Landfill falls under council's microscope
Hazardous waste a concern as village aims to extend lifespan of facility
April Hudson
Northern News Services
Thursday, March 9, 2017
LIIDLII KUE/FORT SIMPSON
In an effort to clean up and extend the life of Fort Simpson's landfill, councillors reviewed a draft concept design for the facility on March 6.
According to that report, the capacity of the landfill's current waste cell has decreased and the cell is almost full, while the size of mixed metals and appliance piles have increased.
The report was completed by Golder Associates and states that if the landfill's large pile of metals and other materials stored at the solid waste facility were moved, the landfill's lifespan could extend for 13 years.
A material processing and transportation budget included in the report, which aims to provide "budgetary guidance," suggests a total cost of $329,200 for equipment, processing time and other infrastructure but does not include a detailed transportation cost, which could cost between $120,000 and $220,000.
Senior administrative officer Bill Bennett said in his report to council that the capital plan includes $260,000 for some of the clean-up work, although he noted that money won't cover all the work that needs to be done.
Mayor Darlene Sibbeston suggested the village look at implementing a recycling program, pointing to a proposal from
Fort Smith, which is also looking to extend the life of its facility.
"What they're proposing is an entire recycling program - even a composting recycling program," she explained.
She also used the example of Yellowknife which gives out a set amount of tags per week for garbage bags.
"Not everybody is going to buy into it at first but you get people who would get used to it . It's all about extending the life (of the landfill) and protecting the environment. I wonder if something like that could be worked into this."
Aside from cleaning up the vast amounts of scrap metal at the landfill, councillors suggested prioritizing the cleanup of hazardous waste.
Coun. Sean Whelly said he wants to see the village remove barrels, paints and solvents.
"That, to me, is a high-priority area," he said.
"You get rid of two things - metals, which create space, and hazardous goods."
Sibbeston also suggested council look at "opening the door" to the landfill and allowing companies.
"(We could) say, 'Take what you want at your own expense; we're not going to charge you, we don't want anything from it, just take what you want and bring it down to get recycled at whatever facility you choose," she said.
"Then look at it after that and (see) what we have left."
