Lake Simcoe, Ontario

Transcription

1 Innovative solutions are required to decrease the phosphorus loading to Lake Simcoe to improve water quality, support a sustainable cold-water fishery, and protect recreational opportunities. Location: Lake Simcoe, Ontario Challenge: Improve lake water quality and aquatic habitat by reducing phosphorus loading in the upstream Solution: Results: Create a framework for a phosphorus offset program to address nutrient loading in stormwater runoff from new urban development and redevelopment Accommodate urban growth while protecting water quality and create an offset program framework that can be adapted for other regions Lake Simcoe, Ontario Phosphorus Offset Program Development To Restore Aquatic Ecosystem Health Lake Simcoe, located in southern Ontario, is a valued resource that offers many benefits, including water for drinking and recreation, fish for eating, and a diverse natural environment for enjoying. This resource is impacted by activities within the 2,899- square-kilometer that drains into Lake Simcoe. In particular, excessive phosphorus runoff impairs the Lake water quality, harms the aquatic ecosystem, and diminishes recreational enjoyment. A phosphorus offset program was developed for the Lake Simcoe to address nutrient loading from urban development. Phase I of this program will be implemented from 2014 to 2018 to demonstrate the approach and generate feedback for future refinements. This project was initiated by the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority (LSRCA) and was partially funded through a grant from the Showcasing Water Innovation program, the LSRCA, City of Barrie, and Regional Municipality of York. Background The long-term goal for Lake Simcoe is to fully restore aquatic ecosystem health. This restoration will support a self-sustaining cold-water fishery and lake-wide recreational opportunities. Excessive phosphorus inputs to the lake represent the major challenge associated with attaining this vision. Existing efforts to regulate and voluntarily manage phosphorus have been beneficial, but new urban development is expected to increase phosphorus loading absent new policies.

2 LAKE SIMCOE PHOSPHORUS OFFSET PROGRAM Existing Management Efforts and New Growth The Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority (LSRCA), in partnership with the Province of Ontario and local stakeholders, is actively pursuing phosphorus management within the. A range of technological and regulatory-based strategies has already been deployed. In 2008, the History of phosphorus loading within the Lake Simcoe. Province of Ontario passed the Lake Simcoe Protection Act (LSPA) and subsequently adopted the Lake Simcoe Protection Plan (LSPP). Several policies and programs were promulgated under the LSPP, including the development of the Phosphorus Reduction Strategy (PRS), which was released in July 2010 and set a goal of 44T/year of phosphorus. The PRS outlines a longterm approach for achieving this goal, focusing on the primary sources within the. growth between 2014 and Even after accounting for required on-site stormwater and phosphorus control measures, new development will contribute approximately 5 T/year of phosphorus to the Lake. To mitigate the potential increase in load and protect water quality, the LSRCA proposed a Zero Export policy for the Lake Simcoe. Under this policy, no phosphorus runoff would be permitted from any new or redevelopment site larger than 0.5 hectares. However, space and cost limitations could make it difficult or impossible to control all phosphorus loads on-site. Therefore, managers sought an innovative approach that would provide developers with flexibility while still protecting water quality. Need for Innovation To balance the competing objectives of growth and improved environmental quality, managers solicited a study to assess the feasibility of utilizing New development and redevelopment contributes additional phosphorus load, which can be offset by stormwater controls elsewhere in the. The success of these efforts could be threatened by new urban development unless additional policies are implemented. The Lake Simcoe is projected to add approximately 12,290 hectares of new water quality trading (WQT) to help reduce nutrient loads. Trading reflects a market-based approach that can PAGE 2

3 provide a flexible alternative for costeffectively achieving water quality objectives. A 2010 WQT feasibility study conducted for Lake Simcoe concluded that trading was a viable option for the, and the project described herein built on those efforts and developed a framework for program implementation. It should be noted that during this process, the nomenclature shifted from trading to offsetting to better reflect the activities taking place. Offset Program Approach The Lake Simcoe Phosphorus Offset Program (LSPOP) was designed to provide a flexible option to reduce phosphorus loading to the Lake. An offset approach enables entities to mitigate nutrient loading by purchasing offsets that are generated by load reductions achieved elsewhere in the. The goal of LSPOP is to accelerate progress toward the longterm, sustainable reduction of the total phosphorus load reaching Lake Simcoe kilogram of residual load after accounting for onsite controls, 2.5 kilograms of offset would be required. Program implementation is recommended to take place using a phased approach. The initial, pilot, phase will focus exclusively on mitigating phosphorus loads from urban stormwater associated with new development and redevelopment. The program may evolve to incorporate other phosphorus sources if specific opportunities arise. Stakeholder Engagement Program developers recognized that the success of the project would require widespread consensus and endorsement of project outcomes. Therefore, a project Steering Committee was established at the beginning of the project. This committee consisted of the LSRCA, its partner municipalities, and individuals and groups with whom the LSRCA routinely engages on environmental issues. In addition, a Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MOECC) Liaison Group was established and a pilot offset project working group was formed. Public outreach and consultation involved multiple efforts, including: Incorporating offsets into phosphorus management will generate a net load reduction of nearly 7 T/year from urban development. and its tributary watercourses. If the LSPOP were implemented along with the Zero Export policy, an approximately 7 T/year reduction in phosphorus load could be achieved even with the projected urban growth. This assumes a 2.5:1 offset ratio would be applied, meaning that for every A survey of stakeholders Four community workshops Creation of a citizen s guide describing the concept and details of phosphorus offsetting The consultation process provided the project team with valuable insight into public perceptions and helped the final program recommendations achieve stakeholder acceptance. PAGE 3

