News Releases
Saskatoon Fire - News Releases
Road restrictions east of the Circle Drive North Bridge on Saturday
October 26, 2023 - 1:45pm
The eastbound median lane and westbound centre and median lanes on Circle Drive east of the Circle Drive North Bridge will be closed for barrier work on Saturday, October 28, starting at 7:00 a.m.
Detours will be in place guiding motorists around the work zone. This project is expected to take twelve hours to complete, weather permitting and barring any unforeseen circumstances.
Saskatoon Transit may be affected by these detours. Transit service alerts and real-time bus information are available on third-party apps like Transit and Google Maps Transit on desktop.
For more information about current road restrictions and construction, visit saskatoon.ca/construction.
First climate budget proposed for 2024-25 Business Plan and Municipal Budget deliberations
October 26, 2023 - 10:35am
- Bus Rapid Transit and electrification - system improvements for Saskatoon Transit and bus purchases;
- Water-saving measures at spray pads/paddling pools and irrigation upgrades in parks which will result in operational savings;
- Civic facility improvements - such as renovations at Archibald Arena;
- Managing the long-term viability of the landfill and reducing waste through the Material Recovery Centre operation, restoration of landfill gas wellfield, and development of a bulky waste program; and
- Green Pathways initiatives that enhance the green network through existing planned projects like park upgrades and storm sewer trunk and collection.
- The LEC reduction goal for 2025 = 201,500 tonnes of CO2e (100 per cent)
- Funded projects estimate = 1,200 tonnes of CO2e reduction (0.6 per cent of the LEC reduction goal)
- Unfunded projects = 18,800 tonnes CO2e reduction at full build-out (9.3 per cent of the goal)
- After combining funded and unfunded projects, there is a gap of undefined projects required to achieve 181,500 tonnes of CO2e reduction, or 90.1 per cent.
As directed by City Council, Saskatoon will consider its first Climate Budget during the 2024-25 Business Plan and Municipal Budget deliberations on November 28-30, 2023.
The Funding Environmental Sustainability Actions and Climate Budget Report responds to a request from the Standing Policy Committee on Environment Utilities and Corporate Services (EUCS) and will be on the November 1 agenda. It includes a preview of the Climate Budget as well as details of the resources needed to progress the Low Emissions Community (LEC) and Green Pathways plans. It outlines both funded and unfunded projects related to these plans.
“What City Council has asked us to do is come up with measures that reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gases that will require investments in the short term”, says Jeanna South, Director of Sustainability. “The ultimate expectation, looking 30 years out, is that these measures will make us more resilient and efficient while meeting our climate commitments.”
A climate budget is a governance system that establishes actions that the City needs to take in the short-term to achieve long-term targets as set out in the climate action plan. By integrating the Climate Budget into financial budget decision-making processes, climate and environmental impacts are understood before they occur. This creates a coordinated approach with other budgeting considerations, such as societal impacts, asset management, safety, and economics.
If significant global climate action is not taken, ClimateWest (Costs of Climate Change Report, March 2023) estimates by 2050, the direct annual economic impacts of climate change in Saskatchewan will be $3.1B or $1,875 per capita. ClimateWest projects damage to electricity transmission and distribution infrastructure due to climate change to cost $65-95M annually by 2050 in Saskatchewan alone. Annual flood damages are expected to cost $70-80M, while costs due to delays arising from increased road and rail damage are expected to be $65-125M in the province by 2050.
The 2024-25 Climate Budget presents a two-year window within the 30-year Low Emissions Community (LEC) Plan. The LEC Plan was created to improve the community’s long-term resiliency and efficiency to achieve the City’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction target incrementally over time.
Seventy-five per cent of the projects in the Climate Budget support efficient civic operations and services, enhance resiliency, and/or promote sound asset management; these are recommended for funding in the 2024/2025 Business Plan and Budget. These projects also have environmental benefits; most will achieve GHG reductions, some will result in utility cost savings or improve green network resilience and performance. Subject to City Council’s approval, the funded projects include:
Funding for the initiatives listed comes from capital reserves, external non-City funding, and loans.
The unfunded projects are still required to progress City goals and plans, even if they do not move forward this budget cycle. These projects may be reconsidered in the next budget cycle, or if priorities and/or resource availability changes. Some of these projects could be funded through loans that pay themselves back with savings, such as loans to the community or fleet electrification. Other projects would require new funds, for instance from property taxes; this has not been recommended at this time.
The GHG reductions estimated from projects in the 2024-2025 Climate Budget includes:
The 2024-2025 Climate Budget GHG projection is a conservative estimate; it does not include reductions from projects with high uncertainty that could not be quantified (e.g., active transportation, bus rapid transit); or reductions from projects that were implemented in 2022/2023 (like organics, landfill gas expansion, and others) that could amount to more than 40,000 tonnes of CO2e reductions each year.
You can find additional information at Saskatoon.ca/ClimateBudget and Saskatoon.ca/ClimateChange.
