Licence Applications

A licence from the Ministry of Natural Resources is required to operate a pit or quarry on private land in a designated area of Ontario. There are two types of licences. A Class A licence is required where more than 20,000 tonnes of material are to be extracted each year. A Class B licence is required where 20,000 tonnes or less are to be extracted annually.

Applications for a Class A or Class B licence must meet the requirements of the Aggregate Resources of Ontario: Provincial Standards Version 1.0. Each application category includes Site Plan Standards, Report Standards, Prescribed Conditions, and Notification and Consultation Standards.

The Provincial Standards list eight categories of licence applications:
 

Site Plans

Applicants for a licence must prepare a site plan that meets the Section 1.0 Site Plan Standards for the appropriate category of application under the Provincial Standards.

For Class A licence applications, the site plans must be prepared and certified by: 

• a professional engineer who is a member of the Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario
• a land surveyor who is a member of the Association of Ontario Land Surveyors
• a landscape architect who is a member of the Ontario Association of Landscape Architects, or
• other qualified persons approved by the Ministry of Natural Resources.

Site plans for a Class B licence may be prepared by the applicant or any other person, but must meet all the requirements of the Provincial Standards Section 1.0 Site Plan Standards.

The site plan is the primary tool that controls the operation and rehabilitation of all pits and quarries. The licensee is legally bound to operate and rehabilitate the site in accordance with the site plan.

In general, site plans must identify: 

• existing features of the pit or quarry area, such as existing natural features and land use on and surrounding the site
• operation details, such as the area to be extracted, the depth of extraction, the types of equipment to be used and the hours of operation, and
• how the site will be rehabilitated, including details of both progressive rehabilitation carried out while the pit or quarry is still operating, and final rehabilitation.

Technical Reports

Licence applications must include all reports outlined in Section 2.0 Report Standards, such as a Summary Statement and Technical Reports, for the category being applied for under the Provincial Standards.

The Summary Statement must be signed by the author. It provides information on one or more of the following items, depending on the category under application: 

• planning and land use considerations
• agricultural classification of the site
• quality and quantity of aggregate on site
• haulage routes and truck traffic
• progressive and final rehabilitation plans for the site
• for pits and quarries that do not plan to extract below the water table, information that demonstrates that extraction will stay at least 1.5 m above the water table for a pit or 2.0 m above the water table for a quarry. This part of the summary statement must be verified by a professional geoscientist.

All Technical Reports must be prepared by a person with appropriate training and/or expertise. Details regarding the content of Technical Reports are laid out in each category of the Provincial Standards.

All categories of application require Natural Environment Reports and Cultural Heritage Resource Reports. Hydrogeological Reports are required if the extraction is below the water table. Blast Design Reports (quarries only) or Noise Assessment Reports may also be required for Class A licences.
 

Notification and Consultation

The notification and consultation process is outlined in the Provincial Standards and is the same for all licence applications regardless of the category of application. The process is proponent-driven, meaning that the applicant is responsible for carrying out all notification and consultation steps and resolving concerns.

As a part of the process, each applicant for a licence must: 

• hold an information session for the public
• provide written notice of the application to adjacent landowners, along with the details of the public information session
• advertise the application in the local newspaper
• advertise the date, time and place of the public information session in the local newspaper
• post a sign on the property indicating that a licence application has been submitted for the site and outlining the details of the public information session
• circulate the application package to agencies identified in the Provincial Standards, along with notification of the public information session
• attempt to resolve all objections filed during the application process
• at the completion of the notification and consultation period, submit a package* to the Ministry of Natural Resources summarizing the notification and consultation activities.  

*This package must be submitted within two years of the start of the notification period, which begins when the notice of application is published in the local newspaper, or the application is considered withdrawn.
 

Municipal Zoning

Municipalities have the prime responsibility for land use planning under the Planning Act. Municipalities determine the appropriateness of a proposed land use under a process established by the Planning Act. The process includes the review and approval of applications to amend their land use controls, such as official plans and zoning by-laws. A new pit or quarry, or the expansion of an existing operation, usually requires amendments to the municipal official plan and/or zoning by-law.
 

No licence can be issued if a zoning by-law prohibits the site from being used for the operation of a pit or quarry. The applicant must provide proof of proper zoning during the application process before the licence is sent to the Minister of Natural Resources for signing.

Applications to a municipality for amendments under the Planning Act can be processed while the Ministry of Natural Resources is processing an application for a licence under the Aggregate Resources Act.
 

Public Participation

Applicants must advertise licence applications to the public at the start of the 45-day notification period through newspaper notices in the local paper and the placement of a sign on the property under application. These notices advise the public of the date, time and location of the public open house.

Any member of the public may attend the open house, where the applicant is required to present and explain all of the details of the proposed operation.

