The upcoming introduction of a $6 fee to dump small loads at the Foothills dump on July 1 has some residents worried about the consequences.
The Regional District of Fraser-Fort George's environment and parks standing committee stuck to a decision to charge the fee, even for residents within the city boundary who don't receive curbside garbage collection, for loads less than 100 kilograms
Under the new rules, residents who live outside the city in the Salmon River-Lakes electoral area without municipal garbage collection will be provided with a swipe card to access the Foothills facility for free.
Albert Sommerfeld, who lives in the city's north end, is one resident who doesn't receive waste collection at his home.
In a letters to regional district directors and staff, Sommerfeld said having to pay the new fee is unfair, as it results in what he calls a 12 per cent increase in taxes.
Environment committee chair Terry Burgess said he saw Sommerfeld's point.
"I do pay $180 a year to have my garbage picked up, but only a dollar of that is a tipping fee," Burgess said. "He's now going to be paying $312 more a year for garbage."
According to regional district administrator Jim Martin's written response to Sommerfeld, city residents with curbside collection pay a utility fee in addition to the regional district taxes. Electoral area residents also pay an additional tax to cover the fees originating from the rural transfer station network, which is comparable to the utility fee paid by city residents.
In previous discussions, the "conclusion by the committee was that those city residents in the Cranbrook Hill area and northern fringe of the city will not be unfairly penalized if they have to pay the new small load user fee" since they're not subject to the city's utility fee or the extra tax paid by rural residents, Martin wrote.
Committee member Cameron Stolz said there are discussions within the city about extending curbside collection service but that in the meantime he didn't think Sommerfeld's argument was sound.
"The basis is it's a user-pay system and if you're generating garbage you need to pay for the cost...," Stolz said. "That money doesn't magically appear. It appears from, in my perspective, those who are using the landfill paying for that. His letter is suggesting he should be able to dump his garbage for free and that's just not on, at least from my perspective."
The introduction of the small-load fee has also raised concerns about a potential increase in illegal dumping.
Ferguson Lake Road resident James Loughery wrote to the regional district board, saying that he and his wife used to take it upon themselves to pick up trash left on the road, but that over the past few years they can no longer keep up with the accumulation.
"Since you will be collecting a tipping fee at the Foothills Landfill, we expect there will be an increase in illegal dumping by those good citizens avoiding the fee," he wrote, also requesting the city use a portion of the fee towards clean up costs.
In a report to the environment and parks standing committee, environmental services manager Petra Wildauer said 26 tonnes of waste was dumped illegally in 2012, but that it accounted for less than one per cent of the 79,524 tonnes of waste collected in the regional district last year.
"Illegal dumping is a long-standing problem in the RDFFG with defined measures currently available," she wrote.
Regional district sites are inspected on a regular basis, Wildauer explained. "If our staff encounters any unsightly appearance at that facility it is picked up and left spotless."
The hauling company is also required in its contract to clean up around the bins when they pick them up.
The regional district, municipalities and the provincial ministry each have their own measures for cleaning up their respective property.
Those who take matters into their own hands, such as school or not-for-profit groups can also get fees at the dump waived for neighbourhood clean up events.
