If you have driven along Highland Drive in recent months, perhaps heading to the Jack Burger Sports Complex or the Port Hope High School, you would have seen extensive changes in the area. Trailers and equipment are the key indicators that something big is happening. The work, not easily visible from the road, is the removal of historic waste that has been temporarily stored at what is known as the Pine Street North Extension Consolidation Site (PSNE CS).
The Highland Drive area is comprised of three main remediation sites – Highland Drive Landfill, the Pine Street North Extension Roadbed and the Pine Street North Extension Consolidation Site. The temporary storage site that was located in that area was cleaned up in 2019, when approximately 7,000 cubic metres of waste was successfully transported to long-term storage.
The final truck haul of waste from the PSNE CS was completed in late 2021, with an average of forty-five truckloads per day travelling along the designated route to the Port Hope Long-Term Waste Management Facility. The cleanup of the site, made up of waste previously excavated from various Port Hope sites and covered temporarily, began in fall 2020.
The CNL contractor on the site has also supported our mission to give back to the Port Hope community. They led a food drive among staff prior to the holidays which resulted in the donation of over one tonne of non-perishable food items to our local foodbank. They have also worked with us to facilitate a sustainable use of wood from trees felled during the cleanup, through ongoing donations to the Port Hope High School’s wood working program.
What is next for the area?
The roadbed that divides the Highland Drive landfill site and the Pine Street North Extension Consolidation Site is next to be cleaned up as part of the Highland Drive area work. We will continue to take great care to avoid damage to tree root systems in the area as well as minimize impacts to the neighbouring residents. Gates and fencing will remain in place while work in the area continues as a safety practice. Once completed the area will be restored with topsoil and sod.
Residents and community members are reminded to please connect if there are any questions or concerns via email at [email protected] or telephone 905.885.0291.
