Frequently Asked Questions
Please direct all questions related to the Registry to RPRA via excesssoilRegistry@rpra.ca
Information about the Registry including project progress, upcoming events and learning opportunities, and key dates are available on the Authority’s Excess Soil Registry webpage.
The Excess Soil Registry is a record of Excess Soil generation and movement established and maintained by the Authority to:
- enable regulated persons to comply with registration and notice filing requirements outlined in the regulation;
- enable the ministry access to notice filings and associated data; and
- enable public access to the information contained in notice filings.
Project Leaders, Reuse Site Owners or Operators, and Residential Development Soil Depot Operators, as defined in the Excess Soil Regulation, are required to ensure notices are filed to the Excess Soil Registry for certain Project Areas (where Excess Soil is generated), Reuse Sites (where Excess Soil is deposited), and Residential Development Soil Depot sites (where Excess Soil is temporarily placed).
For questions related to the regulation, please email the ministry at MECP.LandPolicy@ontario.ca
For site-specific questions related to Excess Soil movement, please contact the ministry’s local district office. To find an office, please use the District Locator.
The ministry is responsible for policy and programs related to Excess Soil and will conduct compliance and enforcement activities under the regulation. More information about the regulation is available on the ministry’s Excess Soil webpage.
In December 2019, the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (the ministry) released a regulation under the Environmental Protection Act, titled “On-Site and Excess Soil Management” (the regulation) to support improved management of Excess Soil.
This regulation supports proper management of Excess Soils, ensuring valuable resources don’t go to waste and to provide clear rules on managing and reusing Excess Soil. Risk-based standards referenced by this regulation help to facilitate local beneficial reuse promote reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from soil transportation, while ensuring strong protection of human health and the environment. The risk-based standards can be found in the document adopted by reference under this regulation, Rules for Soil Management and Excess Soil Quality Standards.
Excess Soil is soil that has been dug up, typically during construction and excavation activities. It must be moved off-site because it can’t or won’t be reused at the development site.
Fees associated with project area notices are calculated at a variable rate based on the volume of soil being moved. Flat fees will be applied to Project Area Notices for soil volumes below and above certain thresholds.
Fees associated with Reuse Site Notices are tiered, with increasing flat fees applied according to the volume of soil being accepted at the reuse site.
There is one flat fee associated with Residential Soil Depot Notices.
Fees will be consulted upon annually as required by the RRCEA.
Fees are charged upon completion of the initial notice filing, whether it’s a Project Area Notice, Reuse Site Notice, or Residential Development Soil Depot Notice. For Project Area and Reuse Area Notices, there may be a fee charged at the final filing (close-out), depending on whether the volume of soil generated or accepted has increased from what was reported in the initial notice filing.
Registry fees cover the Authority’s costs to build, deploy and maintain the Registry, and to provide ongoing support to Registry users. As an administrative delegated authority of the Government of Ontario, the Authority does not receive any government funding and funds its operations through fees charged to regulated parties. The Authority operates on a cost-recovery basis.