Nunavut to study landfill problems

Environmental concerns about garbage dumps in Nunavut have prompted the government to promise a study on managing local landfills.

But officials warn it will not be easy to find a financial fix to that issue and Nunavut's other infrastructure needs.

Widespread concerns about Nunavut's municipal landfills have been front and centre in recent weeks, as a three-week-old fire at the Iqaluit dump continues to burn.

The fire, which began Sept. 24 in a large pile of construction debris, has produced potentially toxic smoke that occasionally drifted into the capital city. The smoke forced Nunavut government offices and some schools to close for part of last week.

Lorne Kusugak, the community and government services minister, faced questions in the legislature Tuesday about the Iqaluit dump fire and about toxic waste leaking at the landfill in Baker Lake.

Long-term strategy

Kusugak said thegovernment wants to develop a long-term strategy for managing municipalsolid-waste sites and by December will call for study proposals.It's not clear how longa study would take.

A B.C.-based Arctic researcher who visited Baker LakeinAugusttook photographs of broken car batteries and other hazardous waste leaking onto the ground at the local dump,prompting worries that such waste could be entering the local water supply.

Kusugak admitted other Nunavut communities face similar problems with their landfills.

As for the study, Kusugak said the government will consider all possible options to eradicate the territory's mountains of garbage, from incineration to using waste as an energy source.

$600M infrastructure deficit

While Nunavut plans to address the landfill issue, Finance Minister Keith Peterson warned the solution could cost more than the government has to spend on all of its pressing infrastructure needs.

"Addressing it with $100 million, $120 million a year in capital is not going to fix a $600-million municipal infrastructure deficit," Peterson said in the legislature.

Since the Nunavut government does not receive direct benefits from the territory's mining industry, Peterson said the financial outlook may not be bright.

"We're going to be totally dependent for the foreseeable future on Ottawa," Peterson said.

Ninety-three per cent of the Nunavut government's revenue comes from the federal government.

And until Nunavut can take control of its natural resources, or get a major cash infusion from Ottawa, the territorial government will try its best to get by with the money it has, Peterson said.

"It's kind of like owning an old car as any of us have gone to university we patch it up, we fix it ourselves, somehow we keep it working," he said outside the legislature.

Peterson said he's projecting a solidly balanced budget this year, but the government also has to deal with a total of $110 million in unexpected cost overruns at the Nunavut Housing Corp., including the $50 million that came to light last month.