Trash and Port Alberni's Landfill
Written June 2000
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Assorted trash dumped by the side of Ship Creek Road. The traditional solution for this, of course, is to sacrifice a designated area and take the city's garbage to a centralized dumping space. But the space of the dump is not as static and isolated as one may think. Leachate, for example, can seep into streams and pollute fish habitat far from the dumping site. |
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In time, landfills do fill up. Once eighty feet deep, the "hollow space" where the landfill is now overflows with Port Alberni's garbage. |
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Development at the landfill site is ongoing. As available space becomes occupied with waste over time, more space must be made to allow further dumping. |
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The landfill looks like a post-apocalyptic wasteland; looks can kill... |
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Unsorted glass is piled up at the landfill. The supply is crushed and used as drain rock. |
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Recycling bins at the landfill. The contents of these bins, unbeknownst to the public, are often dumped in the landfill because markets for many of the recycled materials have not been found. This means it is sometimes not cost-effective to truck materials to Nanaimo. |
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Roof recycling at the landfill, soon to be discontinued for administrative reasons. The idea is a good one, though proper organization is lacking at this site. |
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This machine is used in roof recycling to break down waste shingles. The asphalt rendered is useful for road work, as it solidifies quickly and firmly. |
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Operators are unsure of the environmental consequences of using the recycled roofing; it contains oil which may leak and pose threats to drivers and to the natural environment. Conclusive testing has not been carried through at this point. |
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New fill space at the landfill. Is it deep enough? As Port Alberni's historical relationship has already shown, this small hole won't take long as you might think to fill. The rate at which wastes are added to the landfill must be combated with recycling and reuse. |
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Compost and metal bins at the landfill. Compost is added to a neglected pile, and the metal is usually recycled by Budget Steel. But if metal is in a city dump truck, it becomes landfilled, as those trucks cannot reach far enough to dump into the bin. |
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The compost pile at the landfill is not tended to; it is not aerated and is not going to be reusable due to this neglect. |
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The scale shack at the landfill entrance regulates who enters the premises and charges tipping fees accordingly, depending on what people bring to the landfill. |
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Plastics (left) dropped off at the landfill are always landfilled (this is soon to change with Sunbird's upcoming plans to prevent all recyclables from entering the landfill). Oil (right) is deposited by the public and refined for use again by an oil company. |