4 Program Development The LSPOP was designed to build on existing conservation actions as much as possible in order to avoid duplication of efforts and reduce overall costs. One existing parallel program is the Landowner Environmental Assistance Program (LEAP). This program provides funding to individuals in the for implementing projects that generate environmental benefits. Projects funded through LEAP that generate phosphorus load reductions will contribute to a back-up offset pool. This pool will provide insurance against any shortfalls in the primary offset pool and is intended as only a temporary and occasional measure. The major new program associated with the LSPOP is the Urban Stormwater Retrofit Program (USRP). The proposed USRP will provide phosphorus load offsets through improvements to existing stormwater control measures in existing built-up urban areas, installation of new treatment projects, or implementation of low impact development (LID) practices in existing urban catchment areas. Framework and Policies A program framework and set of principles and policies were developed to guide LSPOP implementation. Program policies describe program boundaries, participation eligibility requirements, and recommended offset ratios to ensure environmental benefits are achieved. The framework was designed to reflect program policies and provides the details regarding program governance and administration, verification of offsetgenerating projects, and tracking and reporting procedures. An operations manual also was developed to provide detailed step-by-step procedures for obtaining and generating offsets, calculating phosphorus loads and reductions, verifying offset generation, and performing administrative tasks. Pilot Phase Demonstration Phase I of the LSPOP was designed to address phosphorus loading from urban stormwater associated with new development and redevelopment. Runoff from these areas will be controlled to the maximum extent possible on site. Remaining phosphorus loads will be offset by phosphorus reductions achieved at other locations in the sub- or adjacent subs. These offsets would be generated by retrofitting existing stormwater control practices to enhance nutrient removal performance. LSPOP Governance PAGE 4

5 It was estimated that 2,775 hectares of urban expansion would occur during Phase I (from 2014 to 2018). This would result in a total residual phosphorus load of 1.05 T/year by In order to meet offset demand (adjusting for a 2.5:1 offset ratio applied to ensure environmental benefits are achieved), it would be necessary to implement an average of 29 to 30 retrofit projects per year during Phase I, reaching a total reduction of 1.9 T/year by Over the five years, this corresponds to an estimated $91.8 million in project costs, not including $400,000/year in administrative costs and initial two-year monitoring costs of $520,000. During Phase I, these costs will be covered by purchase commitments from land developers. The preliminary estimate is that load offset purchases would cost approximately $32,200 per hectare of greenfield area or about $1,820 per residential unit. These estimates reflect average values that would be applied to all offset purchases. It is expected that this cost might need to be adjusted as Phase I of the LSPOP proceeds. As the program matures, the financing model will shift towards a self-sustaining mode of operation. This model ideally would be based on financing new offset projects entirely through revenue generated from the sale of offsets. During latter phases, the program could transition to providing off-the-shelf offsets. The stormwater retrofit projects are expected to be owned and maintained by the local municipality. The cost for ongoing operation and maintenance will be borne directly by the municipality. These projects will be integrated into existing stormwater management infrastructure. It is expected that the necessary revenue will be obtained through current or new methods for funding stormwater system maintenance. Next Steps Critical to the LSPOP will be formally establishing the zero-export policy and the USRP. Similarly, agreements for offset purchases and retrofits projects will need to be enacted. Potential Applicability of the Offset Approach for Other Watersheds The LSPOP Phase I was tailored to a set of specific issues in the Lake Simcoe. The basic conceptual model used to balance urban growth with water quality protection by applying offsets is transferable to any location meeting the basic feasibility criteria for offset programs. These criteria include: Well-defined sources and amounts of pollution Incentives, through regulation or otherwise, that encourage offsetting Pollutant discharges that can be more cost-effectively reduced by working with other dischargers in the For more information on this project contact: Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority - Mr. Mike Walters 120 Bayview Parkway, Newmarket, Ontario L3Y 3W m.walters@lsrca.on.ca This project received funding support from the Government of Ontario. Such support does not indicate endorsement by the Government of Ontario of the contents of this material. PAGE 5