Events:
Partnering for Sustainability – Success Stories
Edmonton Waste Management Centre of Excellence – as presented by Jerry Leonard, Executive Manager
The City of Edmonton’s public landfill, used largely for residential and some commercial waste, was opened in 1975 with a capacity of 13.2 million tones. It is expected to be full in 2010. That wasn’t always the case, though. In the 1980s it was beginning to get full and its expected life was considered to be considerably shorter than 2010. The city was faced with the problem of siting a new landfill but faced many concerned citizens. The City decided to solve the problem by diverting waste from landfill. This has been achieved through a strong recycling program, investment in a composting facility, education, public relations, and the Edmonton Waste Management Centre of Excellence (EWMCE).
How does it work?
The EWMCE is a not-for-profit corporation, involving collaborations between academia and government. The founding partners are the University of Alberta, the City of Edmonton, Alberta Research Council, Northern Alberta Institute of Technology, AMEC Earth and Environment, and Olds College. The objectives of the EWMCE are both functional and financial: to further research, technological development and technological demonstration of waste management technology, as well as to become fiscally independent from the associated agencies. Current funding comes from research grants, membership fees, intellectual property, training, and conference fees.
The Centre uses a board and committee structure to operate, with committees for marketing, management, research, and education. All of the partners are represented on the committees. The research & development, and research & training facilities were built with federal, provincial, and municipal money; they are owned by the City of Edmonton; but they are at the disposal of the EWMCE. There are educational and training facilities built into these (including classrooms). In addition, all of the research laboratories at the University of Alberta are accessible to the EWMCE through the partnership. The University has made a substantial donation to fund someone to work at the University on behalf of the centre. Much of the centre’s research is carried out by University researchers.
Successes include: A method for recycling all of the street sand that is put on the streets every year (the 200,000 tonnes would otherwise go to landfill); the reduction of ammonia in wastewater bio-solids; information transfer through publications; and technical workshops and conferences.
Challenges include: The blurred identity between the centre and City waste facility; the challenge of sharing resources with the City; the issues that are caused by unequal contributions by different partners; dealing with conflicting priorities of the various partners; maintaining focus; and the challenge of bringing in new partners.
Learn more about the Edmonton Waste Management Centre of Excellence (EWMCE)
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