Ontario Land Tribunal
Tribunal ontarien de l’aménagement du territoire
ISSUE DATE: March 19, 2026
CASE NO(S).: OLT-26-000141
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER section 140(1) of the Environmental Protection Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. E.19, as amended
Appellant: Synergy Underground Utilities Inc.
Appellants: Underground Conduit Solutions Inc. and Matthew Ducharme
Respondent: Director, Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks
Subject of appeal: Order to retain the services of a Qualified Person to carry out the work as described, prepare a Work Plan to characterize the quality of any Liquid Excess Soil at the Site
Reference No.: 1-1577876723
Property Address/Description: 1115 Windham Road 12
Municipality/Upper Tier: Norfolk
OLT Case No.: OLT-26-000141
OLT Lead Case No.: OLT-26-000141
OLT Case Name: Synergy Underground Utilities Inc. v. Ontario (Environment, Conservation and Parks)
Heard: March 5, 2026 by Video Hearing
APPEARANCES:
Parties
Counsel
Underground Conduit Solutions Inc. and Matthew Ducharme
Paula Lombardi (in absentia)
Synergy Underground Utilities Inc.
Matthew Bernier Raivo Uukkivi (in absentia)
Director, Ministry of the Environment, Conservation, and Parks
Nadine Harris Isabelle O’Connor Coco Xu (Articling Student)
DECISION DELIVERED BY A. SNOWDON AND ORDER OF THE TRIBUNAL
INTRODUCTION
1This Decision arises from a status update call relating to an appeal brought pursuant to s. 140(1) of the Environmental Protection Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. E.19, as amended, against Director’s Order No. 1-1577876723 (“Order”) issued by the Director, Ministry of the Environment, Conservation, and Parks (“Director”) on January 30, 2026. The Appeal has been filed by Underground Conduit Solutions Inc. and Matthew Ducharme and Synergy Underground Utilities Inc. (together, “Appellants”) regarding the management and transport of excess soils on the property located at 1115 Windham Road 12 in Norfolk County (“Subject Property”).
2The Subject Property is located on the north side of Windham Road 12, west of Windham East Quarter Line Road.
3The Order directs the Appellants to retain the services of a qualified person to prepare a work plan to characterize the quality of liquid excess soil at the Subject Property. The Order consists of four items which, when met, will bring the Appellants and the Subject Property into compliance.
4Ms. Lombardi, counsel for Underground Conduit Solutions Inc. and Matthew Ducharme, was unable to attend, due to a family emergency. Ms. Lombardi requested that Mr. Bernier, counsel for Synergy Underground Utilities Inc., act as their agent for the status update call.
5Mr. Bernier informed the Tribunal that Synergy Underground Utilities Inc. has completed Item Nos. 1 and 2 of the Order and are seeking to have Item Nos. 3 and 4 stayed. Mr. Bernier informed the Tribunal that Underground Conduit Solutions Inc. and Matthew Ducharme would comply with Item Nos. 1 and 2 of the Order by the end of the week and are also seeking to have Item Nos. Nos. 3 and 4 stayed. On March 18, 2026, Ms. Lombardi updated the Tribunal that Underground Conduit Solutions Inc. and Matthew Ducharme have retained a qualified person thereby complying with Item No. 1 of the Order. Confirmation of their compliance with Item No. 2 of the Order is outstanding.
SCHEDULING
6The Parties requested that a Stay Motion Hearing be scheduled. The video Hearing is scheduled to begin on Wednesday, March 25, 2026, at 10 a.m.
7The following filing dates will govern this proceeding:
Motion Record – Wednesday, March 11, 2026
Responding Motion Record – Wednesday, March 18, 2026
Reply (if desired) – Monday, March 23, 2026
8As the stay motion will be heard before the compliance dates in the Order for Item Nos. 3 and 4, there is no need for an interim Stay Order to be heard or granted.
9Parties are asked to log in to the Motion Hearing at least 15 minutes before the start of the event to test their video and audio connections:
GoTo Meeting: https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/638422541
Access Code: 638-422-541
10Parties are asked to access and set up the application well in advance of the event to avoid unnecessary delay. The desktop application can be downloaded at GoTo Meeting or a web application is available: https://app.gotomeeting.com/home.html.
11Persons who experience technical difficulties accessing the GoTo Meeting application or who only wish to listen to the event can connect to the event by calling in to an audio-only telephone line: +1 (647) 497-9373 or (Toll-Free) 1-888-299-1889. The Access Code is as indicated above in paragraph nine [9].
12Individuals are directed to connect to the event on the assigned date at the correct time. It is the responsibility of the persons participating in the event to ensure that they are properly connected at the correct time. Questions prior to the event may be directed to the Tribunal’s Case Coordinator.
13As of March 30, 2026, all hearing events are governed by the Tribunal’s Artificial Intelligence Practice Direction. This Practice Direction requires a party, participant, or witness to include a declaration within each submitted document if generative AI was used to create or generate content.
ORDER
14The Tribunal directives set out above are so ordered.
“A. Snowdon”
a. snowdOn
member
Ontario Land Tribunal
Website: olt.gov.on.ca Telephone: 416-212-6349 Toll Free: 1-866-448-2248
The Conservation Review Board, the Environmental Review Tribunal, the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal and the Mining and Lands Tribunal are amalgamated and continued as the Ontario Land Tribunal (“Tribunal”). Any reference to the preceding tribunals or the former Ontario Municipal Board is deemed to be a reference to the Tribunal.