At a special board meeting on April 16, the Comox Strathcona waste management (CSWM) service reviewed the host community agreement and considered funding options for the $3-million payment to the Village of Cumberland for the upgrade to the Cumberland/Bevan Road corridor.
The board has now approved to move forward with a new resolution to conduct an alternative approval process (AAP) to enter into a 20-year host community agreement with the Village of Cumberland (VoC) that would see the CSWM service:
a) Pay the VoC host community the rate fee $300,000 per year for the term of the agreement to compensate the Village for social, environmental, and economic impact either incurred by or perceived by the Village related to the presence of the Comox Valley waste management centre (CVWMC) within its boundaries, and;
b) Provide $3,000,000 to the VoC to fund the design and construction of a one-time upgrade to the Cumberland/Bevan Road corridor to the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure standards to accommodate the vehicle traffic accessing the Comox Valley waste management centre.
The design and construction schedule for the corridor upgrade is:
2013 — Geotechnical and subsurface surveys;
2014 — Design of roadway rehabilitation;
2015 and 2016 — Construction;
The VoC will use its best efforts to meet the design and construction schedule as outlined above; however, reasonable delays shall not jeopardize the host community agreement, including its funding commitments.
The host community rate of $300,000 per year will be funded through tipping fees at a rate equivalent to $4.65/tonne for 2013 (this number will be calculated on the current year’s municipal solid waste rate).
The $3-million commitment to the VoC for the road construction will occur over the next five years as the project progresses. The amount will be paid by a combination of short- term borrowing, taxation, tipping fees and reserve funds.
The CSWM may proceed with the approval of the host community agreement if fewer than 10 per cent of the total number of electors of the Comox Valley and Strathcona Regional Districts sign and submit elector response forms opposing the agreement.
If 10 per cent of the electors sign and submit the elector response form by the May 31 deadline, the board cannot enter the agreement unless it obtains elector approval through a referendum.
For more information on the host community agreement and to obtain a copy of the elector response forms visit www.cswm.ca/hostcommunity.
Forms can be downloaded electronically on the website page or be picked up at the Comox Valley Regional District office (600 Comox Rd. in Courtenay) through local municipal offices. The only persons entitled to sign the electoral response form are electors within the Comox Valley and Strathcona regional districts.
The Comox Strathcona waste management (CSWM) service is a function of the Comox Valley Regional District (CVRD) and is responsible for two regional waste management centres that serve the Comox Valley and Campbell River, as well as a range of transfer stations and smaller waste- handling and recycling facilities for the electoral areas of the CVRD and the Strathcona Regional District.
The CSWM service manages over 100,000 tonnes of waste and recycled material and oversees a number of diversion and education programs. — Comox Valley Regional District