SANDRA M STANWAY
Brooks Bulletin
Newell Regional Solid Waste Association (NRSWA) will continue with its membership in the Southern Alberta Energy from Waste Association (SAEWA) as it looks to construct an energy from waste facility.
Following last year’s termination of negotiations with HZI to build a large regional facility at the local landfill some member municipalities questioned whether or not SAEWA had a future.
However, with the announcement in November that SAEWA had selected Global Green to construct sub-regional units in member municipalities, during a special meeting of the NRSWA last week the committee voted to pay their SAEWA dues and remain with the association.
SAEWA chair and city councillor Ray Juska said the local landfill was selected years ago to host a large energy from waste facility.
“We (SAEWA) still have to do the memorandum of understanding with Global Green before it can move onto the stage where they’re contracting property use and waste commitment. They’re not at the point where they’re going ahead to build yet,” he said.
SAEWA is still needed because the MOU will not be signed between the company and Global Green but between the company and SAEWA although member municipalities will eventually see sub-regional units.
“SAEWA still has the ability to apply for grants. It also has quite a bit of experience and the ability to facilitate the process,” Juska said.
While Global Green will build the facilities it will be up to municipalities to make a waste commitment and begin the siting process which will include approvals by the province.
“What’s changed is we’ve gone from regional (one large facility) to sub-regional (many smaller facilities in many locations).”
Juska does expect the MOU to be signed by the end of the month which will kick off more “serious” negotiations with Global Green.
Once signed, Global Green will use the MOU to line up financing while municipalities undergo their siting processes to consider how many units should be built and where.
“We’ve been moving at the speed of light ever since the deal with HZI collapsed and once we saw the new direction. You could conceivably have a plant up and running within a couple of years.”
