Wahpeton Dakota Developments has signed a memorandum of understanding with IQ Waste Solutions to develop a new Clean Waste Processing Facility in Prince Albert.

The two groups announced the agreement on Tuesday. Both sides said they were grateful to find a business partner with similar values.

“Sustainability is top of mind for them,” IQ Waste Solutions director Andrew Ardell said when asked about why they signed the agreement with Wahpeton. “It’s always great to have a partner with that similar mindset.”

“There’s just a real need (for this facility),” Wahpeton Dakota Developments CEO Robert Fincati added. “The amount of waste and the inability to deal with that waste is just huge. The growth potential (of this project), and for us to be able to get in on the ground floor here as a partner with IQ, working with them to first of all build this facility in Prince Albert, is just a really great opportunity.”

Ardell said the new processing facility will provide a better way to dispose waste than traditional methods, which are typically very high in emissions. The focus is on recycling sewage sludge, municipal solid waste, plastic waste, and other waste streams.

Ardell said Prince Albert is an ideal location for the new facility given the large amount of waste in the region.

“There are various different troublesome waste streams around Prince Albert, as well as from the north, and our ability to treat and process those troublesome waste streams in a very clean, low-emissions manner allows us to move forward with that project in Prince Albert,” he explained. “We’re also excited about the opportunity that we can create jobs and economic development in the region.”

However, good partnerships and opportunities aren’t the only thing driving this project. Ardell was born and raised in Prince Albert, and said he’s excited to bring a facility like this to the community.

“It’s always nice to bring something back to Prince Albert,” he said “We’re really hoping to collaborate with other partners in the region.”

IQ waste solutions is currently completing financing efforts and manufacturing of the facility. They have an initial target opening set for mid-2022, but Ardell said COVID-19 could cause come delays.

“We’re hoping to have our equipment manufactured for sure by mid-2022,” he said. “All things considered, the supply chain may impact that date, depending on our ability to access materials.”

Ardell added that they’re hoping for a commissioning date by Q3 2022.

The new facility will be able to take troublesome waste streams and turn them into clean energy and recycled products. The system employs a novel thermal molecular sorting process that eliminates the need for mechanical sorting of waste streams.

Fincati said that technology is one of the big things that attracted Wahpeton to the partnership. He said it will provide benefits for everyone in the Prince Albert region, not just the Dakota Nation.

“We’re going to have a world class technology to deal with all the waste issues that are here,” he said. “This is truly a win-win-win. It’s a win all around for everybody. It just kind of shows how in Saskatchewan (we can have) some really innovative technologies can come out of here.”