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The city and Orgaworld remain locked in litigation, Ottawa’s audit committee heard Thursday. And until the legal wrangling is exhausted, it’s unlikely the city will be able to reopen a contract that is costing millions of dollars more than it should.
The legal saga between the city and the organic waste company that manages the green bin program will continue at least into the second quarter of 2016 because an application to appeal is still before the courts, city clerk and solicitor Rick O’Connor told the committee asking about the progress of a series of legal actions.
The contract between the city and Orgaworld has been a controversial one.
In the summer of 2014, a city audit of the Orgaworld contract reported that the contract has an estimated minimum value of $140 million over its 20-year life, including an estimated $7.7 million in “unnecessary payments” between 2010 and 2013 because of unutilized capacity at Orgaworld, and for leaf and yard waste delivered to the Trail Road waste management facility.
Essentially, the city was paying twice to have some waste processed, said the audit. In 2013, for example, the city sent 83,000 tonnes of organic waste to Orgaworld for processing, but the company accepted only 69,000 tonnes. The remaining waste went to Trail Road.
“The audit last year was very clear. We were basically getting hosed on the deal, ” audit committee chairman Allan Hubley told reporters after the committee meeting.
Although the contract said Orgaworld must pick up leaf and yard waste, Orgaworld had disputed that. In July 2014, an arbitrator dismissed a $1.3-million Orgaworld claim against the city and ordered Orgaworld to pay the city’s cost to process yard and leaf waste.
Orgaworld appealed the arbitrator’s decision. After the Court of Appeal denied an appeal, Orgaword alleged the arbitration process is flawed.
Being in legal limbo means that the city won’t be able to reopen the contract. Hubley said he is outraged by the perpetual litigation and concerned that taxpayers are continuing to pay for “imaginary capacity.”
The 2014 audit found that an additional $12.6 million will be paid out unnecessarily between 2010 and 2029. If the city cancelled and re-tendered the current requirements, it could offer a further potential savings of $30.7 million over the life of the contract, although these savings would be reduced by any costs attached to cancelling the existing contract.
Hubely said there have been opportunities to renegotiate the contract so Orgaworld can continue to do business. He vowed to continue to bring up the matter every month at audit committee.
“We’re paying for imaginary tonnage,” he said.
jlaucius@ottawacitizen.com
查看原文...
The legal saga between the city and the organic waste company that manages the green bin program will continue at least into the second quarter of 2016 because an application to appeal is still before the courts, city clerk and solicitor Rick O’Connor told the committee asking about the progress of a series of legal actions.
The contract between the city and Orgaworld has been a controversial one.
In the summer of 2014, a city audit of the Orgaworld contract reported that the contract has an estimated minimum value of $140 million over its 20-year life, including an estimated $7.7 million in “unnecessary payments” between 2010 and 2013 because of unutilized capacity at Orgaworld, and for leaf and yard waste delivered to the Trail Road waste management facility.
Essentially, the city was paying twice to have some waste processed, said the audit. In 2013, for example, the city sent 83,000 tonnes of organic waste to Orgaworld for processing, but the company accepted only 69,000 tonnes. The remaining waste went to Trail Road.
“The audit last year was very clear. We were basically getting hosed on the deal, ” audit committee chairman Allan Hubley told reporters after the committee meeting.
Although the contract said Orgaworld must pick up leaf and yard waste, Orgaworld had disputed that. In July 2014, an arbitrator dismissed a $1.3-million Orgaworld claim against the city and ordered Orgaworld to pay the city’s cost to process yard and leaf waste.
Orgaworld appealed the arbitrator’s decision. After the Court of Appeal denied an appeal, Orgaword alleged the arbitration process is flawed.
Being in legal limbo means that the city won’t be able to reopen the contract. Hubley said he is outraged by the perpetual litigation and concerned that taxpayers are continuing to pay for “imaginary capacity.”
The 2014 audit found that an additional $12.6 million will be paid out unnecessarily between 2010 and 2029. If the city cancelled and re-tendered the current requirements, it could offer a further potential savings of $30.7 million over the life of the contract, although these savings would be reduced by any costs attached to cancelling the existing contract.
Hubely said there have been opportunities to renegotiate the contract so Orgaworld can continue to do business. He vowed to continue to bring up the matter every month at audit committee.
“We’re paying for imaginary tonnage,” he said.
jlaucius@ottawacitizen.com
查看原文...
