While the Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) directors have voted to convert the Pender Harbour landfill to a transfer station, actual work on the planning and logistics is being put on hold.
The delay for the work comes after Area A director Eric Graham pressed the board for more time out of respect for Area A residents. He made it clear he intends to revive the debate.
"I really believe Area A is up in arms about this, on both sides, and I have changed my mind. I would like to see a referendum done," he said at Tuesday's (March 30) board meeting.
Graham said it had become clear to him that the majority of Area A residents would be willing to pay for the costs of a referendum, but said he still had issues with the initial cost projections. He later made a notice of motion, meaning he will ask the board to discuss and vote on a new resolution at the next meeting of the planning and development committee on April 8.
His motion is to "specifically ask the board to review cost allocations of a referendum for an Area A expanded landfill and revisit the decision on changing the Pender Harbour landfill to a transfer station and that the costs be charged to Area A for the Pender Harbour landfill expansion option."
The board agreed to the delay in work not because they had intentions of changing their vote, but because two of the directors, Lee Turnbull of Area F and Lorne Lewis of Area E, were not present at the meeting, and their alternates felt Lewis and Turnbull must be included in the debate.
Directors Barry Janyk, Garry Nohr and Darren Inkster voted against the delay. Janyk voiced frustration that the debate on the landfill wasn't about good environmental and economic decisions anymore and instead has become a territorial issue.
"I've been very clear right from the onset Solid waste is not an Area A function. It is a regional function. I understand director Graham and some of the constituents up there feel it is their God-given right to have a dump, but it isn't." Janyk said. "If you want to delay or defer for another 10 days, fine. I think you're wasting our time, you're wasting staff time, and I think ultimately we're going to end up at the point anyways and that is: get on with the task of dealing with the environmental, social and economic issues of the landfill."
While acting on the transfer station portion of the board's direction is being delayed, the plans for a resource recovery facility at the same location are moving ahead.
Manager of sustainability services Dion Whyte said he was excited to bring a report to the infrastructure services committee that outlined his initial research on resource recovery at the meeting which took place yesterday, April 1.
In another twist to the story, Sunshine Coast RCMP sent a plain-clothes officer to sit in on the debate Tuesday after a perceived threat was posted on the Pender Harbour.org message board under the discussion thread on the landfill issue. The comment read: "Enough talking - get the guns! (lol - sort of)."
SCRD administrator John France said he did not necessarily think the threat was credible, but erred on the side of caution and called the RCMP for "advice." The RCMP then offered to send an officer.
