The McIntyre Creek area is not the only part of the city contending with illegal dumping.

P&M Recycling owner Pat McInroy said in an interview this morning he will be reporting illegal dumping occurring at his business.

McInroy is seeking an amendment to the Official Community Plan (OCP) that would allow him to continue processing and storage operations at his warehouse on Sixth Avenue.

Meanwhile, he said, he will also be taking greater action on waste that’s left there overnight.

McInroy has been ordered to cease operations at the warehouse, as it is not zoned for the use.

Since he is in the appeal process, he can keep operating while council considers his application for the OCP change.

As council heard Monday night though, neighbours have raised a number of issues with the warehouse operations.

They include wind-blown dust, noise created by machinery at the warehouse, the appearance of material stored outside the building, and waste that makes its way from the facility to nearby residential neighbouring yards.

(There are no concerns around the recycling depot on Ray Street.)

As McInroy noted today, part of the problem is waste that is dropped off at the facility overnight. It’s material that is often not recyclable, and P&M doesn’t accept it.

“It’s illegal dumping,” he said.

As an example, he arrived at work today to find things like a lawn mower and microwave oven left there overnight. Those items are supposed to be taken to the landfill for disposal.

Until now, McInroy said he hasn’t contacted bylaw personnel about what some may see as a “mundane” issue, but has instead disposed of the extra waste himself.

He said he’s now going to be reporting the matters to bylaw authorities to investigate.

Nowhere has P&M ever said it accepts old appliances and the like.

In the meantime, council will be considering the OCP amendment over the next week before it comes forward Monday for a vote on first reading.

City administration has made the unusual move of recommending it be defeated at first reading.

That decision was an unpleasant surprise for McInroy, who was quick to note city officials have known P&M was using the building for some years now.

“I’ve never seen the bureaucracy weigh in so heavily,” he said.

However, he added he has faith council will “come to a reasonable decision” on the matter.

Planning manager Pat Ross acknowledged at Monday’s meeting that it was unusual for administration to make such a recommendation.

Bylaws are most often recommended to move through first reading in order to get to the public input portion of the process prior to second and third readings.

Ross explained the recommendation is due to the warehouse operation being in such direct conflict with the OCP’s mixed use-residential/commercial designation of the area.

McInroy, meanwhile, has called on council to consider its policies aiming to divert waste from the landfill. Recycling has grown significantly over the years, he pointed out.

It saw a significant hike in the final three months of 2014 and into 2015 when the Raven Recycling Society, the only other local recycling processor, shut its doors to non-refundables.

At that time, McInroy said he was not happy with the overflow and appearance of recycling waste at his warehouse.

P&M, however, was taking on so much more recycling as the only place in town accepting non-refundables, it had trouble keeping up with the amount coming in.

That amount has since slowed down and is now more manageable.

Raven accepts non-refundables again, and the contract Whitehorse Blue Bin Recycling had with P&M has ended early.

McInroy said he apologizes to and will continue to keep the conversation open with neighbours, but would ultimately want to stay in the warehouse.

He has indicated, though, he would be open to a land swap with the city if the right place could be found.

While McInroy is focusing on the warehouse situation, Raven has begun noting the possibility of charging tipping fees in the future (while also noting it depends on many factors).

McInroy said this morning that given the other issues P&M is dealing with, he hasn’t considered charging tipping fees.

If Raven moves forward with it, he added, it could have a significant impact on his company should local residents start bringing their recycling to P&M, as they did when Raven stopped accepting non-refundables in late 2014.