The Crane Mountain landfill on the outskirts of Saint John is trying to get approval to build higher.
The idea is to extend the lifespan of the site to 2070 and instead of expanding outwards, it hopes to go up.
Marc MacLeod, the general manager of the Fundy Regional Service Commission, said two other landfills in the province, in Fredericton and Edmundston, have gone through the same process.
“It looked to be a sustainable option for them,” he said. “So from our perspective, we’d be remiss if we didn’t explore the opportunity.”
The proposal is to expand from the current approved height of 90 metres above sea level to 117.5, about 385 feet. From ground level, the actual current height is only around 27.5 metres, said MacLeod.
But the landfill, which is located near Grand Bay-Westfield, must undergo an environmental impact assessment process before moving forward.
According to the Department of Environment’s website, an environmental impact assessment identifies harmful environmental effects that could result from the proposed project and reduces or mitigates potential effects before they happen.
The website says reviews take an average of six months, but can take as little as three months.
Will the pile be visible?
MacLeod said a common question he gets is whether the added height to the garbage pile will make it visible in more places.
There are two places where it can be seen and he says that won’t change. The first, said MacLeod, is if someone were to stand on the roof of the former workers’ compensation building at the border of the two communities. The other would be when travelling down Route 7 to Fredericton, where he said the landfill is already visible now at 90 metres above sea level.
What about the smell?
With the potential of adding more garbage, there may be concerns around bad smells emanating from the site.
But MacLeod said the expansion won’t increase odour. Still, he said that’s one of the biggest challenges when it comes to operating a landfill, and it actually has been worse in the last few years because of COVID-19.
“Everyone blames COVID, and I’m going to, too,” he said.
To reduce odours at the landfill, MacLeod said they drill into the garbage to recover landfill gas, which is what causes the smell, and use it for electricity production.
This is something that has been done for over a decade now with success, he said, but during COVID, supply issues meant the landfill wasn’t able to get the specialized drill rigs in order to complete the process.
But as of Nov. 7, the drilling has started again.
“To give you an idea, in the month of December, we were running and we’ve destroyed about 2,000 tonnes of carbon equivalent of landfill gas.”
Moving landfill only other option
MacLeod said the only other possible option besides increasing the pile’s height would be to relocate the landfill. But he doesn’t see that as an efficient solution.
“That’s an arduous 10-year process,” he said.
On top of that, many employees are from the area and to uproot the landfill would mean moving those jobs, too, which could have a social impact, said MacLeod.
- Crane Mountain tests technology to recover more methane gas
- Residents point to Fredericton landfill expansion as culprit in worsening odour
Although MacLeod said building up is the best way forward, he still expects opposition to the proposal.
A public engagement forum will be held on Tuesday where people can watch a presentation and ask questions, which will be recorded and forwarded along as part of the environmental impact assessment process.
“I would love consensus, but I … don’t think we would get it,” said MacLeod. “I mean, landfills are not the most popular items, but what I hope to get is a fair and detailed process where people feel heard.”
With files from Information Morning Saint John
This story was originally published in CBC News on Jan. 11, 2024.
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