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Open houses will give residents chance to voice views on new Eco-Depot

TNRD will be answering questions, soliciting feedback about Ashcroft/Cache Creek Eco-Depot
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The Thompson-Nicola Regional District is seeking public input on a proposed new Eco-Depot serving Ashcroft and Cache Creek, which would be similar to the one at 70 Mile (pictured). Photo: TNRD.

The Thompson-Nicola Regional District (TNRD) will be holding public consultation sessions in Ashcroft and Cache Creek on June 19 and 20, in order to talk to residents and get feedback about the proposed Eco-Depot that will serve Ashcroft, Cache Creek, and the surrounding areas.

TNRD staff will be on hand to answer questions and discuss the three locations that are being considered for an Eco-Depot. Jamie Vieira, the TNRD’s Environmental Services Manager, says that the sites in question are the existing Transfer Station at the Cache Creek landfill; at Boston Flats near the junction of Highways 1 and 97C; and at the former chip reload site on the east side of Highway 1 between Boston Flats and Cache Creek.

All three sites have their pros and cons, says Vieira. “We’ve received a lot of complaints about the current site [at the Cache Creek landfill] regarding access. It’s [accessed via a] forest service road, so we maintain and improve it as best we can, but it’s a shared road with industrial traffic to the site, and we can’t improve it to highway standards.”

Vieira says that the TNRD could open a full Eco-Depot at the site, but notes that they will be building something that serves the needs of area residents for decades.

“We need to get it right.”

He notes that the road to the chip reload site is gravel, and is in better condition than the road to the current Transfer Station because there is less traffic on it. “And it’s not up a mountain, but it’s the same distance as it is to the current site.”

Vieira says that the longer the process goes on, the harder it becomes to establish a new, permanent Eco-Depot. “We need months for the engineering design, tender, and then construction. The best case scenario is six months, but the clock doesn’t start ticking until a site has been secured. We don’t own any property yet.”

The land at either Boston Flats or the chip reload site would have to be purchased, and Vieira says that the chip reload property is considerably more expensive than the Boston Flats site. The land currently being used for a Transfer Station at the landfill is being used under tenure with the Province. “We would either have to take over the tenure or get a long-term lease, which would have to be discussed with the Village of Cache Creek.”

Vieira says that the goal of the open houses is to get people to come out to ask questions. “We want them to come see us; to get more information and talk to us. We’ll have a 3D model there about what the Eco-Depot will look like. And there will be surveys available at the open houses, so that we can get more feedback. It’s a short survey; people can do it on the spot.”

Vieira adds that the TNRD board will make its decision on the Eco-Depot site based in part on the feedback received at the open houses, which will be drop-in events, with no scheduled presentations.

“A report will be made to the board after the open houses. And the TNRD board gave us direction to get more information regarding location.”

The public consultation sessions about the proposed Ashcroft/Cache Creek Eco-Depot will take place at the Ashcroft HUB (Wednesday, June 19 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. and Thursday, June 20 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.) and the Cache Creek Community Hall (Wednesday, June 19 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. and Thursday, June 20 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.).



editorial@accjournal.ca

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