(rdnewsNOW file hpoto)

By Sheldon Spackman

Changes Proposed

Sylvan Lake council considering waste bylaw changes

Dec 17, 2020 | 9:20 AM

Town council in Sylvan Lake has granted first reading to a Waste Bylaw amendment that would allow for an increase to the tippage rate charged at the Waste Transfer Site (WTS) for customers who do not pay a solid waste utility charge to the Town of Sylvan Lake.

Town officials note that prior to 2017, there were two rates at the WTS – one for Sylvan Lake solid waste utility customers, and another for businesses and non-residents.

The two rates were deemed necessary since the annual operating deficit of the facility was funded by the solid waste reserve, ensuring that non-utility customers paid a full cost recovery rate.

However, in 2017 a “harmonized” rate was introduced to reduce confusion over two rates, create efficiencies, and reduce labour since there was a planned transition to an automated kiosk payment system.

Since that time, Town officials acknowledge that the automated kiosk idea proved to be logistically unfeasible as the Canadian banking requirement and the American kiosk technology were not compatible.

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A survey conducted by the Town’s Public Works department from May 4 – Aug. 8, 2020, determined that there were 6,104 paying customers during that period and that 622 (11.36%) of the visits were from non-residents of Sylvan Lake.

Two thirds of non-residents were found to be from Red Deer County, with non-residents delivering about 255 tonnes of waste annually, or about 0.22 tonnes per visit, on average.

Since the rate model is not based on a full cost recovery, Town officials say these customers paid about $9,690 less than the actual costs to dispose of the waste, or about $8.36 per visit to the WTS.

The proposed 2021 budget includes the creation once again of a two-rate system in which customers of the WTS that do not pay a solid waste levy would be required to pay a cost recovery rate of $136/tonne.

There is no tippage rate increase planned for WTS customers that have a current Sylvan Lake residential address, which would remain at $98/tonne.

Town officials say the rate increase would generate about $9,700 per year from tippage fees, based on 2,200 tonnes of annual waste volumes expected at the WTS next year.

Second and third Reading of the Bylaw and the Public Hearing are scheduled for Jan. 11, 2021.

Meantime, the proposed No Landfill Disposal Facility (NLDF) from Fogdog Energy Solutions Incorporated is still planned to begin operations later next year.

On Monday, council authorized the Town’s CAO to finalize details and execute a third amendment to its Master Services Agreement (MSA) with Fogdog to extend the deadline for receiving all operating approvals from Dec. 31, 2020 to the “summer of 2021” – as per Fogdog’s request.

In a letter to The Town this month, Fogdog officials say the investment “disruption” is due to the coronavirus pandemic, and the principal reason for the deadline extension request.

However, they further note that they are actively working on other “options and solutions” in order to proceed with the project.

Fogdog’s service commencement date of Dec. 31, 2021, remains unchanged at this time.