With its landfill stressed by construction products that continue to drive waste in the wrong direction, the Capital Regional District aims to ban some recyclable items from the dump.

The CRD wants to reduce the region’s disposal rate to 250 kilograms per capita by 2030, but that figure was still rising in 2022 – largely due to wood and construction waste being landfilled.

To reverse that trend, the CRD is proposing banning clean, treated and salvageable wood, plus asphalt roofing and shingles and carpet from Hartland landfill as of next January. Those items were chosen after a consultant identified how robust reuse and recycling markets are already available for them.

Wood and wood products are now responsible for the largest single share of the CRD’s overall waste. Those along with non-wood construction and demolition waste account for a third of the region’s waste, but also present the greatest diversion potential.

The bans would also be teamed with raising tipping fees for recyclable construction and demolition waste after CRD rates have fallen below those in other Island and Lower Mainland jurisdictions. The bans and new fees are expected to keep 40,500 tonnes out of the dump each year should the CRD adopt both proposals.

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