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WHITBY, ON – The Regional Municipalities of Durham and York received the Durham York Energy Centre’s (DYEC) Acceptance Testing report from Covanta on Nov. 26. The regions will now review that report with their consultant, HDR Inc., before making a decision on whether Covanta has passed the Acceptance Test. That review is expected to take approximately 30 days and the decision will be made by a joint committee of senior staff from York and Durham.

The intent of the Acceptance Test is to demonstrate the performance of the entire Facility, including the environmental and contractual requirements. Acceptance Testing included many parameters such as performance testing, emissions testing, ash sampling and testing, energy recovery testing and reliability testing. The environmental performance part of the Acceptance Test was submitted to the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change for evaluation.

“I have complete confidence that our staff and consultants will make the appropriate recommendation following their evaluation of the Acceptance Test report,” says Roger Anderson, Regional Chair and Chief Executive Officer for Durham Region. “Durham Region will not accept the new Durham York Energy Centre until it is the state-ofthe-art, energy-from-waste facility that we set out to build. It’s that simple.”

“It’s important to note, the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change has imposed stringent limits on the air emissions for the DYEC, to ensure this facility will operate in a safe and environmentally responsible manner,” explained Cliff Curtis Commissioner of Works. “We’ve made sure that this air emissions monitoring data is easily available to everyone.”

The Acceptance Test stack test reports—including dioxin and furan tests—are posted on the DYEC project website for review at www.durhamyorkwaste.ca. Environmental reports, as well as a comprehensive overview of the facility and answers to frequently asked questions are also available online. Residents without Internet access are encouraged to use their local library to view the website.

Once commercially operational the DYEC can process up to 140,000 tonnes of household waste each year, with 110,000 tonnes allocated to the Region of Durham and 30,000 tonnes allocated to York Region. The DYEC is owned by the Regional Municipalities of Durham and York. Covanta is the full service contractor tasked to design, build and operate the facility. The DYEC started receiving waste on site Feb 9, 2015, followed by the combustion processing of solid waste on Feb. 13, 2015. To date the facility has processed in excess of 90,000 tonnes of waste. This state-of-the-art facility will generate 17.5 gross megawatts of renewable energy per yearenough to power approximately 10,000 homes.

Durham Region’s portion of project funding is through the federal Gas Tax Fund. For more information on the Durham York Energy Centre, visit www.durhamyorkwaste.ca, call 1-800-667-5671, or email info@durhamyorkwaste.ca.

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Media inquiries:
THE REGIONAL MUNICIPALITY OF DURHAM:
Joanne Paquette – Manager, Communications
905-668-7711 ext. 3732 or joanne.paquette@durham.ca