The Regional District of Mount Waddington was pleased last week to award the contract for management of Seven Mile Landfill to Steelhead Enterprises of Port McNeill.
The tender was particularly noteworthy as the bid process was open to contractors across the province and even to those in Alberta.
It is also worth noting the trucks that haul material to the landfill are also local. In an industry that is becoming ever more consolidated, Fox’s Disposal provides a local touch and local faces to garbage collection and, starting next year, curbside recycling on the North Island.
Tying the theme together, the board of directors was updated on the progress of the RD’s Project Comeback, which seeks to determine why young people leave the region and what it takes to get them to return to live and work here.
We are often reminded and urged — particularly at this time of year — to shop locally. Spending our dollars with local merchants provides a “multiplier” effect on the local economy and help ensure those merchants remain in business.
But the same holds true for contractors providing a range of services that we may not notice or call upon regularly.
Storefront retailers or service providers, we all have a role in ensuring there is something for those youngsters to come back to.