City staff presented an important update on the Solid Waste Master Plan to Council members and staff this week. This update ensures we have the latest information on the proposed plan to manage waste in Ottawa over the next 30 years.
The draft Waste Plan acknowledges that there is no single solution to managing waste. It will require a multi-pronged approach, including a number of actions to extend the life of the Trail landfill by approximately 14 years to 2048-2049. These actions include:
- Supporting waste reduction, reusing and recycling
- Diverting 30 per cent of waste to private landfills
- Expanding the Trail landfill within its existing footprint
- Banning industrial and commercial waste from the Trail landfill
Extending the life of the Trail landfill would give the City more time to plan its next waste disposal solution. The Waste Plan would see the City explore long term solutions such as anaerobic digestion for organic waste, waste-to-energy incineration to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill, and mixed waste processing to mechanically separate divertible materials from collected garbage.
The Waste Plan would reduce GHG emissions from landfill by about 138,620 tonnes of CO2e, equivalent to the emissions from 42,468 passenger vehicles in one year.
Financial implications
The draft Waste Plan provides high-level cost estimates for the recommended actions, including ongoing capital expenditures over the next ten years that are required to continue providing status quo services to residents.
Staff are developing a comprehensive Solid Waste Long-Range Financial Plan to sustainably fund current and future solid waste services. This will be presented with the final Waste Plan in 2024.
Next steps
The Waste Plan was built with input from key stakeholders and the public in each stage of its development. Engagement with residents, Council and other stakeholders will continue to inform its development.
After this report is tabled, the City will begin a third round of engagement, which will support the development of the final Waste Plan. Residents, Council and other stakeholders will be able to provide feedback on the 50 proposed actions before the Waste Plan is finalized.
Staff will bring a final Waste Plan to City Council in Q2 2024. Staff would then begin work on the approved actions. Moving forward, staff would seek approval on various initiatives and strategies before implementation.
To stay up to date, sign up for the Solid Waste Master Plan eNewsletter, and visit Engage Ottawa.
