Environmental Assessment Report for the East‑West Tie ...

EAST-WEST TIE TRANSMISSION PROJECT ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT REPORT

APPENDIX 3-I-A Alternative Route Assessment Around Loon Lake for the East-West Tie Transmission Project

July 2017 Report No. 1536607/2000/2018

ALTERNATIVE ROUTE ASSESSMENT AROUND LOON LAKE EAST-WEST TIE TRANSMISSION PROJECT

TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................ 1

2. BACKGROUND ............................................................................................................................................. 1

2.1 Previous Evaluation of Alternatives ....................................................................................................1

2.2 Identification of Further Alternative Route Segments .........................................................................2

3. APPROACH FOR THE EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVE ROUTE SEGMENTS ...................................... 3

3.1 Overall Method ....................................................................................................................................3

3.2 Alternatives Assessment Criteria and Indicators ................................................................................3

4. COMPARATIVE EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVE ROUTE SEGMENTS ................................................. 3

5. CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................................................... 5

REFERENCES ....................................................................................................................................................... 5

LIST OF TABLES Table 4-1: Loon Lake Alternative Route Segments Advantages and Disadvantages ....................................4

LIST OF APPENDICES APPENDIX A Loon Lake Alternative Route Segments Figure

APPENDIX B Alternatives Assessment Criteria and Indicators Table

July 2017 Project No. 1536607/2000/2018 i


ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS

EA Environmental Assessment GIS geographic information systems IESO Independent Electricity System Operator MNRF Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry MOECC Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change NextBridge NextBridge Infrastructure LP OEB Ontario Energy Board OPA Ontario Power Authority ROW right-of-way SWH significant wildlife habitat the Project East-West Tie Transmission Project ToR Terms of Reference TS Transformer Station

July 2017 Project No. 1536607/2000/2018 ii


1. INTRODUCTION NextBridge Infrastructure LP (NextBridge) is proposing to construct, own, and maintain the East-West Tie Transmission Project (the Project). The Project is a new, approximately 450 kilometre (km) long double-circuit 230-kilovolt ( kV) transmission line that connects the Lakehead Transformer Station (TS) in the Municipality of Shuniah, near the City of Thunder Bay, to the Wawa TS located east of the Municipality of Wawa (with a connection at the Marathon TS, in the Town of Marathon).

The Project has been identified as a priority project by the Province of Ontario, and a needed project by the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO, formerly the Ontario Power Authority [OPA; On January 1, 2015, the OPA merged with the IESO to create a new organization that combines the OPA and IESO mandates.]) to meet future electricity demand in northwestern Ontario.

The Project is subject to Ontario’s Individual Environmental Assessment (EA) process based on the voltage and length. A Terms of Reference (ToR) for the Individual EA was submitted to the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change (MOECC) in February 2014 and approved in August 2014. Subsequently, an EA Report has been prepared in accordance with the approved ToR.

The preliminary preferred route for the Project was identified by comparing the routes that were originally proposed by NextBridge during the Ontario Energy Board’s (OEB) competitive bid process (i.e., the Reference Route that generally parallels the existing East-West Tie line and three alternative route segments around certain federal lands) with a series of 37 additional alternative route segments, as requested by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) and other stakeholders. The alternative route assessment used the criteria and indicators provided in the approved ToR to identify the route that is preferred from environmental, socio-economic, and technical perspectives (i.e., more advantages than disadvantages).

Consultation on the preliminary preferred route with local residents, landowners, and fishing club representatives near Loon Lake, including feedback received at the second and third round of Open Houses, resulted in identification of alternative route segments around Loon Lake. This report focuses on the assessment of these Loon Lake alternative route segments. The objective of this assessment is to confirm the option in the vicinity of Loon Lake with the best balance of environmental, socio-economic, and technical advantages compared to other alternatives, which will be the preferred route.

