Review staff:
Residents of Winfield, Buck Lake and Alder Flats will be shelling out a bit more in the new year following a recent meeting of the County of Wetaskiwin Council which approved a Waste Management Bylaw for a number of hamlets and subdivisions within the municipality.
The bylaw, which provides for the collection of waste and the preparation of waste matter for collection, also includes stipulations regarding the maximum amount allowed for collection, fees for service, new requests for service, recycling and enforcement. “Currently, weekly waste management removal is provided to the Hamlets of Alder Flats, Buck Lake, Winfield, Westerose, Mulhurst Bay and Gwynne and the Subdivisions of Viola Beach and Curilane” said Chief Administrative Officer Frank Coutney. “A $10 per month fee is being implemented effective Jan. 1, 2009 for that service.”
The fee will be included in the County of Wetaskiwin’s bimonthly utility invoicing, with the first invoices for waste management services to be sent out in March of 2009. Residents within those areas have already been notified of the implementation of fees however the County has extended the offer to other communities within their jurisdiction.
“Any hamlet or subdivision, as a whole, that is not receiving waste removal services and wishes to have the service, must provide the County of Wetaskiwin with a registered owner petition from not less than 75 per cent of the registered owners in that hamlet or subdivision,” read a statement issued by the County.
“Approval would be subject to availability at that time and pricing to be consistent with all other areas that are being provided the service. If services are approved by the County, 100 percent participation is mandatory for all improved lots in that hamlet/subdivision.”
Conversely, the County is also offering an out for hamlets and/or subdivisions which do not want to participate in the program with basically the same requirements in that at least 75 percent of registered homeowners in a particular hamlet or subdivision must sign a petition and provide it to the County to discontinue services.
“The County of Wetaskiwin has been progressively moving toward user-pay for service provided in an effort to meet its core value of conducting all our business with fiscal responsibility to ensure long term sustainability,” Coutney added.