WHEREAS current waste management practices, while less expensive, are becoming less acceptable to the public and government; and

WHEREAS many landfills do not meet standard compaction and covering regulations; and

WHEREAS Saskatchewan Environment regulates municipal landfills and is in the process of advising municipalities that their landfills are not up to current standard; and

WHEREAS municipalities require time to secure alternative waste disposal options; and

WHEREAS the deadline to decommission under the existing regulations is March 31, 2013;

BE IT RESOLVED that SARM lobby Saskatchewan Environment to extend the time frame for decommissioning waste disposal sites.

Response from Honourable Ken Cheveldayoff, Minister of Environment:

Upon proclamation of the code, permitted landfills will have five years before the landfill operations and closure requirements apply. Subsequent legal review and interpretation of the requirements of the Environmental Code pertaining to landfills confirms that the five-year transition period for landfill operations also applies to landfill closure requirements provided the landfill has an existing valid permit to operate. This means that your stated deadline to decommission of March 31, 2013 does not apply and if the site is permitted, municipalities will have up to five years to evaluate their options and close their landfill, should they choose to, in accordance with the existing regulations and permit conditions. It should be noted that the code simply consolidates all of the requirements currently in place for landfills in one place, the Landfill Code Chapter. The consolidation of requirements will allow for a more consistent understanding of what is required by both the regulated community and the ministry.

View updated response dated June 6, 2017 from the Ministry of Environment