2. BACKGROUND 2.1 Previous Evaluation of Alternatives The Reference Route (as defined in the EA Report) and three alternative routes to avoid certain federal lands (two First Nation reserves and Pukaskwa National Park) were identified by NextBridge as part of a screening process completed during the bid process organized by the OEB. The Reference Route, which generally parallels the existing East-West Tie line, is consistent with the 2014 Provincial Policy Statement (Government of Ontario 2014), which recommends making the best use of existing infrastructure and corridors, and that infrastructure be provided in a coordinated, efficient, and cost-effective manner before proposing new greenfield (i.e., parcel of land that has not been previously developed [Heid 2004]) developments that do not parallel existing developments. This was one of the OPA’s considerations in selecting the Reference Route (also referred to as the Reference Option by the OPA) and is consistent with the direction to other electricity transmitters in the past from provincial agencies and ministries to make use of existing rights-of-way (ROWs) and corridors before seeking approvals for

July 2017 Project No. 1536607/2000/2018 1


greenfield routes (i.e., not adjacent to existing infrastructure). The Reference Route was identified based on the following:

The IESO and OEB identified and acknowledged the Reference Route.

The bidding process to select a designated transmitter focused on the Reference Route.

NextBridge examined the Reference Route during the bidding process.

The Reference Route is the shortest distance to connect the Lakehead TS and Wawa TS with a connection at Marathon TS (following existing transmission facilities).

The use of the Reference Route is consistent with provincial policy as it is generally adjacent to the existing East-West Tie line ROW.

It was determined that additional alternative route segments should be identified and assessed as potential alternatives to the Reference Route to confirm the best route from an environmental, socio-economic, and technical perspective based on comments received during the ToR phase. The Township of Dorion also requested that NextBridge review additional alternative route segments to avoid affecting private property in the Dorion area and potential effects to the Ouimet Canyon area. In December 2015, NextBridge produced the alternative route report (NextBridge 2015), which included an evaluation of alternative route segments, as requested by the MNRF and other stakeholders. The Reference Route was assessed in each area in comparison to alternative route segments representing other route options to identify the preliminary preferred route.

NextBridge determined, based on the assessment, that with two exceptions the preliminary preferred route is generally adjacent to the existing East-West Tie line, and it has more advantages and fewer disadvantages than the alternative route segments. The first exception relates to Pukaskwa National Park. Given that Parks Canada has determined that it is not prepared to authorize access to study a new transmission line through Pukaskwa National Park, the alternative around the park that is adjacent to a 115 kV transmission line and logging roads and crosses a cutover area is considered the best feasible alternative and therefore, forms part of the preliminary preferred route. Also, based on feedback received through public consultation with the residents of the Township of Dorion and the results of the desktop Geographic Information Systems (GIS)-based analysis, routing to the west of Ouimet Canyon Provincial Park is generally preferred in this area and has been identified as part of the preliminary preferred route.

Additional alternative route segments around provincial parks and conservation reserves were identified and assessed in response to feedback on the assessment from the MNRF. This additional assessment is included in the EA Report (Appendix 3-I-B) and confirmed that the preliminary preferred route has more advantages and fewer disadvantages than the additional alternative route segments.

2.2 Identification of Further Alternative Route Segments NextBridge was presented with two alternative route segments by Loon Lake community members, the Damphino Fishing Club, and the North Shore Fishing Club at a meeting held July 26, 2016, at the West Loon Lake Community Centre. A third alternative route segment was forwarded to NextBridge on July 27, 2016.

Through discussion at the meeting, and follow-up discussions, one of the alternative route segments was identified as the preferred alternative by Loon Lake stakeholders. NextBridge proposed some minor refinements to improve constructability of this particular alternative and it was then assessed as an additional alternative route segment. This additional alternative route segment is the focus of this report. This alternative route segment, along with the preliminary preferred route segment around Loon Lake, are shown in Appendix A.

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3. APPROACH FOR THE EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVE ROUTE SEGMENTS

The following sections summarize the method used for the identification, evaluation, and selection of the preferred alternative route segment around Loon Lake.

3.1 Overall Method A similar method to that applied by NextBridge (2015) was used for this analysis. The general routing criteria (Table 1 from NextBridge 2015; Appendix 3-I), the preference for existing linear ROWs with consideration of the limitations associated with paralleling certain types of existing infrastructure was considered (e.g., minimum separation distances), and the two-step process for comparison using assessment criteria and indicators as well as screening criteria (MOECC 2014) were applied in identifying and assessing additional route segments. Each alternative had to meet the screening criteria listed in the MOECC (2014) Code of Practice: Preparing and Reviewing Terms of Reference for Environmental Assessments in Ontario criteria to be carried forward.

