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VOL. 27 NO. 30
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Wednesday, November 18, 2015
Waste handling shift underway By MARGARET SPEIRS THE NEW way waste is to be handled in the region continues to take shape with the start of work to convert the Kitimat-Stikine regional district’s Thornhill dump into a transfer station. When finished, the transfer station will be used to sort waste from recycling and from there it will be sent elsewhere, with garbage being trucked to the new Forceman Ridge landfill which itself is under construction off of Hwy37 South
on the way to Kitimat. Because of the work going on at the Thornhill dump, the regional district is banning, at least for now, a list of items. The items are scrap metal, tires, large appliances (although fridges and freezers will still be accepted) and lead acid (vehicle) batteries, says Margaret Kujat, the regional district’s environmental services coordinator. “Those are the main ones that take up a lot of real estate at the site and we need that (space) for
our guests as well as construction equipment moving around,” said Kujat last week. “It’s not intended to be a negative. It’s more of a positive to get folks to understand they have options they haven’t really thought about or were aware of.” “Tires for example have at least 10 places to take them,” Kujat said, adding that in future, these items may be reintroduced as being accepted when the transfer station is finished and in operation. The reason for not accepting
these items anymore is for safety of residents bringing in their residential waste because these newly restricted items build up in the landfill quickly and get in the way, and space is limited with the transfer station construction going on, she said. The goal is to keep the landfill safe without sacrificing service, she added. The work at the Thornhill dump began last month. It involves preparing a landfill cap of clay that will be place over
the existing dump footprint. It’s meant to reduce leachate liquids by keeping rain and other precipitation from soaking into the landfill’s material. A leachate collection system will also be installed as will a system to collect landfill gas. There is also a plan to collect leachate from existing waste and treat it in a pond and through a subsurface wetland. Cattails will be placed as well to treat water before it leaves the site.
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Overpass work nearly finished
JACKIE LIEUWEN PHOTO
■■ Ski swap FARAH DEFREITAS shows off some of the skis for sale at the ski swap last Saturday. The 40th annual event drew over 1,000 people and boasted twice as many retail vendors selling winter, ski and snowboarding gear at the Kitsumkalum community hall.
Youth engage Terrace youth produced three short videos on societal issues \COMMUNITY B1
SEE THIS WEEK’S B SECTION FOR COMMUNITY & CLASSIFIED ADS
NO MORE will motorists using the Sande Overpass by Keith Ave. on its southern end be confronted with flashing amber and red signals, as the final touches are being put in place this week on what is a major overhaul and construction project. “We are going to the traditional traffic signal timing,” said provincial transportation ministry official Darrell Gunn late last week. “Barring any malfunction with the new electrical cabinet,” it should be complete by at least this Friday, he said. A key feature of the work involved adding a second lane for motorists turning left from the overpass eastward to Keith Ave. Pedestrians will also have a safer way of crossing at the southern end thanks to the installation of timed signal lights. Making improvements to the Sande Overpass, considered a choke point for traffic, is a provincial responsibility because it is part of Hwy16 and has long been wanted by city council and motorists. The company WestCana has been doing the electric component of the work under a subcontract from Adventure Paving of Prince Rupert which did the construction. The total bid price for the whole project came in at $2,297,266.42 which was paid for by the province.
“We have basically all the physical works done, what we are working on today is all the electrical wiring hook up,” said Gunn last week. “All the big, physical concrete, the paving and lines. That’s done.” The timing of the new light system is based on the traffic patterns that are calculated on the unique characteristics of the intersection, he said. Next in line for the overpass work will be resurfacing it, which is high on the transportation ministry’s priority list for future projects, said Gunn. Resurfacing of Keith Ave./ Hwy16 heading east of the overpass and west of the overpass from its northern end took place earlier this year. The provincial transportation ministry says bike lanes or a plan for bikers was not considered in the redesign of the Sande Overpass but could not say why not. While the redesigned overpass will make transit easier for motorists and safer for pedestrians, there was no separate provision for cyclists. According to a ministry of transportation statement, cyclists should either use the vehicle traffic lanes or dismount and walk their bikes along the sidewalks.
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River Kings win With a clean and smart game, Terrace Kings are on a triple win streak. \SPORTS A17