Guideline to address odour mixtures in Ontario

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On June 28, 2023, the Ministry of the Environment Conservation and Parks posted a Policy Decision to the Environmental Registry of Ontario stating that the province is NOT proceeding with the proposed “Guideline to Address Odour Mixtures in Ontario”, originally posted on May 4, 2021.  The proposed guideline received a total of 45 comments, many filed by differing levels of government, industry associations, community groups and individuals.  The comments are certainly worth reading.

https://ero.ontario.ca/notice/019-2768

For now, the existing patchwork of documents upon which practitioners have come to rely remain in effect, including, but not limited to:

  • The requirements pertaining to odour under O. Reg. 1/17

  • The “EASR – limits and other requirements for activities with air emissions” document.

  • The Technical Bulletin – Methodology for Modeling Assessments of Contaminants with 10 Minute Average Standards and Guidelines under O. Reg. 419/05

As well, many practitioners will know of Ontario Land Tribunal decisions and Environmental Compliance Approval conditions that further flesh out this area of knowledge.

In the words of one practitioner, who shall remain anonymous, “So, we keep trundling along with the regulatory regime as it is, such as it is.”