By Andrew de Souza

City should increase garbage user fees: report

Nov 15, 2010 | 5:42 AM

The city’s waste management system needs to increase its revenue in order to stay sustainable says the city’s financial department.

In a report to the city’s executive committee, city financial services director Joe Day said that usage fees for the city’s garage system need to increase. Without an increase the city will have to borrow money to expand the system as the city grows in the coming years.

“Environmental standards are increasing and the demands for expansion of the landfills are always ongoing,” said Day.

“What we determined is we just weren’t putting enough money aside for capital improvements (and) large dollar improvements that are going to be happening over the next 20 years or so.”
According to the report, the city currently generates about $135,000 from its waste management system. But in order to remain sustainable, that number needs to increase almost four times to $540,000.
Day said the best and most fair ways to raise money are to increase fees for use of the city’s landfill and to increase rates for multi-unit residential properties.

According to his report, the optimum increase would see the minimum load fee at the landfill jump to $10 from $5 while the per-tonne rate would increase to $50/tonne up from $42 and subsequently increase by $1 per tonne each year until 2015.

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As for multi-residential units, Day suggests the city begin charging the properties on a per unit basis.

Currently, they pay a lump fee, but Day suggests charging at the same rate per unit as single-family dwellings or $15 per unit.

Finally the report suggests increasing fees for out-of-city users by about 20 per cent.

According to Day, the reality is that fees currently being paid are actually below what they should be and increasing means people will actually be paying their fair share.

“It’s to bring fairness of charge into the system and to make sure each user of the system is paying their fair share,” said Day.

Whether or not the city councillors will agree with the report will be determined at tonight’s executive committee meeting.

adesouza@panow.com