HomeMy WebLinkAboutBLD 01-21Report to Council
Report Number: BLD 01-21 Date: November 22, 2021
From: Kyle Bentley
Director, City Development & CBO
Subject: Designated Substances and Building Permits - File: D-5000
Recommendation:
1. That BLD 01-21 from the Director, City Development & CBO regarding Designated
Substances and Building Permits be received for information; and
2. That the appropriate officials of the City of Pickering be authorized to take the necessary actions as indicated in this report.
Executive Summary: At the September 27 Council meeting, Council received correspondence (see Council Corr. 37-21, Attachment #1) and verbal delegations from residents, expressing concerns regarding the City’s authorized demolition of a dwelling located at 786 Oliva Street and the presence of asbestos material, which is Provincially defined to be a designated substance.
These residents have recommended changes to the City’s building permit process for new construction, renovations, and demolition so as to control the removal and disposal of asbestos and other hazardous substances. Specifically, the residents recommended that the City require designated substance reports (DSR) prior to the issuance of building and demolition permits, and that Building Services staff should be trained to monitor the safe
handling and removal of hazardous materials.
The Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) regulates the handling or control of designated substances and identifies applicable roles and responsibilities of various persons in this regard. Although the enforcement of designated substances are outside of the City’s jurisdiction, Building Services are incorporating a series of steps within the permit process to
ensure the property owner/applicant is aware of their obligations under the OHSA concerning designated substances, and to facilitate communication between the owner and the Ministry of Labour, who enforce such Provincial requirements.
Staff continue to encourage all residents having concerns with construction activity in Pickering to contact Customer Care, or alternatively, a Building Services representative.
Financial Implications: No direct costs to the City are anticipated.
Report BLD 01-21 November 22, 2021
Subject: Designated Substances and Building Permits Page 2
1. Background:
1.1 The Building Code Act
The Building Code Act, 1992, (BCA) establishes the roles and responsibilities of the municipalities to enforce this Act and its regulations, including the Ontario Building Code, O. Reg. 332/12, as amended (OBC). Specifically, the Chief Building Official (CBO), as appointed by this Council, is responsible for establishing operational policies for, and to co-ordinate and oversee, enforcement of the BCA and the OBC in an
independent manner. While the BCA identifies general requirements for various persons to obtain building permits and/or demolition permits when causing construction, the Building By-law (By-law 7362-14, as amended) is one tool used to establish detailed procedures to administer building permits, to set fees, to require documents in support
of applications, and to conduct inspections that are mandated and identified in the OBC.
Building Officials are provided with regular and ongoing training and guidance (through a variety of means) to understand various construction techniques, and building technologies, and to competently enforce building code requirements. The enforcement authority of the CBO and building officials are very specific to the design and
construction/demolition of buildings as legislated within the BCA and the OBC, and this
authority does not extend to the enforcement of other legislation overseen by external agencies, or Authorities Having Jurisdiction.
1.2 The Occupational Health and Safety Act
The Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA), which is overseen by the Ministry of
Labour (MOL), prescribes requirements to protect people from the risk of injury or ill
health by:
• ensuring employees’ health, safety and welfare at work;
• protecting non-employees against the health and safety risks arising from work
activities; and
• controlling the keeping and use of explosive or highly flammable or dangerous substances.
The OHSA defines a designated substance as “…a biological, chemical or physical
agent or combination thereof prescribed as a designated substance to which the exposure of a worker is prohibited, regulated, restricted, limited or controlled”.
One regulation under the OHSA, Ontario Regulation 278/05 – Designated Substances – Asbestos on Construction Projects and in Buildings and Repair Operations, prescribes asbestos as a designated substance, and applies to various types of buildings, vessels
and vehicles which may contain a designated substances such as asbestos. Section 2(4) states: “This regulation does not apply to an owner of a private residence occupied by the owner or the owner’s family or to an owner of a residential building that contains not more than four dwelling units, one of which is occupied by the registered owner or family of the registered owner.”
Report BLD 01-21 November 22, 2021
Subject: Designated Substances and Building Permits Page 3
The OHSA identifies provisions for the appointment of Provincial officers for the
enforcement of this Act and to ensure compliance. The OHSA does not provide any
legislated authority for municipalities, or specifically for Building Officials, to enforce the requirements of this Act from a building construction or demolition perspective.
1.3 The Environmental Protection Act
The Environmental Protection Act (EPA), overseen by the Ministry of Environment,
Parks and Conservation (MOE), identifies requirements that provide for the protection
and conservation of the natural environment and specifically addresses matters such as airborne particulate that can create a potential hazard. The EPA establishes roles and responsibilities to various parties involved in the generation of air born particulate for waste management, among other situations.
Section 26 of the EPA identifies that: “This Part [Waste Management] does not apply to
the storage or disposal by any person of the person’s domestic wastes on the person’s own property unless the Director [at the Ministry] is of the opinion, based upon reasonable grounds, that such storage or disposal is or is likely to create a nuisance, or to any sewage or other works to which the Ontario Water Resources Act or the Regulations
thereunder apply.”
The EPA identifies provisions for the appointment of Provincial officers for the enforcement of this Act and to ensure compliance. Similar to the OHSA, the EPA does not provide any legislated authority for municipalities, or specifically for Building Officials, to enforce the requirements of this Act from a building construction or demolition perspective.
2. Discussion:
2.1 Current Practice
The Building By-law (By-law 7362/14, as amended) identifies the City’s building permit submission requirements. For low-rise residential new construction or renovation projects, the applicant is required to submit a completed application form, fees, site plan showing the location of the proposed construction, drawings detailing the scope of
construction work, and supporting technical documents. Additionally, renovation projects typically include drawings that identify the area which will be demolished and rebuilt. A designated substance report (DSR) is not required for this type of construction. The submitted documents are reviewed by staff for compliance with the requirements as set out by the OBC.