Any member of the public may also provide comments or objections to the applicant and the Ministry of Natural Resources before the closing of the 45-day notification period. If a member of the public files an objection letter with the applicant and the ministry during this period, the applicant must try to resolve all of the issues raised. If there are issues raised that cannot be resolved by the applicant, the application may be referred to the Ontario Municipal Board for a hearing. Objectors have an opportunity to attend the hearing and raise their concerns before the board.

The public also has the opportunity to comment on licence applications through a formal process established by Ontario's Environmental Bill of Rights. New licence applications are posted on Ontario's Environmental Registry for a minimum of 30 days. This posting gives the public an additional opportunity to comment on the proposal.. The government considers the public's input before making a final decision.
 

Issuance or Refusal

If the application is not referred to the Ontario Municipal Board for a hearing, the Minister of Natural Resources may decide whether to issue or refuse to issue the licence. The Minister considers the matters under subsection 12(1) of the Aggregate Resources Act in making the decision. If the Minister refuses to issue the licence, the applicant may appeal that decision to the Ontario Municipal Board. The Minister’s decision may also be subject to appeal under the Environmental Bill of Rights.
 

If the application is referred to the Ontario Municipal Board for a hearing, the board may direct the Minister to issue the licence or refuse to issue the licence. In considering the issuance or refusal, the board must have regard to the matters under subsection 12(1) of the Aggregate Resources Act.
 

Operational Standards

Once issued, all licences are subject to the Operational Standards That Apply To Licences as listed in the Provincial Standards, unless specifically varied by the site plan. 

Conditions

All new licences are subject to the Prescribed Conditions specific to the category being applied for under the Provincial Standards, as well as any additional conditions that may be required to address concerns raised during the application process. 

Requirements of other legislation

The issuance of a licence or permit under the Aggregate Resources Act does not relieve the individual or company from meeting the requirements of other agencies and other legislation. While the act specifically regulates pits and quarries, other legislation may apply both during an application and during the life of the operation. Examples include the Planning Act, the Endangered Species Act, the Ontario Water Resources Act and the Environmental Protection Act. 

Established Operations in Newly Designated Areas

From time to time new areas of Ontario are designated under the Aggregate Resources Act as areas where a licence is required to operate a pit or quarry on private land. The act sets out an application process designed for operators of pits and quarries that legally existed before the designation.

In newly designated areas, all existing and established pits and quarries have six months in which to apply for a licence under the act, if they wish to continue operating their pit or quarry. To be considered established, operators must demonstrate to the Ministry of Natural Resources that they have removed a substantial amount of aggregate from the site within the last two years. Where the operation is on lands leased under the Mining Act, the lands must have been under lease throughout the two-year period before the designation.

If the site is within an organized municipality that has an approved zoning by-law, the aggregate operation must conform to the zoning by-law before a licence can be issued, or the site must have a legal non-conforming status that predates the zoning by-law.

Operators of established pits and quarries that apply for a licence within the first six months of designation may continue to operate and must prepare a site plan on demand in accordance with the appropriate category in the Provincial Standards.

Where the operator does not apply for a licence within the first six months, they must cease operations at the end of the six-month period and cannot operate the pit or quarry until the Minister of Natural Resources has issued a licence. The licence application must include a site plan in accordance with the appropriate category in the Provincial Standards and technical reports may be required.

All applications for established sites in newly designated areas that are submitted within two years of the date of designation are exempt from the notification and consultation process and the application appeal process to the Ontario Municipal Board. Applications that are submitted after the two-year anniversary of the date of designation must follow the standard application process outlined in the Provincial Standards.
 

Fees

The annual licence fee varies according to the amount of aggregate that is removed from a site during the calendar year. The current licence fee is the greater of 11.5 cents per tonne or the minimum fee (Class B licence: $200, Class A licence: $400). Out of the 11.5 cents, the Crown receives 3.5 cents, the local municipality 6 cents, the county/regional municipality 1.5 cents, and the Abandoned Pits and Quarries Rehabilitation Fund 0.5 cents.

The Ontario Aggregate Resources Corporation, as trustee for the Aggregate Resources Trust, is responsible for collecting and disbursing the annual licence fee.
The municipal portions of the annual licence fee are disbursed to the local municipalities and county/regional municipalities on September 15th and March 15th each year.

The following is a schedule of licence application/amendment fees under the Aggregate Resources Act:
 

• The Ministry of Natural Resources will acknowledge receipt of an application and confirm whether the application requirements have been met within 20 calendar days of receipt.
• If the ministry has concerns with a completed licence application, it will provide written notice to the applicant (a notice of objection) within 45 calendar days of the start of the notification period.
• The ministry will make a recommendation regarding the issuance of a licence, or refer the application to the Ontario Municipal Board for a hearing, within 30 calendar days of receiving the consultation package from the applicant.
• For applications that are referred to the Ontario Municipal Board, the ministry must wait until the board hearing is completed and a decision is issued directing the Minister to issue or refuse the licence. The decision will be communicated within a reasonable time after a decision is made.
• Information regarding the status of an application is available from the local Ministry of Natural Resources aggregate inspector.