qathet Regional District’s board of directors will consider directing staff to issue a request for proposals (RFP) for a local organics processing facility.
At the August 13 committee of the whole meeting, regional directors considered a motion calling for interested parties to submit proposals for processing organic materials.
Electoral Area B director Mark Gisborne asked what kind of budgetary implications the request would have.
Mike Wall, manager of asset management and strategic initiatives, said exact implications would not be known until respondents provide their information through the RFP process.
“Currently, under our organics pilot program, we are exporting to Sechelt, so all indications we have by looking at other like facilities are that it would reduce our cost to our residents,” said Wall.
He said the current tipping fee is $230 for garbage, so to divert organics from the waste stream would be advantageous. He said at organics processing facilities, most local governments are seeing tipping fees between $100 and $150 per tonne.
“That’s considerably less than the $230 per tonne for garbage,” said Wall.
City director George Doubt said he was looking at Wall’s staff report and a motion from 2018 where the committee of the whole recommended the board direct staff to hire an individual to develop an organics processing RFP with a contract of $15,000 to do that.
“Are we talking about approving an additional $15,000 here today for the cost of developing the RFP or has the developing of the RFP already been paid?” asked Doubt.
Wall said from the process that was started, the regional district has enough information that staff can finish up that RFP information internally. He said when the initial process for development of an RFP was partway through, it changed to support an application by Tla’amin Nation for a funding opportunity for organics infrastructure projects through the ministry of environment and climate change strategy.
According to a report from Wall to the committee, the individual hired to develop an RFP was reassigned by the regional board to work with Tla’amin on its grant proposal, which included a composting facility on a parcel of Tla’amin land that would be capable of processing up to 2,500 tonnes per year of organic material, including yard and garden waste.
While the Tla’amin proposal was successful in securing more than $500,000 in federal and provincial grant funding, Tla’amin declined the grant, according to Wall’s report.
Doubt asked if the same individual who started working on the RFP in 2018 would be involved this time if the board sanctioned the RFP.
Wall said the information from this individual will be used in the proposed process.
Gisborne said in July, at the planning committee meeting, the regional district received information about a proposed organics processing facility in the Stillwater area. He said if the regional district is waiting, perhaps that facility would be up and running.
Gisborne then asked if the motion the committee was considering meant the regional district would have an organics processing facility, or if this was a matter of having some kind of agreement with a local organics processing facility.
“I’m curious about who would actually own this facility,” said Gisborne.
Wall said different private parties have contacted the regional district and indicated an interest. He said an RFP response could be for a private/public partnership.
“We’re not sure what is going to come in,” said Wall. “We want to leave it open and go with the best direction possible.”
The committee carried a motion to send the matter to the regional board for recommendation of an RFP for a local organics processing facility.
