A draft solid waste master plan will be submitted for council approval in the spring of 2022 before the city holds a final round of public consultations.
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More than 70 proposals are on the table to achieve “zero waste in Ottawa,” including options that would require people to pay fees based on the amount of garbage they throw away or use clear plastic bags to save money. prove that they do not throw away recyclable materials.
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The municipal landfill on Trail Road has only about 17 years of capacity left for Ottawa’s residential waste, according to the latest calculations made by municipal staff as they create a new 30-year master plan for solid waste .
Staff briefed advisers on the master plan on Thursday, with the second of three phases nearing completion.
On June 29, the Standing Committee on Environmental Protection, Water and Waste Management will review the vision, goals and long list of options as part of a new master plan.
Now is the time for staff to throw a stack of ideas out to the public to see what resonates when it comes to protecting landfill and increasing diversion, while avoiding huge increases in the budget of the city.
A team of technical consultants and public consultations helped develop the vision and proposed options.
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Other proposals include banning garbage materials, imposing curbside bag limits, requiring green bins in multi-residential buildings, and implementing better recycling options at city facilities. city.
The city could also pursue waste management technologies other than landfills, such as incineration or gasification, to keep the landfill from reaching capacity or as a long-term disposal option. The city tried to go this route with Plasco Energy Group’s “plasmafification” technology before severing the partnership in 2015 when the company was unable to secure financing for a large-scale plant.
It will be up to the public to decide before the city draws up a short list of options.
Staff recommend 11 goals for the next waste management plan, with extending the life of the municipal landfill site on Trail Road a top priority. A special “residual waste management strategy” underway alongside the larger solid waste master plan.
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The city expects the landfill to be full between 2036 and 2038. 30% of capacity remained at the end of 2019.
During a briefing on the report, councilors heard it takes 12 to 15 years to secure a new landfill, although the council did. Eli El-Chantiry believes it would take at least 20 years, highlighting a potential lack of time.
It is a process that would undoubtedly be politically explosive.
Com. Scott Moffatt, chairman of the environment committee, said decisions made in the second phase of the master plan study could extend the life of the landfill.
“We know no one wants to have a conversation about a new landfill,” Moffatt said.
The city estimates that it will have to manage 487,000 tonnes of waste by 2052, around 37% more waste than in 2020. The projections did not take into account the impacts inherited from the COVID-19 pandemic, as an increase in work from home-protocols. The city only has authority over waste generated by the residential sector.
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The city will develop “moderate” and “aggressive” proposals for waste management, with the aggressive option likely including more cultural change measures to increase diversion.
Moffatt said city council may need to choose a more robust approach to meet the city’s waste targets. It might require a mix of moderate and aggressive options, he said.
A draft solid waste master plan will be submitted for council approval in the spring of 2022 before the city holds a final round of public consultations.
The next municipal elections will take place in October 2022.
The final solid waste master plan will be submitted for board review in early 2023.
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