Parsons not ruling out changing laws to settle west coast trash talks
Two months after western Newfoundland was expected to start sending its trash to the province's central landfill in Norris Arm, the garbage hasn't moved.
The western and central waste management boards have come to an interim agreement on what the cost should be to process waste at the Norrris Arm facility, but Environment Minister Andrew Parsons says if a permanent deal isn't reached soon he may have to change the law.
The two waste management boards came to a temporary agreement on Thursday, Sept. 20 to get waste moving as early as next week.
In an interview with CBC Radio's Central Morning on Wednesday, Parsons said the dispute over the cost of sending garbage to the landfill needs to end soon.
If we have to change governance of these boards, if we have to look at ways to make this happen, then we'll do that. - Andrew Parsons
"We cannot have a situation where we have a waste management strategy that's not going to happen because two boards say, 'We're not going to agree,'" said Parsons.
"If we have to change governance of these boards, if we have to look at ways to make this happen, then we'll do that. We have a responsibility to our public to do that."
In July, Josh Carey of Western Regional Waste Management said central's proposed fee of $80.58 a tonne would put his organization in a financially unstable position and talks fell apart.
For now, Parsons said he's engaged an independent firm to look at the numbers at both boards to determine a reasonable fee for each group.
A fair and reasonable fee for disposal of waste at Norris Arm should be provided to the Minister in about 30 days.
Will change legislation if no deal made
What the firm decides will not be binding, and the boards must still mutually agree to the deal.
"The problem we have is that the legislation that is drafted doesn't give me any authority to enforce these numbers or enforce these actions upon boards," said Parsons.
He said he expects both boards to "play ball," but if a set deal isn't reached soon, he'll be bringing new legislation to the House of Assembly when it reopens in November.
All garbage from the western side of Newfoundland — excluding a portion of the Northern Peninsula and Ramea — was supposed to be trucked to Norris Arm by October, and west coast landfills were to be replaced with six new waste transfer stations, but that hasn't happened.
"Right now, we have a slight delay in that, but we are committed to making this work," Parsons said. "We're committed to changing how we have waste management in this province and it can work, and it will work."
With files from Central Morning
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