County of Simcoe Council approved plans to secure a long-term, 20-year garbage export contract with Emerald Energy from Waste Inc.
The contract, which would commence in November 2026, will have the County export its garbage to Emerald's energy from waste facility.
Since 2013, the County has been exporting approximately 25,000 tonnes of curbside garbage annually to help extend the life of local landfills. With minimal local and provincial landfill capacity remaining, this contract is an important step in ensuring the County of Simcoe secures long-term disposal capacity and cost certainty for the management of garbage.
"This long-term contract is a responsible solution for our waste management as we navigate the closure of our local landfills over the next few years," said Warden Basil Clarke. "There are plenty of benefits to this from an environmental and economical standpoint, and I applaud our staff for being proactive and bringing forward this opportunity which will provide us with long-term stability."
The benefits of entering a 20-year contract include:
- Provides the County with garbage disposal capacity well beyond the closure of County-owned landfills.
- Secures costing throughout a term of uncertainty in the province, where costs may rise in the coming years as more landfills close (Note: there is currently less than 10-years of available disposal capacity left in the province).
- Reduces transportation related emissions due to the shorter hauling distance to Emerald's facility in Brampton, when compared to current location.
- Supports environmental sustainability as Emerald's facility has advanced energy capture systems that convert waste into steam, heat, electricity, and potentially hydrogen, and can recover some items to be recycled through their processing.
This contract is for processing of garbage only, Miller Waste Services will continue to provide curbside collections on behalf of the County for the duration of their contract. In early 2024, the County also secured a long-term contract for organics processing. The Producers of recyclables will also assume full responsibility of all recycling materials in 2026.
