City approves green-waste plan, increases and all

The 67-per-cent increase is being dealt with but creates concern that a potentially good and innovative project is moving too fast.

The observation that “a lot has happened” since city council in November gave the green light to a longdelayed program for curbside pickup of household kitchen scraps is understatement of the highest degree. The project had three initiatives: 1. Develop a plan to supply every home in the city with kitchen waste containers and curbside green boxes and design routes for city-wide pickup. 2. Commit to a private/public partnership (PPP) with Keene-based Triland Excavation and Hauling to build a processing plant that Triland would operate. 3. Apply for a provincial Green House Gas fund (GHG) grant to cover half the cost. Household containers, a fleet of compost collection trucks, route planning and public education would cost $4 million. Add $5 million for the processing plant and the total would be $9 million. The good news is that the provincial grant was approved in record time and will cover 50 per cent of costs as hoped. The surprising news is that in just under four months the cost jumped to $15 million from $9 million. That’s not a good surprise. The 67-per-cent increase is being dealt with but creates concern that a potentially good and innovative project is moving too fast. On Monday night city council voted to accept the $7.4-million provincial GHG grant. City staff laid the big increase almost entirely on the processing plant, which will cost $10.4 million, not $5 million. Similar facilities are dotted all around the province. It’s hard to imagine how the original estimate could be so wrong. But there was no time to delay. Approval of the grant and an outline of how the project would move forward came in a short special council meeting. The province wants to announce the grant March 12 and all the paperwork has to be complete next week. The $15-million cost won’t be nearly that expensive for local taxpayers. Triland, the city’s private sector partner, pays half the cost of the processing plant. That would be $5.2 million, perhaps less if it gets credit for providing the site. Factor in the provincial grant and the city is left with a tab of $2.4 million, give or take. That deals with the upfront cost. Future operating costs are up in the air. The city now spends $1.2 million annually dealing with leaves and grass clippings collected from homes and the sludge produced by the sewage treatment plant. The hope is that all that waste, along with the new green bin organics, will eventually be processed at the Triland site. The staff report indicates there should be savings on overall composting costs. However, that’s a “hope” and a “should,” nothing more. Triland expects to turn a profit on its investment. Nothing wrong there, but a firm estimate of the city’s long-term operating costs would create a higher comfort level before committing to the plan. As the staff report to council indicates, “a lot has happened” since November and almost all details of this project still need to be worked out. And the projected September 2019 start for green box pickup is “very aggressive.” The city’s first venture into a private/public partnership should deliver a necessary service that has been nearly 20 years in the making. It’s worrying that the end is coming in such a rush.