March 2000 C&R/IL/00-3
Conservation and Reclamation
Borrow Excavations
There are three types of borrow excava- • Roadways solely used for agricul-
BACKGROUND tions: landscape, dugout and backslope. tural purposes;
A new class of specified land called bor- Roadway (CRR s. 1(r)) means a high- • Access roadways associated with
row excavations has been created. The way or road as defined in the Public other types of specified land
Conservation and Reclamation Regula- Highways Development Act. (e.g., wellsite and pit access roads,
tion and the Activities Designation mine haulroads). They are regulated
Regulation have been amended to reflect Under that Act, highway or road means
land used or surveyed for use as a public by the requirements of those par-
this change. Prior to these amendments, ticular activities.
borrow excavations were treated as pits. highway or road, and includes a bridge
forming part of a public highway or road For further information on the regulatory
Borrow excavations are subject to the and any structure incidental to the public expectations for roadways, see the Envi-
Environmental Protection and En- highway or road or bridge. ronmental Protection Guidelines for
hancement Act (EPEA) and the Conser- Roadways (Information Letter under
vation and Reclamation Regulation For the purposes of this Information
Letter, “roadway” includes: development).
(CRR).
• Primary Highways; Pit (EPEA s. 1(ww)) means an excava-
This Information Letter provides guid- tion in the surface made for the purpose
ance to operators of borrow excavations. • Secondary Highways; of removing, opening up or proving
• Roadways on Federal lands where sand, gravel, clay, marl, peat or any
DEFINITIONS other substance, and includes any associ-
the right-of-way has been trans-
The following definitions come from ferred to provincial jurisdiction; ated infrastructure, but does not include
EPEA and its regulations. Operators are a mine or quarry.
• Local roadways (Township, Range,
cautioned that terms such as borrow and In addition to the normal meaning of the
Forced, Easement);
borrow pit may have different meanings term, the following are included in the
in reference to regulatory requirements • Roadways constructed with a rural definition of pits:
under other acts (e.g., the Public Lands cross-section design (no curb and
• Excavations made for the purpose of
Act) or in common usage in the road gutter);
construction industry. Operators must removing, opening up or proving
• Roadways providing access to material for the granular base, the
be aware of the usage of the terms
country residential subdivisions, re- asphalt stabilized base or asphaltic
borrow excavation and pit and their
sort subdivisions, or recreational ar- concrete, or for pit run, or drainage
regulatory implications under EPEA.
eas which will be under municipal material for roadways.
Borrow excavation (CRR s. 1(b.1)) jurisdiction after construction.
means an excavation in the surface made • Excavations made for construction
“Roadway” does not include: of roadways held under License of
solely for the purpose of removing,
opening up or proving borrow material • Roadways on Federal Lands where Occupation issued under the Public
for the construction of the sub-base for a the right-of-way has not been trans- Lands Act.
specific roadway project, and includes ferred to provincial jurisdiction; • Excavations with multiple purposes
any associated infrastructure connected (e.g., roadway borrow plus some
• Roadway held under License of
with the borrow excavation. other purpose).
Occupation issued under the Public
Borrow excavations occur outside the Lands Act (Note: this is under dis- Pits are regulated as outlined in the
roadway right-of-way. Excavations in- cussion and may change); Guide for Pits.
side the right-of-way are treated as part
• Private driveways or lanes; Operator means the Local Road
of the right-of-way and are subject to the
Authority (Alberta Infrastructure or a
Environmental Protection Guidelines for • Roadways constructed with an ur-
municipal authority) or a principal or
Roadways (Information Letter under ban cross-section design (curb and
agent for the Local Road Authority.
development). gutter);
Contractors are agents of the Local Road
http://www.gov.ab.ca/env/protenf/landrec/index.html Page 1 of 2
Authority and will be considered opera- AI expects contractors and consultants to Operators of borrow excavations equal
tors when a contractor is required to use the procedures. The procedures will to or greater than 5 hectares (12.5 acres)
supply borrow and the contractor makes be re-assessed and revised if necessary. are still required to obtain a reclamation
all the arrangements. Municipal project contractors and con- certificate after reclamation.
sultants are also encouraged to use the
However, if the contractor is no longer in Reclamation certification criteria for
procedures. borrow excavations are being developed
business, the Local Road Authority may
be considered the operator since the ex- Alberta Environment participated on the by a Task Force chaired by Alberta In-
cavation was created solely to supply the Task Force that reviewed the procedures frastructure. A first draft of the criteria
road that was built at the direction of the and supports the effort. When the was prepared and field-tested in fall of
Local Road Authority. document is finalized it will form part of 1999. The criteria will be revised based
Alberta Environment’s regulatory ex- on the 1999 field test, field-tested again
APPROVALS pectations for borrow excavations. in 2000, and then be released by Alberta
Environment in 2001 for use by opera-
As a result of the amendment to the ENVIRONMENTAL tors.
Activities Designation Regulation, bor-
row excavations do not require an
PROTECTION GUIDELINES
CONTACTS
approval under the Environmental Alberta Infrastructure is developing a
Protection and Enhancement Act. Ex- Guide To Reclaiming Borrow Excava- For Green Area public lands:
isting approvals will be terminated. tions Used For Road Construction. This Alberta Environment,
However, operators should retain copies Guide will undergo review in the Spring Land Administration Division,
of their approval until a reclamation cer- of 2000. When finalized, the Guide will 3rd Floor, 9915 - 108 Street,
tificate is received. Any security held by form part of Alberta Environment’s EDMONTON, Alberta T5K 2G8.
Alberta Environment for those approvals regulatory expectations for borrow exca-
Phone: (780) 427-3570
will be returned to the approval holder. vations. In the meantime, operators
Fax: (780) 422-4251
The operator is responsible for obtaining should consult the Environmental
all other necessary approvals, permits, or Protection Guidelines for Pits For White Area public lands:
licenses under other legislation. (C&R/IL/96-5) for Alberta Environ- Alberta Agriculture, Food and
ment’s expectations on how a borrow Rural Development,
excavation should be operated. Public Land Management Division,
PRE-CONSTRUCTION
Alberta Infrastructure will also be pro- Room 200, J. G. O'Donoghue Building,
ASSESSMENTS 7000 - 113 Street,
ducing revised Standard Specifications
Alberta Infrastructure (AI) has devel- for Highway Construction that will indi- EDMONTON, Alberta T6H 5T6.
oped a draft document entitled Pre- cate their expectations for construction Phone: (780) 427-6597
Disturbance Assessment Procedures for and reclamation of borrow excavations. Fax: (780) 422-4244
Borrow Excavations for Road Construc-
tion (May 1999). Copies are available in RECLAMATION For all other lands:
regional AI offices. Alberta Environment,
CERTIFICATION Environmental Sciences Division,
AI’s document provides guidance on
As a result of the amendment to the 4th Floor, 9820-106 Street,
how to carry out a pre-disturbance site
Conservation and Reclamation Regula- EDMONTON, Alberta T5K 2J6
assessment that will:
tion, borrow excavations less than Phone: (780) 427-5883
• Establish the pre-disturbance land 5 hectares (12.5 acres) in size are not Fax: (780) 422-4192
capability of the borrow site so it required to obtain a reclamation cer- e-mail: land.management@gov.ab.ca
can be compared with the land ca- tificate. However, without a reclama-
pability after reclamation; and tion certificate, the operator remains
• Provide guidance to operators for liable for conservation and reclamation
soil salvage. issues. Operators wishing to terminate
their liability may apply for a recla-
mation certificate.
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