Discussions at the Oct. 14 committee of the whole meeting regarding the town’s need to “clean up” the municipal landfill were in no way indicative that contractors Lakeland Personnel Inc. nor Tom Veert Contracting Ltd. were responsible for any problems there.
This is the message Operations and Facilities manager Doug Brown conveyed to council Monday night.
“Todd Hamilton, owner of lakeland Personnel Inc. is of the opinion that the discussions which took place [at that meeting] have a created a public perception that Lakeland Personnel Inc. was not meeting its contractual obligations in regards to operating the landfill site weigh scale on behalf of the town,” said Brown.
“As the Operations and Facilities executive committee is fully aware, the operations at the landfill site have been modified to improve customer services and meet minimum Ministry of the Environment standards.
“Basically, the town must ensure it is operating a landfill site and not a dumpsite in the Rainy River District,” he remarked.
“In light of Lakeland Personnel Inc.’s concern, the comments made at the committee of the whole were not directed at either of the two landfill site contractors, but at the town itself,” Brown added.
“The comments were made to inform the public that the town was barely meeting its obligations in operating a landfill site and that improvement are forthcoming,” he noted, stressing “the town has no concerns that either the landfill site contractors, Tom Veert Contracting Ltd. or Lakeland Personnel Inc., aren’t meeting their contractual obligations.”
Back on Oct. 14, the town agreed to a five-year agreement with Tom Veert Contracting Ltd., with a bylaw passed sealing that agreement at council’s Oct. 27 meeting.
While the landfill previously has been contracted out to both Tom Veert Contracting and Lakeland Personnel, this tender is simply to the former contractor who, in turn, will subcontract out to Lakeland.
The five-year contract will cost the town $984,000, with the annual cost being $196,880—about $35,000 more per year than it currently pays.
As reported in the Oct. 15 edition of the Times, in accordance with MoE guidelines, the town and its contractor are adjusting the operations at the landfill, ensuring they:
•place covering material on waste at regular intervals;
•better control of “blow waste” (waste that drift from site with the wind);
•enhance waste segregation practices (vehicle batteries, propane cylinders, and hot ashes, for example);
•better control drop-offs (e.g., drop off waste at the bottom of a hill slope and push it upward); and
•write and file monthly inspection reports for better accountability in case of any problems.
Hours of operation at the landfill also have been adjusted, effective Nov. 17, to be more cost-efficient.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
