Elora Waste Facility reopens after 11-month closure for upgrades

CTV’s Karis Mapp walks us through the changes at the newly reopened Elora Waste Facility.

The Elora Waste Facility reopened to the public on Tuesday following an 11-month closure for improvements.

Officials said the upgrades were aimed at boosting efficiency and safety at the site, which is the busiest waste facility in Wellington County.

“This site hadn’t received any upgrades in many years, and so it was getting towards the end of its useful life,” explained Das Soligo, the manager of solid waste services with Wellington County.

“It got to the point where we needed to make some decisions to invest in this facility or consider other options. So we went ahead and made the necessary changes.”

Improvements included an expanded drop-off area to ease unloading and traffic flow and the construction of a new dual scale house.

“Every customer will be asked to weigh in on the way into the site and then after they’ve unloaded their trash or other materials, they weigh out on the outbound scale and they pay the difference depending on how much they’ve left with us,” Soligo said.

Many customers said they enjoyed the new scales because it helps with efficiency.

“It makes a big difference for us because we know that we’re paying for what we’re actually dumping,” said Nicole Wright. “It’s also fantastic that there’s a side to come in on and a side to go out because sometimes on weekends you would get a lineup.”

Other improvements include the replacement of the retaining wall and household hazardous waste building, paving and concrete work.

“Previously it was gravel, and so you might have encountered some potholes and dust on certain days,” said Soligo.

There was also the creation of additional areas for waste diversion materials.

“We’ve got a bin for mattresses that can be recycled. We’ve got spaces for drywall and shingles,” Soligo explained.

“We’ve really been aggressive in recent years in expanding our diversion opportunities and really making steps to expand the life of our landfill site.”

Some of the customers who stopped by the reopened facility told CTV News they were impressed with the upgrades.

“I think it looks great. Everything is laid out nicely. Before, [at] some of the other sites, trying to back a trailer up to the bins was a little bit difficult, but I think the layout they have here is planned out and works well,” said Curtis, who works at Hoegy Building Ltd.

“This is definitely an easier set up and I think it will help a lot when it gets busier,” added Wright.

The work had an allotted budget of $3.4M that came from the county’s reserve funds.

“When you’re doing work at a landfill site, you sometimes can find unpleasant surprises. So there was a healthy provisional budget allocated for that. We will not reach those funds, and [the project] will come in below budget, which is always good news,” Soligo said.

While work was underway at the Elora Waste Facility, the county expanded its operations at the Belwood location. As of March 1, Belwood will be open Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

“I think this site is beloved by Elora residents and it serves them well,” added Soligo.

“I think they’re happy to be able to come closer to home rather than traveling across the township to get to the Bellwood site.