Data for the comparative evaluation presented in Section 4 were derived from available GIS databases and supplemented by air photo interpretation where possible. For some linear feature types (e.g., rail lines, roads, trails, and water bodies) that are crossed multiple times, the feature is only reported (Appendix A) as a single crossing per alternative. The GIS-based information used for this assessment may not be as detailed as that presented in the EA Report.

3.2 Alternatives Assessment Criteria and Indicators The alternatives assessment criteria and indicators that were used in the alternative route report (NextBridge 2015) were used to assess the new alternative route segment.

4. COMPARATIVE EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVE ROUTE SEGMENTS

This section presents the comparative evaluation of the alternative route segments around Loon Lake. Criteria and indicator tables used to support the analysis are presented in Appendix B. All the criteria and indicators were evaluated with the focus of the discussion on advantages and disadvantages and notable differences between route segments. The advantages and disadvantages of each route segment are presented in Table 4-1.

The advantages of the alternative route segment around Loon Lake are that it is the shortest route segment, has the smallest area of overlap with potential aggregate resources, has the smallest area of overlap with mapped water bodies (not including water bodies), has the largest area of overlap with previous logging disturbance, crosses the least number of roads, and is preferred by Loon Lake community members.

For these reasons, the alternative route segment around Loon Lake is considered the best alternative.

July 2017 Project No. 1536607/2000/2018 3


Table 4-1: Loon Lake Alternative Route Segments Advantages and Disadvantages Advantages Disadvantages Screening Criteria

Alternative Route Segment Around Loon Lake

Shortest route

Smallest area of the ROW that overlaps with potential aggregate resources

Smallest area of mapped water bodies (not including watercourses) in the ROW

Least number of mapped water bodies crossed by the ROW

Largest area of the ROW with previous logging disturbance

Least number of roads crossed by the ROW

Least number of transmission line corners

Least number of transmission line crossovers

Preferred by Loon Lake stakeholders

Largest area of the ROW that overlaps with mining claims

Largest area of the ROW that overlaps with mapped unevaluated wetlands

Greatest number of mapped water bodies crossed by the ROW

Largest area of the ROW that overlaps with potentially SWH

Crosses the Greenwich windfarm

Meets the screening criteria

Preliminary Preferred Route Segment

Smallest area of the ROW that overlaps with a mining operation or claim

Smallest area of the ROW that overlaps with mapped unevaluated wetlands

Least number of mapped water bodies crossed by the ROW

Smallest area of the ROW that overlaps with potentially SWH

Longest route

Largest area of the ROW that overlaps with potential aggregate resources

Largest area of mapped water bodies (not including watercourses) in the ROW

Greatest number of mapped water bodies crossed by the ROW

Smallest area of the ROW with previous logging disturbance

Greatest number of roads crossed by the ROW

Greatest number of transmission line corners

Greatest number of transmission line crossovers

Not favoured by Loon Lake stakeholders

Previously confirmed to meet the screening criteria (NextBridge 2015; Appendix 3-I)

ROW = right-of-way; SWH = significant wildlife habitat.

July 2017 Project No. 1536607/2000/2018 4


5. CONCLUSION The assessment of alternative route segments around Loon Lake resulted in the identification of a preferred alternative route segment in this area. The preferred alternative route segment around Loon Lake is the alternative route segment identified by Loon Lake stakeholders as the preferred alternative, with minor refinements to improve constructability. This alternative route segment is the shortest route segment, has the smallest area of overlap with potential aggregate resources, has the smallest area of overlap with mapped water bodies (not including water bodies), has the largest area of overlap with previous logging disturbance, crosses the least number of roads, requires the least number of transmission line corners, requires the least number of transmission line crossovers, and has the most advantages when compared to the preliminary preferred route.

Incorporation of this alternative route segment into the preferred route represents a local route refinement from the preliminary preferred route. The preferred route, including this local route refinement, is assessed in the EA Report.

REFERENCES Government of Ontario. 2014. Provincial Policy Statement. [Accessed 28 September 2016].

http://www.mah.gov.on.ca/AssetFactory.aspx?did=10463.

Heid J. 2004. Greenfield Development Without Sprawl: The Role of Planned Communities. http://ww.uli.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/GreenfieldDev.ashx_.pdf. Last accessed in 2015.

MOECC (Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change). 2014. Code of Practice: Preparing and Reviewing Terms of Reference for Environmental Assessments in Ontario. Revision 2. Queen’s Printer for Ontario. 97 pp.

