Council Monday adopted a number of recommendations included in the City of Lacombe Solid Waste Review, and subsequently directed City administration to prepare for changes to the municipal solid waste system.
“While there are no significant changes recommended to the way the City operates its solid waste system for the residential sector, the report did identify areas of improvement that may affect other sectors, including commercial customers, in the future,” said Mayor Grant Creasey. “After much deliberation, Council adopted a number of recommendations that staff will now look to implement moving forward.”
The following proposals were adopted:
- Council directed City administration recommend a utility rate structure to Council that ensures all benefitting sectors share in the Lacombe Regional Waste Services Commission (LRWSC) solid waste requisition costs.
- City administration will advocate for the LRWSC to review its revenue and expenses, identify existing fees charged to private haulers, and ascertain whether its financial and operations model should be modified from a per capita model to a weight-based model.
- Administration will also advocate for the LRWSC to permit diversionary credits for source- separated yard and garden waste.
- The City will maintain operations at the Wolf Creek Recycle Depot as outlined in the report; however, yard waste, grass and brush collection service will be eliminated.
- Council directed administration to update the Utility Bylaw to remove any references to curbside recycling, and to restrict dumping of yard waste, grass, and brush at the Wolf Creek Recycle Depot.
- Council approved the issuance of a request for proposals process for Wolf Creek Recycle Depot services and residential curbside pickup every four years, starting in 2021, to ensure the City is receiving fair market value for services and to provide an opportunity to re-evaluate the recycling market conditions.
- The City will review the Wolf Creek Recycle Depot cost sharing formula with Lacombe County prior to the next Intermunicipal Collaboration Frameworks update.
- Council will continue to advocate for provincial and national solutions to incentivize recycling at the municipal level.
- The City will continue with the current communal lane bin system, instituting roll-out bins only in areas where communal lane bins are not feasible.
- Finally, Council directed staff to optimize the current garbage collection routes utilizing in-house forces starting in 2021.
The City engaged Tetra-Tech in 2019 to complete a comprehensive review – with public input – of the City’s solid waste system with the primary goal to benchmark value for service against that of comparable municipalities, to engage the public about the future of solid waste collection in Lacombe, and to develop a long-term plan for managing the City’s solid waste in a sustainable, fiscally responsible manner.
“The Wolf Creek Recycle Depot costs the City approximately $300 per tonne on average, which includes processing fees, bin rental and transportation of the bins to and from the Red Deer Materials Recycling Facility,” said Director of Operations and Planning Jordan Thompson. “Curbside recycling would cost $532.77 per tonne today. It’s difficult to assure residents that the extra cost to divert more material results in that material being repurposed – the supply chain is simply too complex and cross- jurisdictional making tracking only possible through Provincial and/or Federal oversight.”
Tetra-tech also found the Lacombe Regional Waste Services Commission (LRWSC) charges a minimal tipping fee to private haulers at the Prentiss Transfer Station, which means they and their commercial, industrial, and institutional clients are paying significantly less per tonne than residents.
“The results of the review provide a benchmark from which we can measure improvements in the solid waste system,” said Director Thompson. “As it turns out, the most impactful improvement that needs to be made is in the disposal cost formula with the Lacombe Regional Waste Services Commission. We look forward to working collaboratively with our Commission partners to advocate for a regional weight-based cost model.”
-Submitted by the City of Lacombe