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change, have each committed $46.3 million, with the final third of funding coming from the City of Hamilton, the City of Burlington, Halton Region, the Hamilton Port Authority, and U.S. Steel Canada.
The project involves constructing an Engineered Containment Facility (ECF). This specially designed double steel-walled and lined 'box' is approximately 6.2 hectares in size, and is being constructed to contain the most heavily contaminated sediment. In total, the project will safely address 695,000 cubic metres of sediment contaminated with coal tar (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) and heavy metals.
Stage One includes re-construction of an existing harbour pier wall and construction of the ECF. This first stage began in September 2015 with the pier wall re-construction. In-water construction of the ECF began in May 2016. Construction of the ECF is expected to be complete by the fall of 2017.
Stage Two includes the dredging of contaminated sediments from the surrounding areas and placing them in the ECF via an underwater pipeline. This stage is expected to begin in 2018 and be completed by late 2019.
Stage Three includes the de-watering of the contained sediments and construction of a cap on the ECF. This stage is expected to begin in 2020 and be completed in 2022.
Real-time environmental monitoring systems will be used to measure air and water quality in the construction area throughout these stages. Air and water quality criteria have been established to ensure that human health and the environment are protected.
The $138.9 million Randle Reef project will improve water quality and reduce contamination in Hamilton Harbour. It is estimated the project will generate approximately $151 million in economic benefits, including job creation, business development, and tourism.
Cleaning up Randle Reef is the last remaining major environmental restoration action towards the removal of Hamilton Harbour from the list of Great Lakes Areas of Concern.
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Hon. Catherine McKenna Environment and Climate Change Canada Nature and Environment