NextBridge (NextBridge Infrastructure LP). 2015. NextBridge Infrastructure L.P. Draft Alternative Route Assessment for the East-West Tie Transmission Project. December 2015.

July 2017 Project No. 1536607/2000/2018 5


APPENDIX A Loon Lake Alternative Route Segments Figure

July 2017 Project No. 1536607/2000/2018

LAKEHEAD REGIONCONSERVATION

AUTHORITY

BLACK BAYPENINSULA

527

TRANSCANADA HIGHWAY

CAVERN LAKEPROVINCIAL

NATURE RESERVE

OUIMET CANYONPROVINCIAL PARK

SLEEPING GIANTPROVINCIAL PARK

DOGLAKE

GREENWICHLAKE

LAKE SUPERIOR

335000

335000

340000

340000

345000

345000

350000

350000

355000

355000

360000

360000

365000

365000

370000

370000

375000

375000

380000

380000

385000

385000

390000

390000

5385

000

5385

000

5390

000

5390

000

5395

000

5395

000

5400

000

5400

000

5405

000

5405

000

5410

000

5410

000

LEGENDProject Component

Preferred Route Transmission LineRoute Alternative

Alternative Route Segment Around Loon LakePreliminary Preferred Route

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CLIENT PROJECTEAST-WEST TIE TRANSMISSION PROJECT

TITLELOON LAKE ALTERNATIVE ROUTE SEGMENTS

1 3-IA-A1PROJECT NO. CONTROL REV. FIGURE

0 2,000 4,000 6,000

1:150,000 METRES

1536607

2017-07-25GOLDER JRGOLDER JBGOLDER SGGOLDER MH

PROJECT NO.

YYYY-MM-DDDESIGNEDPREPAREDREVIEWEDAPPROVED

REFERENCE(S)BASE DATA: MNRF LIO (2017), CANVEC (2017), DILLON (2014, 2015)PROJECT COMPONENTS: PROVIDED BY NEXTBRIDGE, REV 5.1 (MAY 18, 2017)PRODUCED BY GOLDER ASSOCATES LTD. UNDER LICENSE FROM ONTARIO MINISTRY OFNATURAL RESOURCES, © QUEENS PRINTER 2017PROJECTION: TRANSVERSE MERCATOR DATUM: NAD 83 COORDINATE SYSTEM: UTM ZONE 16N

LAKE SUPERIOR

LAKE HURON

LAKE MICHIGAN

JAMES BAY

O N T A R I O

U. S. A.GEORGIAN

BAY

MARATHONTHUNDER BAY WAWA

KEY MAP


APPENDIX B Alternatives Assessment Criteria and Indicators Table

July 2017 Project No. 1536607/2000/2018

APPENDIX B COMPARATIVE EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVE ROUTE SEGMENTS AROUND LOON LAKE

Factor Criteria Indicator Alternative Route Segment

Around Loon Lake Preliminary Preferred Route

General Size Total Length (km) of the ROW 33.3 34.3 Total Length of the ROW not in water bodies (km) 32.8 33.7 Area of the ROW (ha) 213.5 206.0

Physical Soil Area of agricultural fields in the ROW (ha) None identified None identified

Socio-economic

Private property Number of potential dwellings in the ROW 0 0

Land Use

Number of settlement areas crossed by the ROW 0 0 Number of Forest Management Units crossed by the ROW 2 2 Area of Conservation Areas in the ROW (ha) 0 0 Area of Conservation Reserves in the ROW (ha) 0 0 Area of Provincial Parks in the ROW (ha) 0 0 Area of National Parks in the ROW (ha) 0 0 Area of mines in the ROW (ha) 0 0 Area of mining claims in the ROW (ha) 52.6 0.4 Number of mining claims crossed by the ROW 10 1 Area of aggregate pits in the ROW (ha) 0 0 Area of high potential for aggregate resources in the ROW (ha) 83.7 167.1 Area of land designated for commercial and industrial purposes (non-mining) in the ROW (ha)

None identified None identified

Community Services

Number of hospitals and healthcare facilities crossed by the ROW None identified None identified Number of schools and educational institutions crossed by the ROW


Number of community centres crossed by the ROW None identified None identified Number of waste management facilities crossed by ROW 0 0

Tourism and Recreation

Number of trails crossed by the ROW 0 0 Number of campgrounds crossed by the ROW (ha) 0 0 Number of outpost camps crossed by the ROW None identified None identified Number of golf courses crossed by the ROW None identified None identified

