Jasper has the opportunity to secure its waste disposal for the foreseeable future by joining the regional waste management authority based in Hinton.
Council will vote on whether or not to sign a memorandum of understanding with the West Yellowhead Waste Management Authority Sept. 10, following nearly a year and a half of discussions and work to re-envision the role of the authority.
Jasper already uses the Hinton landfill, but by joining the authority it will have a voice in the operation of the landfill and it will receive a reduced tipping fee ($28/tonne as opposed to $46/tonne).
鈥淚n simple terms, that additional break is $18/tonne. That would have resulted in savings per year over the last two years鈥攖his an April to March year鈥攐f $37,766 and $29,952 respectively,鈥� said Peter Waterworth, chief administrative officer for the municipality.
Membership in the authority is limited to the municipality, so the savings will not apply to waste collected outside of the townsite by Parks Canada or at Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge.
The separation is possible because each group deals with its own waste, bringing it to the Jasper Transfer Station鈥攚hich is currently run by Parks Canada鈥攖o be weighed and sent off to Hinton.
To join the authority and to gain the perks that go along with it, the municipality will have to pay $244,000 to the authority鈥檚 capital reserves. If approved by council, that money will come from the municipality鈥檚 utilities reserve.
In order to pay back those funds, tax rates would likely be adjusted, said Alice Lettner, director of finance. 鈥淚 think with the savings [at the landfill] we鈥檇 be able to recoup that in either four or five years.鈥�
The municipality first submitted an application to join what was then the West Yellowhead Regional Landfill Authority in April 2011, but it did so with some trepidation about the authority鈥檚 environmental principles. Since that time, municipal staff has been working with the authority to address those concerns and ultimately, the authority and partnering municipalities鈥擧inton, Yellowhead County and Edson鈥攈ave listened.
鈥淭here has been a realization at that regional level that not only is it inefficient to fill up a landfill in 50 years when with proper management it could last over 100 years, but actually it鈥檚 wrong in principle and now the vision for that authority has become to be a leader in regional waste reduction,鈥� explained Waterworth.
The organization even changed its name from a landfill authority to a waste management authority.
Waterworth called the agreement 鈥渁 big win鈥� for Jasper and recommended that council approve the signing of it on Sept. 10.
If approved, the agreement will come into effect Jan. 1, 2014.
Nicole Veerman
[email protected]
