Second generation landfill a technical marvel

BY NADINE ARMSTRONG

The Hants Journal

NovaNewsNow.com



West Hants Municipal Council members took a moment to shine last week while celebrating the grand opening the new Second Generation Landfill in Cogmagun.

As the Ministry of Environment works to phase out all pre-existing landfills, the Municipality of West Hants sets the standard with a landfill site that is environmentally friendly and economical.

West Hants Warden Richard Dauphinee said the new facility provides the public with waste treatment that is effective and cost efficient. “By working together so constructively, we have built a modern landfill that will ensure that the people of West Hants will receive environmentally sound and affordable waste disposal services for the next 25 years,� he said.

The new site has been engineered to meet environmental standards put in place by the Ministry of Environment, which include: a double-liner system and treatment systems for groundwater, surface water, and landfill gas.

Gerard MacLellan, executive director of Environment and Labor, said this type of site provides optimum environmental benefits. “More needs to be done to make Nova Scotia clean and green. This landfill site brings it well on the way. Nova Scotia is now a nationwide leader in recycling and waste diversion.�



Effective partnership

Dahpinee said that building the landfill site required enormous effort on the part of the Municipality and Waste Management. “West Hants looked at going it alone, but we knew that in order to be financially responsible we would need to partner with a private company.�

Infrastructure funds enabled the Municipality to purchase land and requests to survey and rebuild the road to the site were honored. Waste Management designed, engineered and constructed the site.

The partnership between Waste Management and the Municipality proves public-private partnerships can work, Daphinee said. “Our partnership with Waste Management is truly a model of innovation and success that could be followed all over the country,� he added. “Both sides have worked hard and followed through with their commitments. We’ve worked as team and can leave behind a legacy for future generations.�

Kevin Cinq-Mars, Waste Management’s Market Area General Manager for Eastern Canada, says what the partnership has created should be a model for all provinces.

“The success of this second generation landfill is a tribute to the strong working relationship we have developed with the Municipality of the District of West Hants and the people who live there. From the very start, our relationship has been productive, respectful, and professional and the results are before us today; a modern second generation landfill that we can all be proud of.�



Proud moment

Councillor Shirley Pineo worked closely with Waste Management on this project. She said the Grand Opening was a proud moment for her. “This is the biggest and proudest moment of my life and something the entire council has worked hard to achieve.

“We have looked outside the box and have a vision for the future. We know that the Municipality is in control of the landfill and can offer our citizens and businesses reasonable rates for the next 25 years.

Former MLA Ron Russell said he remembers the original landfill located in Sweets Corner. “When I was running for Council one of the first things I promised to do was to get rid of the old dump. That’s how I made my way into politics,� he said.

Russell was Minister of Transportation when the request for a new road to the site was proposed. Now retired, he is pleased with the part he played in the project, saying, “I’m proud to say that I have been instrumental in some way in bringing this landfill from a dream to reality.