Aesthetics Number of known public scenic viewpoints crossed by the ROW None identified None identified

July 2017 Project No. 1536607/2000/2018 1




Socio-economic (Cont’d

Non-Indigenous Archaeology, Cultural Heritage, Traditional Land and Resource Use

Length of ROW with archaeological potential (km) 3.7 Potential for the entire area of ROW (ha)

Number of archaeological sites crossed by the ROW 0 0 Number of known cemeteries crossed by the ROW None identified None identified

Area of traditional land uses/harvest areas identified in the ROW (ha)

Refer to Indigenous Archaeology, Cultural Heritage, Traditional Land and Resource, Area of traditional land uses/harvest areas identified in the ROW

(ha)

Indigenous Archaeology, Cultural Heritage, Traditional Land and Resource Use

Length of ROW with archaeological potential (km) 3.7 Potential for the entire area of ROW (ha)

Number of archaeological sites crossed by the ROW 0 0 Area of First Nation reserves in the ROW (ha) 0 0 Area of traditional land uses/harvest areas identified in the ROW (ha)

0 0

Area of traditional burial grounds in the ROW (ha) None Identified None Identified

Way of Life

Métis mobility in the ROW(a) 0 0 Types of teaching/ transmission programs, services and practices in the ROW No site-specific information available No site-specific information available

Spiritual connection to areas in the ROW(b) None identified 1

Harvesting

Type of harvesting activities exercised in the ROW(c) 22 29

Key cultural species harvested in the ROW Bass, Northern Pike, Perch, Walleye, Trout, Bear, Deer, Moose, Partridge

Bass, Northern Pike, Perch, Walleye, Trout, Bear, Deer, Moose, Partridge, Grouse, Duck, Goose, Blueberries

Conditions required for continued harvest in the ROW Not spatial data Not spatial data

July 2017 Project No. 1536607/2000/2018 2




Natural

Areas of Natural and Scientific Interest

Area of mapped Provincially Significant Areas of Natural and Scientific Interest (Earth Science and Life Science) in the ROW (ha)

0 0

Area of mapped Candidate Areas of Natural and Scientific Interest (Earth Science and Life Science) in the ROW (ha)


Wetlands

Area of mapped Provincially Significant Wetlands in the ROW (ha) None identified None identified Area of mapped previously evaluated non-provincially significant wetlands in the ROW (ha)


Area of mapped unevaluated wetlands in the ROW (ha) 12.1 9.6

Water Bodies and Watercourses

Number of mapped watercourses crossed by the ROW 23 23 Area of mapped water bodies (not including watercourses) in the ROW (ha)

2.9 2.8

Number of mapped water bodies crossed by the ROW 8 9

Forest Resources Area of previously logged lands in the ROW (ha) 78.9 18.0 Area of seed collection lands in the ROW (ha) None identified None identified

Wildlife Habitat Area of mapped potential significant wildlife habitat in the ROW (ha) 101.9 29.2 Number of mapped nesting sites crossed by the ROW None identified None identified

Species at Risk

Area of mapped Woodland Caribou continuous habitat in the ROW (ha)

0 0

Area of mapped Woodland Caribou discontinuous habitat in the ROW (ha)

0 0

Technical

Community Infrastructure

Number of roads crossed by the ROW 24 23 Number of rail lines crossed by the ROW 1 1 Number of pipelines crossed by the ROW 0 0 Number of local airports crossed by the ROW None identified None identified

Constructability

Area of hazard (unstable) land crossed by the proposed ROW (ha) Information not available Information not available Number of transmission line corners required 4 8 Number of transmission line crossovers required 0 1 Distance of existing access roads available (low, medium, high) Low Low Distance of new access roads required (low, medium, high) Low Low Terrain (poor, moderate, favourable) Moderate Moderate Sufficient work space (poor, moderate, good) Moderate Moderate

a) Métis mobility in the ROW is represented by the number of Métis land or water access routes that cross the ROW b) Spiritual connection to areas in the ROW is represented by Métis cultural features that occur in the ROW including overnight stay sites, cultural sites, and locations of traditional ecological knowledge c) Type of harvesting activities in the ROW is represented by the number of Métis harvesting features that in the ROW

July 2017 Project No. 1536607/2000/2018 3

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