OUTLOOK - The landfill just outside of the town of Outlook has undergone a very noticeable transformation in recent years.
Longtime residents and users have undoubtedly witnessed the changes out there that have shaped how the riverside community handles its waste collection and management.
To help mark the changes and the advancements of the site, the Town held a grand reopening event of the Outlook Regional Landfill on Friday afternoon, November 17, offering free landfill dumping of all materials in the morning, as well as free hotdogs for lunch courtesy of Tony, The Hotdog Guy.
Joining landfill manager Dylan Herron for the event were a number of people from the public, as well as Outlook mayor Maureen Weiterman, councillors Ryan Husband, Bob Stephenson, and Justin Turton, Superintendent of Municipal Operations Luke Lockhart, and Chief Administrative Officer Kevin Trew.
Before Herron cut the ceremonial ribbon, CAO Trew shared some words offered by the Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure, and Communities.
"Today is a great day for the town of Outlook," said Trew, reading from a released statement by Minister Fraser. "From improving air quality in community centres and schools to increasing the reliability of water and wastewater systems, the Government of Canada recognizes the value of investing in infrastructure to keep our communities safe, healthy and resilient. Today, the federal government celebrates the grand reopening of the Outlook Regional Landfill considering decommissioning. Our investment of $400,000 will make a difference in the community and the day-to-day lives of Outlook residents. This project will improve the town's solid waste management by increasing the community's capacity to reduce soil and air pollutants. This new landfill site will help create a healthy, great community; a place residents can be proud to call home. By investing in the infrastructure that keeps our communities running, the federal government is working to improve the lives of Canadians. We will keep collaborating with our partners to build a stronger economy and a brighter, more prosperous tomorrow."
Sharing a few words, including a bit of a trip down Memory Lane for some in the community, Mayor Weiterman noted how far the landfill site has come in Outlook, shaping itself into a leading system for many in the province and standing out as perhaps a barometer for how other landfill operations elsewhere could potentially move toward.
"When I was a kid, you used to come to the dump and you'd actually go DOWN into the dump," said Maureen. "I'd just like to say that I'm pleased to be here at the formal grand reopening of the Outlook Regional Landfill. When I was growing up, this place was referred to as the nuisance grounds, but I have no idea when it formally became the dumping ground of the Town of Outlook, but in the 1970's, it was one of the places frequented by teenagers for a bit of 'private time' and maybe a sud on the side. Many hours were spent here by those who lived through the Depression, forging items that still had life in them, and my very first bicycle was found here and then refurbished by my uncles. Fast-forward to the 1980's when 'Reduce, Reuse, Recycle' became a mantra for recycling, and I'm proud to say that Outlook led the way. After almost losing our landfill due to non-compliance, the two previous councils made the decision to decommission the old landfill cell in 2018, and to grant support to the federal and provincial governments with locally-raised funds we have developed a landfill that will demonstrate more activities that will not only benefit the Town of Outlook, but also benefit our rural partners from the RM's of Rudy and Fertile Valley, as well as the residents and businesses of any smaller towns in our community area. It is important to recognize that this opportunity has afforded the Town of Outlook to go from operating a landfill that was in jeopardy of being shut down due to non-compliance to operating a landfill that is not only meeting all current environmental requirements, but leading the area in best practices. This is due to the good work of Team Outlook, from Council members both past and present, who had the wherewithall to seek assistance to make the changes to the landfill infrastructure. With good management, we will be able to protect this environment for many years."
Over the past year, construction has been underway in the process of decommissioning the landfill cell, which ceased being used as an active cell in 2018. The Landfill Decommissioning project was supported by a grant through the Green Infrastructure Stream of the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP) with a total project cost of $1 million.
On top of that, the Town of Outlook has invested locally raised funds to many other upgrades including new perimeter fencing and cleaning piles of already diverted waste as well as shredding wood, cement and asphalt waste to prepare for reuse.
The Town has been seen as something of a leader in waste diversion for a number of years, implementing both a municipal recycling program and municipal composting program years before it became commonplace. With this tradition in mind, there is said to be excitement to demonstrate more waste diversion activities that the Town looks forward to implementing in its business operations going forward.
It's expected that this project will also benefit rural partners accessing the landfill from the Rural Municipality of Rudy No. 284 and the Rural Municipality of Fertile Valley No. 285, as well as the residents and businesses of many smaller towns and villages in the trading area.
The Government of Canada has contributed $400,000 toward the project and the Government of Saskatchewan has invested $333,300. The Town of Outlook funds the remaining $266,700 and any remaining costs by using its reserves.
“The Government of Saskatchewan is proud to have played a role in the decommissioning of the original cell of the Outlook Regional Landfill,” Minister of Government Relations Don McMorris said in a media release. “The Town of Outlook’s hard work to improve their ability to manage waste disposal is to be commended, and this investment in decommissioning the landfill will help protect this region’s environment for years to come.”
Following the ribbon cutting, people were afforded a chance to check out the landfill's impressive shredding machine in action, watching what the system was capable of doing and witnessing as the shredder made mincemeat out of massive concrete boulders.
