A veteran of the Canadian solid waste management industry has taken the helm of the Integrated Solid Waste Management System project.

Jim Schubert brings 25 years of experience to his new role as a Senior Project Manager, in the Public Works Department’s (PWD’s) Major Projects Office. In this role, Mr Schubert is responsible for all aspects of project delivery for the proposed integrated solid waste management system.

A passionate advocate of the integrated waste management approach, otherwise known as “reduce, reuse, recycle, recover”, he is well-versed in the development of such plans, and stresses that early public engagement is crucial to their success.

“It is the public who will ultimately pay the costs associated with the new waste system,” he explains.

Previously he served as Project Manager for the Waste to Biofuels Project for the City of Edmonton for the past 12 years. This system includes an integrated handling and transfer facility to process waste that is then sent to a gasification or biofuels facility. Under his leadership the project will ultimately divert 90% of Edmonton’s residential waste from the landfill.

Commenting on the appointment, Minister responsible for Environmental Health, Hon. Osbourne Bodden, says: “We are excited to have a professional of this calibre on-board, and are confident that he can play a key role in keeping the project moving forward.”

Chief Officer in the ministry, Jennifer Ahearn, also chairs the project steering committee. Ms Ahearn remarks, “This project is a national priority and one that Minister Bodden is anxious to see move forward in accordance with the provisions of the Framework for Fiscal Responsibility. Mr Schubert’s philosophy of reducing, reusing, recycling and recovering also closely fits in with our own beliefs concerning the direction that this project should take.”

Prior to working on the Biofuels project for the City, Jim also worked as the Facility Manager of the Edmonton Waste Management Centre (EWMC). While there he was responsible for all aspects of the operation, such as: the sanitary landfill, dry waste site, a materials recovery facility for recyclables and operation that included North America’s largest composting facility.

Among the many aspects of waste management with which he has extensive experience, are environmental permit applications; air pollution control; hazardous waste combustion systems; the planning, design and implementation of new facilities; and the technical assessment of facilities requiring upgrading or retrofitting.

Jokingly, he says: “I like talking about trash if anyone wants to listen.”

Praising Mr. Schubert’s qualifications and experience PWD Director J. Max Jones adds that the appointment is in line with Government’s aim to re-centralise project management of major projects under his department.

For his part Mr Schubert describes his career as rewarding, and goes on to say: “I do believe that what I am doing is good for the environment, and that developing an integrated system to deal with the problem of waste management, benefits the here and now as well as generations to come.”

Photo caption(s): submitted

Public Works newest member Jim Schubert, will spearhead the delivery of the integrated solid waste management system.