The Project Management of the Knockharley Landfill

by

Kevin Cullen B.Sc.,M.Sc.,P.Geo., Gabriel Dennison BE MEngSc PhD &

Margaret Heavey BA BAI

WexfordWaterford

Cork

Killarney

Portlaoise

Kilkenny

Wicklow

Galway

Sligo

Leitrim

Athlone

Mullingar

Dundalk

Belfast

Derry

Limerick

Dublin

Kildare

Tralee

Nenagh

Donegal

Navan

Location & Regional Drainage

KnockharleySite

LOUTH

MEATH

Ardee

DroghedaDrogheda

NavanNavan

TrimTrim

Dunshaughlin Ashbourne

SkerriesSkerries

SwordsSwords

MalahideMalahide

BalbrigganBalbriggan

DublinAirport

Slane

Duleek

NobberDunleer

FINGAL

IrishSea

N

Aerial View of Site

Conceptual Site Layout

Curraghtown

Rathdrinagh

Flemingstown

Kentstown

Knockharley N2

Computer generated image of Knockharley landfill post-closure and restoration

Item Period

Construction February 2004 - December 2004

Contract Negotiations November 2003 - January 2004

High Court Hearings & Settlement April 2003 - November 2003

Regulatory Process January 2001 – March 2003

EIS & Waste Licence Compilation August 2000 – December 2001

Greenstar Project Concept 1st Half 2000

Project Programme

• greenstar (formerly Celtic Waste)

• KTK Landfill in Co. Kildare

• Waste Management In Ireland

- Waste Management Act (’96)- Waste Permitting (’97)- Changing Our Ways (’98)……………rationalisation of MSW landfills- Landfill Directive (’99)……………….site selection criteria- Waste Data Base (’98 & ‘00)……….....increasing waste production

• Meath Co. Co. Waste Plan (’97)………………identifies Knockharley

• North East Waste Region Waste Plan (’99)….identifies Knockharley

• Draft Meath Co. Co. Development Plan (’00)..identifies Knockharley

Project Concept

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000PLANNING

EIS & Waste Licence Application Compilation

LICENSING

01/08/00

11/01/01 Planning & Waste Licence Applications Submitted

12/07/01 - Permission Granted07/08/01 - Appeal Lodged

09/04/02 - 11/04/02 APP Oral Hearing

26/08/01 - APP Decision Granted

2003

2002

High Court - Papers Served 20/05/03

High Court Action Settled by Agreement 12/11/03Contracts Signed 2004

Construction Starts 01/02/04

First Loads Pass Over Weigh Bridge 24/12/042005

19/03/03 Waste Licence Issues

10/09/02 - 04/10/02 EPA Oral Hearing17/10/02 - 18/10/02

28/03/02 Draft Waste Licence

2000

PLANNING LICENSING

(Meath Co. Co. applies for Waste Licence 16/07/99)

(Licence issued to Meath Co. Co. 15/02/01)

• Assemble Management Team & Specialist Contributors

• Agree Interim Benchmarks & Final Delivery Date

• Agree Project Description & Budget

• Complete Fatal Flaw Review

• Complete All Site Studies & Consultations

• Compile Specialist Reports

• Finalise Engineering Drawings

• Review Draft EIS

• Produce Required No. of EIS Copies

• Finalise Waste Licence Application

• Finalise Planning Application Documents

Compilation of EIS & Waste Licence Application

Main Contributors to Environmental Impact Statement

Project Supervision greenstar

EIS Management & Compilation White Young Green

Engineering Fehily Timony & Co.

Planning Kieran O’Malley & Co. Ltd.

Landscape and Visual Impact Brady Shipman Martin

Roads & Traffic Denis Wilson Partnership (now Trafficwise)

EIS Section Contributor

Cultural Heritage CRDS Ltd.

Agricultural Impact Phillip Farrelly & Co. Ltd.

Freshwater Ecology EcoServe.

Terrestrial Fauna Ecological Solutions

Birds Biosphere Environmental Services

Water Analyses Enterprise Ireland

Drilling Glover Site Investigations Ltd.

Arial Photography / Topographic Contours BKS Surveys Ltd.

