Avalon Waste Management Committee Presents Action Plan to Government

Lloyd L.W. Wicks, Independent Chair, Avalon Waste Management Community Consultative Committee (AWMCCC), presented the committee�s final report, Action Plan: Partnership for Responsible Waste Management, to Oliver Langdon, Minister of Municipal and Provincial Affairs, at a news conference today. They were joined by Kevin Aylward, Minister of Environment, and Randy Simms, President of the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Municipalities.

The committee was appointed on November 19, 2001 by the Minister of Municipal and Provincial Affairs, with a mandate to develop an action plan to reduce the number of waste management sites in the Greater Avalon Region to the minimum necessary to provide environmentally sound and affordable service to the area.

"During the past year, the Committee has been diligent in identifying a site for future waste management and in developing a model that can work to the benefit of our environment for present and future generations. As conscientious citizens, we recognize the problems that have developed from centuries of poor practices. As we learn more about our environment, we must use that knowledge to correct the mistakes of the past and be responsible in the future protection of our environment," said Mr. Wicks.

"Judge Wicks and the committee have been successful in developing recommendations for government�s action plan for the future of modern waste management for the Greater Avalon Area, and I would like to thank them for their work," said Minister Langdon. "I will proceed to reserve the identified site at Dog Hill and initiate an environmental assessment to determine the suitability of the recommended site as a regional waste management facility."

Minister Langdon noted that his department would now take some time to study the report in detail before being in a position to address the recommendations. Minister Langdon also said, "I expect that every municipality on the Avalon Peninsula will also want to take a very close look at this report."

"In the past two years government has made significant steps toward a new goal for modern waste management," said Minister Aylward. "In May 2001, a discussion paper, Protecting Our Environment for Tomorrow, was developed for province-wide consultation on a strategy for waste management. In April of this year, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador announced its Provincial Waste Management Strategy. The implementation of the province�s Waste Management Strategy is well on its way with regional waste management committees being established throughout the province. The report we see here today is a framework and approach for the Avalon region."

Randy Simms is pleased that progress is continuing toward the development of better waste management practices. "While waste management is primarily a municipal responsibility, it is too large an issue for individual municipalities to tackle alone. The province has recognized this, and I am pleased that we are forging this new path as partners," he said.

Minister Langdon committed to distributing the report to all municipalities and local service districts throughout Newfoundland and Labrador and invited input, particularly from communities in the Greater Avalon Area.

Under the guidance of the independent chair, Lloyd L.W. Wicks, the Avalon Waste Management Community Consultative Committee consisted of 15 members from municipalities, industry and the environmental sector throughout the region. Committee representatives include: Mayor Dave Denine, City of Mount Pearl; Mayor Don Coombs, Town of Harbour Grace; Mayor Stan Reid, Town of Heart's Delight-Islington and Heart's Desire; Councilor Shannie Duff, City of St. John's; Mayor Ronald Smith, Town of Conception Bay South; Mayor Bride McLennon, Town of Placentia; Councilor Bern Hickey, Town of Avondale; Mayor Tom Osbourne, Town of Arnold's Cove; Mayor Fred Best, Town of Clarenville; Mayor Dianne Whalen, Town of Paradise; Mayor Leo Moriarty, Town of Ferryland; Rod Cumby, Newfoundland and Labrador Association of Municipal Administrators; Linda Whalen, Centre for Long-Term Environment Action; Frank Evely, Conception Bay North Incinerator Association; and Charlie Riggs, Newfoundland Environmental Industry Association.

Action Plan: Partnership for Responsible Waste Management
www.avalonwaste.com

Additional Publications:
Protecting Our Environment for Tomorrow, May 2001.
/publicat/wastemanagement/default.htm
A Call to Action on Environmental Protection, April 2001.
/env/Env/PollPrev/Waste_Management_Report.PDF
Provincial Waste Management Strategy, April 2002. /env/Env/PollPrev/WasteManagementStrategy_apr2002.pdf

Media contact:

Lynn Hammond, Municipal and Provincial Affairs, (709) 729-1983
Cynthia Layden-Barron, Environment, (709) 729-2575

2002 11 13                                      11:20 a.m.