The Bonavista Regional Waste Management
Committee has received $50,000 to fund a Regional Waste Management Co-ordinator
position for the region. The funding comes from the Newfoundland and
Labrador Waste Management Trust Fund administered by the Multi-Materials
Stewardship Board (MMSB).
"The Provincial Waste Management Strategy
identifies a regional approach as the most cost-effective and
appropriate way of addressing the province's waste management needs over
the long term, especially in rural areas," said the Honourable Charlene
Johnson, Minister of Environment and Conservation. "The Bonavista
Regional Waste Management Committee is eager to get started and begin
the process of consolidating waste management services in the region,
and this position will facilitate that process."
The Provincial Solid Waste Management Strategy
is designed to result in long-term solutions for modern waste management
in the province. The strategy will help divert the amount of materials
currently going to disposal, reduce the number of waste disposal sites
in the province by 80 per cent, eliminate open burning at disposal sites
and phase out the use of incinerators and unlined landfill sites. The
goal is to implement full province-wide modern waste management by 2020.
"We provided funding to the Bonavista Regional
Waste Management Committee to complete a study of the waste disposal
sites within the region and develop a consolidation plan," said the
Honourable Dianne Whalen, Minister of Municipal Affairs. "Through the
study, it has been identified that three disposal sites will
sufficiently serve the needs of the area, rather than the 10 sites
currently in operation. This will be a wonderful step forward in the
consolidation of services for the area."
"We are dedicated to supporting the regional
waste management authorities, as they start the process of implementing
modern waste management systems in their particular regions of the
province," said Leigh Puddester, Chair and Chief Executive Officer of
the MMSB. "We will continue to make strategic investments through our
trust fund to help regional waste committees in all parts of the
province advance their mandates."
Darryl Johnson, Chair of the Bonavista
Regional Waste Management Committee, said the funding will help reduce
the number of waste disposal sites on the peninsula and facilitate
compliance with the Provincial Waste Management Strategy.
"As chair of the 10 person volunteer committee
on the Bonavista Peninsula, I am grateful for the funding to hire a co-ordinator
to help reduce the number of waste disposal sites on the peninsula and
to move toward our goal of complying with the Provincial Waste
Management Strategy," said Mr. Johnson. "Our committee looks forward to
working with MMSB and the Departments of Municipal Affairs and
Environment and Conservation to achieve this goal."
MMSB is a provincial Crown agency that reports
to the Minister of Environment and Conservation. Its mandate is to
support progressive waste management practices in the province, with a
particular focus on waste diversion, recycling and public education. The
MMSB is also responsible for providing start-up planning and
organizational development support to the 15 regional waste management
authorities that will enable them to implement modern waste management
systems throughout the province.
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