District of Squamish officials are exploring ways to expand the town's landfill capacity without taking up more land, Mayor Greg Gardner said this week.
Upgrades to make the Squamish landfill a viable option for regional waste have been eyed for several years. When Whistler started shipping its garbage to Washington State in 2005, municipal officials agreed to start using the Squamish landfill if specific environmental standards were met.
Now, with the B.C. government's recent announcement that it will act to outlaw the international export of garbage, an upgraded Squamish landfill would be the closest choice for Whistler.
Though Gardner said plans to expand the landfill haven't moved forward, it "looks viable" that there are options to accommodate more waste within the landfill's existing footprint.
"We are looking at alternatives right now," he said Tuesday, Sept. 8.
Increasing the landfill area would mean an expansion on Crown land, Gardner said, and the Squamish Nation has raised concerns about that proposal.
But increased volume capacity could still be achieved by piling waste higher, he said. "We're looking at going vertically," Gardner said.
Improved technologies, such as installing a liner to reduce leaching from the site, would also be required to make the landfill a regional waste disposal site.
But even with upgrades and more capacity for garbage, Gardner said he's not sure if the decision would be made to accommodate regional waste at the site. If waste is accepted from other communities, it would shorten the lifespan of the landfill, even with increased capacity, he said.
"We haven't made that decision," Gardner said.
