Big innovations in small Manitoba communities

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Published on Tuesday, June 12, 2018

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Neepawa Banner & Press

For the first time in Manitoba, a zero-waste system is being tested at the regional landfill site owned and operated by Evergreen Environmental Technologies (EET), located 20 km west of Neepawa, in the Rural Municipality of Minto-Odanah.

This project is a joint initiative between EET’s municipal partners who began to explore the possibility of developing a regional waste to value-added project back in 2015 after being made aware of technology designed by Celtic Power & Machining (based in Rapid City, Manitoba) and Sigma Professional Engineering, located in Florida. “The “zero waste system” that is provided by the process of gasification results in a highly efficient means of disposal of nearly 100 percent of municipal waste,” said Monty Peckover, chair of Evergreen Environmental Technologies and councillor for the RM of Minto-Odanah. “We are looking forward to seeing the results and being able to save money for our communities while, at the same time, protecting the environment. I also look forward to the future use someday of the syngas energy to be converted to other uses such as a greenhouse to grow local produce throughout the entire year in our northern climates.” In partnership with Eco-West Canada, the Southwest Regional Development Corporation and with the support of the Association of Manitoba Municipalities, the pilot project was awarded a $350,000 grant from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ Green Municipal Fund. The system consists of an individual ‘zero waste’ unit, based in a standard shipping container. Each unit will be able to process up to 12 - 20 tonnes of municipal solid waste per day. This process can convert almost 100% of unsorted municipal waste into recyclable materials such as metal and glass while creating a syngas through the gasification process. Throughout North America, it has been demonstrated that gasification waste treatment systems have had several positive environmental impacts, such as reducing greenhouse gas emissions and eliminating the need for expanding local or regional landfills. The result is cleaner air, a less polluted environment in the proximity of landfills, a better quality of life for area residents, and can in some cases also create skilled jobs for the operation of the gasification system.

Open in 2003, the EET landfill currently serves the RMs of Minto-Odanah, Elton, and North Cypress-Langford and the Towns of Neepawa, Minnedosa and Carberry, which have a combined population of just under 13,000. The pilot project will be operational in the spring of 2018, where all the required testing will be conducted to determine long term viability of the technology and to ensure all the provincial regulations and standards are met.