The minimum charge for dropping off waste to the Mission landfill is doubling from the current $5 charge to $10 for Mission residents. Out-of-district customers will now pay a $15 minimum charge, up from $10.
According to a staff report, presented to council on Monday afternoon, the increase is designed to “reduce traffic safety concerns resulting from increasingly frequent vehicle lineups backing up onto Dewdney Trunk Road.”
The report goes on to explain at “the current garbage rate of $103 per tonne and a minimum charge of $5, a customer breaks even by bringing in at least 48.5 kg each trip.”
“If customers were to make full use of the proposed minimum charge of $10 per load by only delivering loads of at least 97 kg, it is reasonable to assume they would cut their number of trips in half,” the report concludes.
Mission Mayor Randy Hawes asked if the change in charges may increase the number of illegal dumping incidents.
While staff couldn’t speculate how members of the public would react, they did say the new charge system should encourage people to bring full loads to the landfill.
“Nothing is really going up as far as the value that people are getting. We are just trying to discourage frequent trips. The rates aren’t really going up if people make use of the full weights.”
The new charges will start on April 2.