Gravel pit operators in Red Deer County will be charged a levy to help pay for wear and tear on local roads.
Beginning in January, gravel pits will be charged 25 cents per tonne and the money will go towards repairing roads and other infrastructure.
Not all gravel operators are happy with the new fee, which is in place in at least 27 of the province’s 72 municipalities, including Lacombe, Ponoka and Mountain View counties.
In a letter to council, Larry Ebbesen, of Innisfail’s Ebbesen Sand & Gravel Ltd., says the levy will give competitors in Clearwater County — which has no levy — an unfair advantage in bidding. The fee also ignores that trucking companies hauling other products also use and take a toll on county roads but they face no fee. The levy will also increase administrative costs to gravel pit operators.
Kent Coleman, one of the owners of Red Deer’s Northside Construction Ltd., expressed concerns about the proposed levy in a presentation to council on Tuesday.
The fee does not apply to municipal- or Crown-owned gravel pits, or Crown projects. But gravel pit operators often handle projects that are initially a private job, but the intention is to turn them over to a municipality later. Coleman questioned whether companies should face the levy in that case.
There is also a risk of companies being double-billed if they move gravel to a central location to be moved again later.
“It’s nice to have a set of rules but it doesn’t cover every situation,” he said, adding the county needed to clarify regulations.
Vic Walls, of Red Deer’s Border Paving Ltd., says in a letter to council that the sand and gravel industry widely supports the community aggregate payment.
The levy was developed by a task force of industry players, the province and municipalities and first came into effect in 2006.
The levy is a helpful source of revenue for many municipalities and is seen as a way to address problems from sand and gravel operations.
The amount collected by communities varies greatly, from as low as $19,000 to as much as $1 million. The county’s 2012 operating budget estimates the revenue at $375,000.
In Red Deer County, there are 51 gravel pits with 36 being actively mined. Five are county pits, which would be exempt from the levy.
Councillor Dave Hoar opposed the levy, saying he doesn’t agree with targeting one industry simply because it can be easily identified. Other haulers also use local roads but will face no fees.
Mayor Jim Wood said he had no problem with the charge, which has been adopted by many municipalities, and the county would be “missing the boat” by not trying to recover some of its maintenance costs.
George Gehrke also backed the levy. “It’s a small tax. It’s a bit of a pain, as all taxes are.”
Council approved second and third reading of the bylaw. Hoar and Councillor Penny Archibald were opposed.
pcowley@www.reddeeradvocate.com