Specialist Contributors to Environmental Impact Statement

Housing Density

Residential DwellingHigher Housing Density

Curraghtown

Knockharley

Kentstown

Flemingstown

T uiterath

to Slane

Seneschalstown

Slanduf f

Brownstown

to Ashbourne

Groundwater Contours

Curraghtown

Rathdrinagh

Flemingstown

Kentstown

Knockharley N2

Cross Sections

Metres.OD

60

40

20

60

40

20

SiteBoundary

SiteBoundary

Stream TP2MW14s

TP6

North South

MW4sNorth South

A A’

B B’

80

MW9s

Metres.OD

SiteBoundary

StreamStream

SiteBoundary

Boulder ClayBedrockWater TableMonitoring W ell (Shallow)Trial Pit

MW4sTP2

PlanningTimetable2003

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2002

2001

11/01/01 - Planning Application

07/03/01 - Further Information Request Received

17/05/01 - Further Information Submitted

03/07/01 - Unsolicited Further Information Lodged

12/07/01 - Planning Permission Granted07/08/01 - Planning Appeal Lodged07/09/01 - Response to 3rd Party Appeals Lodged

09/04/2002 - 11/04/2002 -ABP Oral Hearing

26/08/2002 -ABP Appeal Decision

Waste LicenceTimetable

17/10/2002 - 18/10/2002EPA Oral Hearing

19/03/03 Licence Issued

2003

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2002

2001

30/09/2002 - 04/10/2002EPA Oral Hearing

28/03/2002 - Draft Licence Issued

21/08/01 - Article 14(2) Received

26/04/01 - Article 14 Submitted

21/03/01 - Article 12 & 13 Received

11/01/01 - Licence Application

Wastes (t/y) EPA Licences greenstar Planning PermissionDisposal Recovery MCC** greenstar Jan.’05 – Dec. ’07 Dec’07 –Hse. - 45,500 100,000 - -Commercial - 17,000 45,000 - -Industrial - - 30,000 - -

- C&D 13,500 25,000 - -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Totals 76,000 200,000 132,000* 88,000*

*= Wastes arising from the North East Region** = Meath County Council

Current Permissions

Cavan

Clones

Carrickmacross

Navan

Drogheda

Dundalk

Monaghan

KnockharleySite

High Court Hearings & Settlement

• 20th May, 2003 High Court Papers served • Gemma Mc Manus vs. EPA; eight notice parties including Meath Co Co, greenstar

and local individuals • Mainly ‘frivolous and vexatious’ grounds covered by previous High Court challenges

to the same site • Responding affidavits by greenstar and EPA refuting grounds • Urgency emphasised to the Court re National and Regional need for the project • 12th Nov Hearing – Applicant requested delay to facilitate settlement discussions • Out of Court settlement 12 Nov – no compensation paid to individuals

• N2 National Primary Route : 400 metre length of road strengthening and widening • Provision of new ghost island access junction designed to NRA DMRB standards • 5.35m high reinforced earth underpass of county road • 1.5km length of 7m wide private access road • 3.2 km palisade, post and wire, and timber post and rail fencing • 5.0 km surface-water drainage • 2 no 18m weighbridges, administration offices and reception area • 5000m3 capacity surface water pond • 1500m3 leachate pond, quarantine area and aviary • 4 no. HDPE and engineered clay-lined cells of approx 4 years capacity (28,000 m2) • Preliminary works to 2 further cells (14,000 m2) • Data collection and remote telemetry monitoring and control - SCADA • 112 acres amenity forestry

Contract Documents – Scope of Works

• Contractor - Logan Ascon • Fixed Price Lump Sum Contract • Measured works – Fixed Sum • Provisional Items open to variation and measurement – CESMM3 • Early finish bonus • IEI Conditions of Contract (6th Edition) • Fehiley Timoney & Co – ‘ The Engineer’. • Resident Engineers employed directly by greenstar

Contract Negotiations

• Restricted working hours in ABP Planning permission 8am – 6pm • High concentration of plant on site- peaking at 44 items of heavy plant • Cell excavation, embankments, drainage, roads, underpass construction – all simultaneously • Dust suppression – 3 tractors with water tankers • 100% environmental compliance during construction including dust, noise, surface water quality • Independent quality assurance – Metlab Ltd • Insitu clays with typical permeabilities lower than 1 X 10 -9 m/s• Engineered liner fully in compliance with EPA Landfill Design Manual • Contract finished ahead of schedule and below budget

Construction

Plate1 - Lands at Knockharley (N2 route at the bottom of the photograph)

Plate 3 New N2 Junction, 1.5 km access road and underpass

Plate 5 Waste reception area, lined cells, leachate lagoon. August 2004

Plate 4 HDPE liner and underlying engineered clay layer