New Iqaluit dump 2 years behind schedule

Construction of the new Iqaluit city dump is two years behind schedule. 

The current dump, along the West 40, was supposed to close this year. Two years ago, when a new $35-million waste sorting facility and dump was announced, the landfill was at capacity. 

"I think that you know the 2020 date that we had was very specific to the fact that we had no more space in that landfill," said Coun. Romeyn Stevenson. "It was an emergency to be able to open something else up." 

But Stevenson says the landfill is no longer in an emergency situation for now — a fire in the dump made room for the city to "re-engineer" some of the existing space to keep it open longer. By changing how the garbage is piled, Stevenson said the space will last for two more years. 

"[The new pile] is not blowing down the bay like it was two years ago and blowing out into the park land like it was two years ago," Stevenson said. 

The new landfill will be about six kilometres from upper base and a new road will need to be built to get there. A 20,000 square-foot sorting centre will be built in the 1800 block area of Kakivak Court. 

The facility will sort garbage taking out recycling to be sent south for processing. The garbage to go to the landfill will be wrapped in plastic blocks and put on trucks to be taken to the dump. The blocks are to keep the garbage from polluting the land. 

Right now, all of the city's garbage is taken to the dump and essentially thrown off the back of the truck. Some sorting to remove things like metal and cardboard is done.

The city recently moved the fire training centre from where the sorting centre will be built, to across the street from the West 40 dump, something that needed to happen in order to start work. 

Stevenson says in the spring the city will send out tenders for construction work and begin the regulatory process with the Nunavut Water Board with hopes of construction starting this summer. 

• Here's what's going to happen to your garbage in Iqaluit

"Re-engineering that space [the old dump] allowed us the time to move the date and being more careful about making sure we get the landfill that we need," said Stevenson. 

The city hopes to have the new garbage facility up and running by 2023. As for the old landfill, it will be remediated and covered in grass.