Brady Resource Management Facility – 2021 Update

Brady Resource Management Facility is a hub of activity and it is important residents have an idea of what is occurring on this site. Brady services all of Winnipeg, but is in close proximity to the neighbourhoods of Waverley West. One year I took a group of interested residents on a tour through the landfill. Much state of the art recycling and composting is occurring and is fascinating. This provides an overview of Frequently Asked Questions, and here are some highlights of spring 2021 activities:

Landfill Landscaping

• The remaining north face of Cell 30 underwent the following landscaping activity:
  • Topsoil/vegetative layer was spread by dozer in late April/early May of 2021
  • Immediately after spreading the topsoil/vegetative layer was disked/harrowed to prep that area for seeding
  • City forces commenced to seed the north face in late May/early June, and reseed other areas disturbed by construction

Tree Planting

• The province and City are still in negotiations to the full cost of tree replacement with respect to the recent work undertaken by the province in their upgrade of the service road/Ethan Boyer way. During construction, a portion of the established tree line was removed. The City is planning on replacing the trees; however, the cost of replacement is being negotiated with the province who expropriated portions of City property in order to complete the project – and costs such as tree replacement were not negotiated or finalized prior to construction
  • There are no plans to plant trees on the north face of the landfill at this time
  • The current tree plantings on the north face of the landfill are having varying levels of success – approximately 50% of the original plantings have died off.  This is not unexpected and arborists indicate that this level of die off rate is expected in new plantings in hostile environments
  • Additionally, there has been very low levels of precipitation at Brady for the past 2 years making growing conditions difficult
  • Tree replacement will occur at the Brady 4R Depot – several trees have died since the depot was built

Brady Shelterbelt

• Willow clusters planted in 2019/2020 continue to be monitored by city naturalist services
• The clusters continue to grow, there has been little to no reported die off
• Solid Waste Staff meet with City Naturalists regularly

Lime Mud Berms

• No new plantings was planned for the lime mud berms in 2021
• 2020 plantings – the shrubs and bushes – were and continue to be monitored by the City naturalists

Admin Building

• Landscaping – including tree planting – will began at the new Brady Admin building mid-May of 2021

Odour Complaints

• If you smell an odour that you think is emitting from the landfill, please email 311@winnipeg.ca  or call 311.  The staff at Brady respond within 24 hours. They have specialized equipment and sensors located throughout the landfill that detect high concentrations of hydrogen sulphide, which causes foul odours. Their detectors are also able to identify the general location where the odour is coming from in the landfill.  The Brady Resource Management Facility must follow Provincial operating legislation and is required to submit a list of odour complaints to the Province for their annual facility report. So if you complain –it will be reported and addressed. I highly recommend if you smell an odour – to report to 311@winnipeg.ca. There are many activities occurring at the landfill and the more aware the staff is related to odour issues, the better they can learn what might be causing an odour and then adjust their disposal operations accordingly.
• See Odour Complaint Log 2020

Brady & the Birds

The Brady Road Resource Management Facility provides a tempting food source and habitat for birds, such as seagulls and geese. I will provide you with activities that are ongoing – BUT – as long as there are open areas of water in the fall, (in some neighbourhoods, and especially fall during migration) the water will attract the birds.

City of Winnipeg:

• Has a ‘vector management’ program in place at Brady – where falcons are used to deal with seagulls.
• These birds can cause problems when they interfere with the vehicles on the site, and create a nuisance in the surrounding neighbourhoods. To help manage the birds and prevent them from nesting at the landfill, we use a variety of methods in compliance with current Canadian Wildlife Service regulations.
• Trained falcons and hawks have been used at the landfill since 2011. A method called “lure flying” targets areas where seagulls and geese gather. A falconer swings a leather decoy in the air and the falcons and hawks swoop at the decoy. Seeing falcons and hawks in the air is typically enough to scare away the birds. During the summer months, when the seagulls and geese can be more persistent, other methods are also used to scare away the birds, including:
  • Noisemakers
  • Pyrotechnics
  • Trained dogs

These are two older articles that speak to the programs:

• Hawks, falcons strike fear in landfill gulls
• Falcons drop in, gulls flee

Ladco:

• Ladco uses eagle decoys and targeted land drainage techniques to deal with seagulls. For more information on Ladco’s vector management, you can contact them but know they have a program in place:

Mike Carruthers

Manager of Land Development

Ladco Company Limited

carruthers@ladcocompany.com