Victoria Avenue closed from 5th to 6th streets on Friday
October 26, 2023 - 6:00am
Victoria Avenue will be closed from 5th to 6th streets for water main work on Friday, October 27, starting at 7:00 a.m. Detours will be in place guiding motorists around the work zone. This project is expected to take five hours to complete, weather permitting and barring any unforeseen circumstances.
Saskatoon Transit may be affected by these detours. Transit service alerts and real-time bus information are available on third-party apps like Transit and Google Maps Transit on desktop.
For more information about current road restrictions and construction, visit saskatoon.ca/construction.
Green cart contractor defaults, program continues without disruption: cost reduction explored
October 25, 2023 - 4:28pm
While the company hired by the City to process green cart material has defaulted on its contract, green cart organics collection will continue. In the short-term, Loraas will continue to assist the City in processing organics materials while City officials explore cost reduction options by processing the organics in-house.
“We are disappointed that the successful vendor was unable to provide organics processing services under the contract but are fortunate to have measures in place allowing us to pursue other options to avoid disruption of the program,” says Brendan Lemke, Director of Water & Waste Operations. “In the short-term, we will continue working with Loraas while we look to complete a portion of the processing at our own facilities. By sending materials to both the Saskatoon Regional Waste Management Centre and the West Compost Depot, we will help to reduce financial pressures on the utility rates in the short term.”
A report to the November 1 meeting of the Environment, Utilities and Corporate Services Committee (EU&CS) contains details that outline short-term options for processing organics following Green Prairie Environmental's default of its organics processing contract.
The City awarded Green Prairie Environmental (GPE) the contract in September 2020 to provide organics processing services to support the City’s Curbside Organics Program. Despite it being a key condition of the contract, GPE did not site a permanent location for an organics processing facility. The Administration supported GPE to find a suitable location following its initial denial in the RM of Corman Park, but as preparation for a site progressed, GPE was unsuccessful in obtaining regulatory approval to construct the facility. GPE is ultimately unable to process organics in accordance with the contract and has defaulted on the contract as a result.
Since program launch, organics materials have been composted by Loraas and not landfilled unless contaminated. In addition to continuing to haul organics materials to Loraas for processing, the Administration is pursuing options to temporarily process a portion of the materials at the Saskatoon Regional Waste Management Centre and West Compost Depot. The City will continue to divert organics away from the landfill to make a beneficial use product and reduce greenhouse gases from waste. To date, more than 15,000 tonnes of organic waste have successfully been diverted from the landfill since collections began in May. No disruptions to the curbside organics program are expected.
A report with long-term options will be presented to EU&CS by Q1 2024.
Daily Road Report - October 26, 2023
October 25, 2023 - 3:00pm
*This report includes road restrictions on Priority 1 (high traffic, high speed) streets only.
NEW
IDYLWYLD DR N NB CURB LANE CLOSED FROM 39TH ST E TO 40TH ST E
(Streetlight work)
Start: October 26, 9:00 a.m. End: October 26, 2:00 p.m.
20TH ST W EB & WB MEDIAN LANES CLOSED AT AVE D S
(Sewer lining)
Start: October 26, 9:00 a.m. End: October 26, 3:00 p.m.
IDYLWYLD DR N SB MEDIAN & LEFT TURN LANE CLOSED THROUGH INTERSECTION AT 29TH ST W
(Sewer lining)
Start: October 26, 9:00 a.m. End: October 26, 3:00 p.m.
ONGOING
33RD ST E VARIOUS SINGLE LANE CLOSURES AT 7TH AVE N
(Environmental monitoring)
Start: October 25, 9:00 a.m. End: October 26, 2:00 p.m.
CIRCLE DR E NB MEDIAN LANE CLOSED AT 108TH ST W
(Guardrail repair)
Start: October 25, 9:00 a.m. End: October 26, 3:00 p.m.
CIRCLE DR E NB MEDIAN LANE CLOSED AT ATTRIDGE DR
(Guardrail repair)
Closure will be set daily between 09:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m.
Start: October 25, 9:00 a.m. End: October 26, 3:00 p.m.
4TH AVE S SB MEDIAN LANE CLOSED AT 19TH ST E
(SL&P manhole repair)
Start: September 18, 7:00 a.m. End: October 27, 5:00 p.m.
MELVILLE ST INTERSECTION CLOSED AT PORTAGE AVE
(SaskEnergy construction)
Start: October 23, 7:00 a.m. End: November 3, 5:00 p.m.
NEAULT RD ROAD CLOSED FROM 22ND ST W TO WHELAN RD
(Construction)
Start: July 24, 7:00 a.m. End: November 3, 4:00 p.m.
BALTZAN BLVD ROAD CLOSED FROM HORNER CRES TO ORBAN WAY
(Service connections)
Start: October 25, 7:00 a.m. End: November 8, 6:00 p.m.
22ND ST E EB CURB & CENTER LANE CLOSED FROM AUDITORIUM AVE TO 1ST AVE S
(Vault repairs)
Start: September 11, 7:00 a.m. End: November 30, 4:00 p.m.
All restrictions will be lifted as indicated, weather permitting and barring any unforeseen circumstances.
For more information about current road restrictions and construction, visit saskatoon.ca/construction.