For Immediate Release – September 22, 2015

Halifax Waste-Resource Society Disappointed with Secrecy

Halifax – Halifax City Hall is in breach of its obligations to provide information about the Otter Lake landfill to its own watchdog committee, says the organization’s solicitor.
John Merrick of Merrick Jamieson Sterns Washington and Mahody has reviewed the agreement between the City and the local community, and determined that “HRM is in clear breach of the Agreement.”

Recent closed-door meetings of Council and a refusal by staff to provide information on
planning for the landfill facility has the people in nearby communities concerned that there may be an unpleasant surprise in the works at City Hall.

An August 4th closed-door meeting of Council on a contingency plan for the landfill and a
decision by council to keep the associated report secret raised a red flag for the Community Monitoring Committee, charged with being a watchdog for the local community.

Now, for the second time in three meetings, Council is again poised to go behind closed doors to consider staff recommendations for the Otter Lake landfill.  In particular, the Community Monitoring Committee members are concerned about the lack of
consultation with the local community, and the City’s denial of a request by the organization to speak to Council about its concerns, despite an agreement between the City and the Committee that ensures the right to appear before Council.

City officials have also refused to allow the Community Monitoring Committee to review the terms of reference for an engineering study currently being undertaken to assess the feasibility of increasing the height of the landfill. Several requests for a copy of the study parameters were refused by City Hall officials, prompting local Councillors Reg Rankin and Steve Adams to file a freedom-of-information request in early July. After initially delaying the response by 60 days, the City last week denied the request.

Community Monitoring Committee Chair Jack Mitchell points out that the Provincial Department of the Environment must approve any changes at Otter Lake, and it is on record as saying that any changes must have the consent of the local community. “How can the local community consent to a secret agenda?” asked Mitchell.