York Factory First Nation Remedial Actions Project

The York Factory First Nation Remedial Actions Project will involve the excavation of a total of

approximately 1,155 m3 of petroleum hydrocarbon (PHC), impacted soil from two (2) separate sites in

the community:

• 1,140 m3 of petroleum hydrocarbon (PHC)/volatile organic compound (VOC) impacted soil at the Former Public Works Yard site; and,

• 15 m3 of petroleum hydrocarbon (PHC) impacted soil at the Former Maintenance Garage and Tank Farm Site (the Site) in York Factory First Nation.

The petroleum hydrocarbon impacted soil will be hauled to a new community landfarm for treatment.

 

The Former Maintenance Garage and Tank Farm Site is located centrally within the community, and

consists of (1) active 75,000 L split gasoline/diesel aboveground storage tank (AST) with dispenser and

utility shed, located within the northern portion of the site (tank farm area) and a vacant lot within the

southern portion. Neighboring land use includes mixed residential and commercial development. Aiken

River is located within 410 m south of the Site.

 

The Former Public Works Yard Site is located within the western portion of the community, and is

currently used as a metals dump, vehicle scrapyard, drum storage area, tires and other random debris.

Numerous aboveground storage tanks (AST) were identified at various locations, including an inactive

25,000 l diesel tank. The site is surrounded by dense tree coverage. The nearest residential property is

located approximately 120 m east of the site. Aiken River is located within 220 m south of the Site.

 

A new landfarm facility is proposed for construction within the reserve boundary. The proposed

landfarm site is located within the eastern portion of the community along the winter road alignment,

within an undeveloped, forested area.

 

Construction work will be initiated by the successful Contractor in the spring of 2021, and will
commence with the construction of an access road to the landfarm site. Road upgrades will be
undertaken along the existing gravel road which bypasses the quarry site. The bypass road will be
extended further southeast towards the new landfarm site on the existing winter road. Landfarm
construction activities will include clearing and grubbing of 1.4 hectares of forested area, grading the cell
floor, followed by the installation of a 60 mil HDPE liner and non-woven geotextiles. A subsurface
drainage collection system consisting of buried piping and sand bedding will be installed. Perimeter
ditching and berms, erosion control mats, and monitoring wells will also be included in the design
layout.

 

Site preparation activities at the Former Maintenance Garage and Tank Farm Site will include temporary
removal of the AST, dispenser unit and buried electrical lines, along with the crushed gravel pad
overlying the northern portion of the former tank farm, in order to access the underlying impacted soil.
A Licensed Petroleum Technician (LPT) will be retained to disconnect the fuel system, remove product
and purge the AST prior to removal to a temporary location onsite. The AST will be reinstalled in its
original location, following the soil remediation activities. No clearing or grubbing is anticipated at the
site.
Site preparation activities at the Former Public Works Yard Site will include decommissioning of all of the
abandoned ASTs by a Licensed Petroleum Technician (LPT) and off-site removal for disposal. The
numerous barrels, some filled with a mixture of diesel fuel, glycol, waste oil, and contaminated water
will also require proper removal and disposal. Any derelict equipment, metals and vehicles should be
set aside for crushing, and removed off-site for disposal. Once the waste metals are removed from the
Site, Aski recommends additional testpits be excavated within the east portion of the Site during the soil
remediation activities, to ensure that no additional PHC impacts related to the storage of heavy
equipment/metal waste items exist. No clearing or grubbing is anticipated at the site.


Excavation activities at the sites will begin in the summer of 2021. During the course of the soil
excavation activities, the limits of the excavation will be assessed using field screening techniques. The
final limits of the excavation (vertical and horizontal extents) will be subject to field screening and
confirmatory laboratory analysis of CWS F1-F4 hydrocarbon fractions and CCME CEQG benzene, toluene,
ethylbenzene and xylenes (BTEX) concentrations. All laboratory results will be compared to current
CCME residential land use guidelines. The excavated area will be backfilled with clean soil from a
selected borrow area and the impacted soil will be hauled to the community landfarm for
treatment/augmentation.


Remedial measures will also include the treatment of hydrocarbon impacted water that may accumulate
in the excavation during site remediation due to seepage or precipitation, by means of a water
treatment system. To address water infiltration or precipitation, a water treatment system will be made
available throughout the excavation work to treat any accumulation of impacted water. Coalescing
separators and clay/carbon filtration/polish systems shall be implemented to deal with hydrocarbon
impacted water at the source. Treated water will be sampled and analyzed for hydrocarbon
concentrations, prior to discharge. The same treatment methodology and treatment system will be
used to treat impacted water accumulated within the sump at the landfarm treatment cell.

 

For the duration of the project, roadways will be watered on a regular basis for dust control and
regraded. The water will be retrieved from the water pump house. In order to ensure the protection of
the general public, safety personnel will be retained throughout the duration of the project. This will
include an on-site flagman to provide traffic/pedestrian control, as well as site security personnel during
non-construction hours. In addition, safety fencing will be erected at the remedial sites prior to
initiating any construction work and will remain in place until backfilling activities are complete.

More


Latest update

July 2, 2021 – Indigenous Services Canada issued its notice of determination and determined that the project is not likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects.

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Key documents

Key documents
Document Number Document Title File Date
2 Notice of Determination for the York Factory First Nation Remedial Actions Project - July 2, 2021
1 York Factory First Nation Remedial Actions Project - March 28, 2021

Contacts

Indigenous Services Canada
Dan Benoit, Sr Environmental Specialist
365 Hargrave Street
Winnipeg, Manitoba R3B 3A3
Telephone: 204-599-8579
Fax: 204-983-2936
Email: daniel.benoit@canada.ca


  • Location

    • York Factory First Nation (Manitoba)
    • York Factory First Nation (Manitoba)
  • Nature of Activity

    • Remediation and conservation
  • Assessment Status

    Completed
  • Start Date

    2021-03-28
  • Proponent

    York Factory First Nation
  • Authorities

    • Indigenous Services Canada
  • Assessment Type

    Project on federal lands
  • Reference Number

    81478
Disclaimer

This map is for illustrative purposes. The markers represent the approximate locations based on available data. More than one marker may be identified for a given assessment.

 

Nearby assessments

...within 200 kilometres
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