Local Outcry and Legal Battles: CVRD’s Controversial Waste Disposal Takeover

This past year, we wrote a story about two gentlemen in the CVRD who, frustrated by the public’s voice being ignored in a strong pushback against the CVRD’s waste disposal takeover, decided to sue the regional district.

Earlier in the year, residents packed the CVRD chambers and hallways, expressing their displeasure with the CVRD’s decision to enter the waste disposal business. This change would ultimately force a beloved family business, PAN Disposal, out of work. Many shared stories of the personal service PAN Disposal provided; one man, for example, explained that, due to his disability, PAN’s staff would drive up his driveway and walk to his deck to take his garbage to their truck. Another resident presented a petition that gathered over 3,000 signatures in a short time. Despite these heartfelt testimonials, the CVRD proceeded with the motion, which imposed a yearly fee on residents for the service, whether they used it or not. Since then, multiple elders have contacted us, saying they can’t afford the fee and have never needed the service, as they produce minimal garbage and manage their own recycling.

This is when Reg and Rick decided to step in and sue the CVRD. Knowing they were essentially taking on Goliath, they hoped their case would draw attention from local media and residents. They filed under the Class Proceeding Act, which sent the case directly to the Supreme Court in Nanaimo. They described the judge as fair and attentive, but he explained that, bound by the law, he found no legal violations. The CVRD was acting under Bylaw 1958, introduced in 1999, which allowed the district to take over garbage collection.

BYLAW NO. 1958 – COWICHAN VALLEY REGIONAL DISTRICT GARBAGE AND/OR RECYCLABLE MATERIALS COLLECTION BYLAW, 1999

As stated in the bylaw: “Mandatory Service: Every owner or occupier of Eligible Residences located within the service areas, and provided with service under Section 3(3) shall use the Regional Collection System for the collection, removal, and disposal of residential Garbage and/or Recyclable Materials generated in their Eligible Residences, unless exempted in writing by the Manager.”

The bylaw contains multiple rules on how residents must use the new garbage and recycling containers, including restrictions on what can be placed in them. Although no residents were provided the full bylaw, we found the following stipulations buried within it:

“Right of Entry: The Manager of Engineering Services, Bylaw Enforcement Officers of the Regional District, and Peace Officers shall have the right to enter at all reasonable times upon any property subject to the provisions of this bylaw, for the purposes of ascertaining whether any requirement of this bylaw or the regulations in this bylaw are being observed. (4) Violation: Any person who violates any provision of this bylaw or who suffers or permits any act or thing to be done in contravention of, or in violation of any of the provisions of this bylaw, commits an offence and is punishable in accordance with the Offence Act. (5) Penalty: Any person who violates any of the provisions of this bylaw shall, upon summary conviction thereof, be liable to a penalty of not more than Two Thousand ($2,000) Dollars and costs. Where an offence against this bylaw is of a continuing nature, it shall be lawful to impose a fine or penalty not exceeding Five Hundred ($500.00) Dollars and costs for each day such offence is continued by the offender.”

In 2012, the CVRD further authorized itself to purchase vehicles and equipment under Bylaw 3607, which states: “The Cowichan Valley Regional District is hereby empowered and authorized to purchase the capital assets necessary to provide in-house curbside collection services to all Nine Electoral Areas of the CVRD in general accordance with the plans on file in the Regional District office, and to do all things necessary in connection therewith and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, to borrow upon the credit of the Regional District a sum not exceeding One Million Seven Hundred and Seventy-Five Thousand Dollars ($1,775,000).” This action bypassed the need for a referendum or Alternative Approval Process (AAP) to obtain residents’ approval for the loan.

Rick and Reg raised questions about why certain properties such as Arbutus Ridge were exempt from this requirement to use the municipal services. The judge was not familiar but suggested that the two could look to other avenues such as a judicial review.

These two gentlemen, long-time residents of the CVRD, are a testament to the ever-growing sentiments regularly heard throughout the region filled with displeasure but mixed with a helpless feeling of not being listened to by their local governments, and elected officials. Do the people have the power anymore? Or will the quiet whispers become a crescendo of pushback in the months and years to come?

Related:

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