Once an application has been determined to comply with the OBC, engineering requirements, applicable zoning regulations, and the outstanding fees are collected, the associated building permit is issued. Periodic inspections are undertaken at key milestones throughout the construction process as required by the OBC, and the Building By-law. However, the property owners and their contractors are ultimately
responsible for complying with the OBC and other applicable legislation throughout the construction activity.
Report BLD 01-21 November 22, 2021
Subject: Designated Substances and Building Permits Page 4
For low-rise residential demolition projects, the applicant is required to submit a
completed demolition application form, a completed demolition approvals form that
confirms utility agency disconnection sign offs, and a site plan showing the structure to be demolished. These documents are reviewed by staff and, where the information is determined to be complete, a demolition permit is issued to the applicant. Once the work has been completed, a site inspection is conducted to confirm that the building has
been removed and that the remaining site is safe (e.g., holes in the ground are
backfilled to grade level, etc.).
For demolition of large buildings (greater than 600 square metres (6,460 square feet) in area and/or exceeding 3 storeys in height), the OBC requires owners to retain a professional engineer to submit additional information to identify the structural
characteristics of these buildings, to address the safe removal of these buildings, and to
undertake general review of the demolition. The OHSA and related regulations identifies the circumstances for when a property owner may be required to obtain a DSR as a part of their project. Such a report is not required to accompany the demolition permit for approval by the City. Where it has been established that a DSR is required, and the
owner has failed to produce one, upon notification, the MOL would be responsible to
take appropriate action. Periodic inspections are undertaken in accordance with the OBC and the inspectors will review applicable consulting engineering reports to verify that demolition has proceeded in compliance with the engineer’s requirements.
2.2 Industry Standard
Staff have researched building permit processes within various Greater Toronto Area
(GTA) municipalities. The majority of these municipalities (including those in Durham Region) do not require a DSR as a prerequisite to issue building permits for the construction or renovation of residential type buildings, or as a condition of demolition permit issuance. For situations where municipalities are made aware of a possible
designated substance on or at a property for which a permit has been issued, the
respective ministry is promptly notified by the building official.
Some municipalities include verbiage that a DSR may be required as per the MOL, and failure to provide this at the request of a ministry inspector may result in their project being shut down. This notification is done as a courtesy for the applicant and is not
enforceable by the municipality (for the reasons noted above). Several municipalities
have advised that the inspections will not be completed unless a DSR is provided and the demolition site is safe for City staff to enter. In Western Canada, several municipalities have made it a requirement as part of their demolition permit process. A Vancouver area municipality will not issue a demolition permit until a DSR is submitted
with the demolition permit application, reviewed and verified by staff. While not within
their legal authority to do so, they state it is done in the interest of public safety. It should be noted that Vancouver has unique legislative authority to establish their own Building Code, which is specific to that City. The City of Pickering, like all other Ontario municipalities, are subject to the OBC and do not have such ability.
Report BLD 01-21 November 22, 2021
Subject: Designated Substances and Building Permits Page 5
2.3 Council Correspondence
At the September 27, 2021 Council meeting, Council received correspondence (see
Council Corr. 37-21, Attachment #1) and verbal delegations from residents, expressing concerns regarding the City’s authorized demolition of a dwelling located at 786 Oliva Street and the presence of asbestos material, which is considered to be a designated substance.
These residents have recommended changes to the City’s building permit process for
construction, renovation, and demolition so as to control the removal and disposal of asbestos and other hazardous substances. Specifically, the residents recommended that the City require a DSR prior to the issuance of building and demolition permits, and that Building Services staff should be trained to monitor the safe handling and removal
of hazardous materials.
Staff appreciate the efforts by these residents to contact the City about their concerns with regards to asbestos within this building. Upon notification of the likely presence of asbestos, staff promptly notified representatives within the MOL and MOE. As expressed in the correspondence, the MOL took appropriate action to follow up with the
property owners to rectify.
Notwithstanding that the enforcement of designated substances are outside of the City’s jurisdiction, in consideration of the above situation, the apparent gaps within the Provincial legislative framework, and evidence of measures being undertaken in some municipalities, staff are incorporating the following steps on a go-forward basis:
• Any job site safety complaints that are sent into the Customer Care and/or Building Services will continue to be forwarded to the MOL for investigation and action in accordance with their mandate.
• Applicants will be required to acknowledge their obligation to obtain an
environmental assessment report, at their cost, where valid concerns have been raised about the presence of a designated substance at the property, and be required to follow all remediation steps as directed in the report.
• The project inspector will facilitate communication between the MOL and the
property owner, where an environmental assessment report is required, to ensure that the necessary remediation has been carried out to the satisfaction of the MOL.
With respect to residents’ recommendations about a Pickering hotline, it is important to acknowledge the City’s Customer Care Centre, which has been in existence for many
years and has proven to be an effective resource for residents to communicate with the
City. Staff continue to encourage all residents having concerns with construction activity in Pickering to contact Customer Care, or alternatively, a Building Services representative.
Report BLD 01-21 November 22, 2021
Subject: Designated Substances and Building Permits Page 6
Attachment:
1. Council Corr. 37-21
Prepared By:
Original Signed By
Carl Kolbe
Manager, Building Services & CBO
Approved/Endorsed By:
Original Signed By
Kyle Bentley, P. Eng.
Director, City Development & CBO
CK:ld
Recommended for the consideration of Pickering City Council
Original Signed By
Marisa Carpino, M.A. Chief Administrative Officer
Attachment #1 to BLD #01-21