Emergency and Disaster Debris Planning: Shared Realities Across Different Landscapes

– DETAILS –

This workshop-style event is the clever follow-up to our well-attended roundtable in late 2025.

Communities across North America are facing a rapidly evolving landscape of climate‑driven emergencies. Whether the challenge is keeping solid waste facilities operational during a crisis or managing massive debris flows after a major event, the underlying reality is the same: preparedness determines resilience.

We will bring together three complementary perspectives: one grounded in the operational realities of a mid-sized BC region, one shaped by large-scale debris management in a major metropolitan area, and one forged in the particular challenges of dispersed communities and coastal contexts.

Together, they offer something rare: planning insights that travel across geography, scale, and context.

Part 1: Comox Valley — Disaster Preparedness for Solid Waste Facilities & Waste Diversion

The Comox Valley offers a uniquely practical lens on disaster readiness. Their landscape – a mix of rural and urban communities, limited transportation corridors, and a regional solid waste system that must remain functional even under stress – mirrors the realities of many BC regions. We will explore:

• How the Comox Valley developed a disaster preparedness plan tailored to solid waste facilities
• What effective disaster waste diversion looks like when disposal capacity is limited
• How operational continuity is maintained when staff, infrastructure, and access routes are disrupted
• What happened when the plan was tested in a real emergency, and how lessons learned shaped improvements

The Comox Valley experience highlights a shared truth for small and mid‑sized regions: even with constrained resources, proactive planning can transform vulnerability into resilience.

Part 2: Metro Oregon & Cape Breton Regional Municipality — Disaster Debris Management in Diverse Contexts

Complementing the Comox Valley’s facility‑focused approach, Metro Oregon and Cape Breton Regional Municipality highlight the broader challenges posed by variable landscapes in disaster debris management. Despite their very different landscapes, both jurisdictions navigate similar pressures:

• Debris volumes that exceed normal system capacity
• The need for pre‑identified sites, contracts, and operational workflows
• Environmental and public health risks tied to unmanaged debris
• Intense pressure to restore community function quickly and cost-effectively

Metro Oregon’s planning reflects the complexity of multi‑jurisdictional coordination in a large urban region. Cape Breton’s approach reflects the realities of widespread storm impacts and the need for rapid mobilization across dispersed coastal communities.

– COST–

$23 CWMA Members | $28 Non Members 

+GST.  CWMA’s operations are supported wholly by events, dedicated patronage from regular sponsors, and our membership. We are grateful for your attendance. Differential pricing is available for students and non-profits — please be in touch. | Am I a member?

– AGENDA –

Virtual Doors Open at 9:50 AM for visiting and a/v check
10:00 AM — Welcome Everyone
10:09 AM — Presentations
11:10 AM — Q&A + Open discussion
11:28 AM — Farewell and what’s next

– VIRTUAL NOTES –

CWMA uses the Zoom Platform for events. Zoom Link is sent the DAY BEFORE the event.