Recycling keeps a lot of material out of landfi lls, but it takes time and effort to recycle.
Communities in southwestern Manitoba are looking for a new solution for the cans, plastics, glass and paper pickup. The ‘blue box’ material, not just in Virden, but in many communities, has been picked up by Portage and District Recycling (PDR). Six months ago, the recycler gave notice the service would be discontinued.
In an effort to keep recycling service running smoothly for residents, a consortium of municipalities and towns have come to a working agreement and hence, the Request for Proposals (RFP) advertisement in newspapers around the province. The deadline for proposals is September 11.
Portage and District Recycling contract is soon up and they do not consider it financially rewarding enough to continue. The matter came up at the recent Town of Virden council meeting.
Mayor of Virden, Jeff Mc- Connell stated in an interview, “We are confident there is economic viability to a proponent.” He recommends to any potential recycling service provider to contact Multi-Material Stewardship Manitoba to learn about their requirements, so there are no economic surprises.
MMSM only reimburses for residential recyclables. It is an industry-funded, non-profi t organization that operates a province-wide recycling program for a broad range of packaging materials and printed paper, including newspapers and magazines, coffee cups, and aluminum cans. Industry steward levies cover 80 percent of the cost of recycling programs for this; municipalities pay the remaining 20 percent.
“Erosion is normal,” says Upper Assiniboine River Conservation District (UARCD) manager, Ryan Canart. However, looking at the delta - the huge amount of silt that has formed recently in the Assiniboine River east of Virden - he commented, “That little creek shouldn’t produce that much force.”
Scallion Creek comes from the west and two streams diverge, one finger heading to the river near the road to the landfill, and another flowing to the north, before entering the Assiniboine. Canart says there has been, of late, a lot more water flow in the direction of the little ravine along PR 259.
In the summer of 2014 the landfill road (a couple of miles west) washed out due to the large flow.
Recent trenching, seen on August 19 in the ravine bottom was not done by the UARCD. Canart says they do not trench. He is uncertain who has done this or what the outcome will be.
The Conservation District builds dams in an attempt to slow water down on its way to the river. On that stream flow, he said, the CD constructed a dam in 2013. It worked in the spring of 2014 until later rains (July 1) overwhelmed the structure. He said it was also a good structure for the upstream cattle producer.
In the ravine near the Assiniboine, Canart says the springs that flowed through the winter would keep the area wet and vulnerable to the heavy flows that came, first in the spring and then with summer rains.
The delta formed months before the recent trenching took place. It may be pinching the flow of the Assiniboine there and could cause the river to change, Canart speculates. “That delta could potentially cause trouble with the bridge, causing the river to widen or carve out the east bank.” He says that could threaten the nearby bridge on the highway.
What the trenching in the ravine will accomplish remains to be seen.
