The future of the Hanover-Walkerton landfill site is in limbo today following split votes by two local councils.
At a special joint council meeting, councillors heard how new environmental standards mean strict rules on leachate from the proposed landfill expansion, and added workload on the environmental assessment team.
Brockton Mayor Charlie Bagnato says the new rules add 1 million dollars to the cost of the proposed landfill expansion, and an extra 200 thousand dollars in consultants fees.
Bagnato says councillors then returned to their own council chambers to vote on the additional consultant cost.
Hanover passed the motion to pay the fee, but Mayor Bagnato says rural councillors on his council opposed the expense, and voted down the motion.
That leaves the who project on hold because the funding has to be approved by both councils…
Bagnato is now working the phones, and e-mailing the councillors to explain to them this cost would not impact rural ratepayers at all.
He wants a special council meeting as soon as possible in order to get the landfill expansion back on track.
Time is running out on the current landfill, and Bagnato says there is no other land available in the area … that wouldn’t take years to get all the approvals for.
