Drumheller and District Landfill is among a handful of local organizations giving inmates from the Drumheller Institution the opportunity to gain work experience, while also benefiting from some extra helping hands.
The program at the landfill has been operating for some 20 years, though it had gone on hiatus for several years until new leadership was established within the Drumheller and District Solid Waste Association (DDSWA), who brought the program back in 2022; currently there are three inmates who are employed on a regular basis.
“This modern facility (at the landfill) allows offenders to do many different jobs and tasks as it uses the current best practices in waste management, and gives the inmates an opportunity to be outdoors,” a spokesperson for the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) tells the Mail.
The program is open to all inmates for consideration. An expression of interest must be made by the inmate to their respective Institutional Parole Officer; upon expressing interest in the program, the inmate will undergo an interview process, and their case management file is thoroughly reviewed to determine if the inmate should be approved for a temporary work release.
If there are no concerns flagged in the file, a proposal plan is then brought forward to the warden who has final discretion of whether a temporary release for paid or unpaid work is granted.
“I cannot stress enough how amazing this program has been for our growth as a team and individually,” says landfill manager Sonya Adams.
Ms. Adams says although staff are given the choice whether or not to work alongside the inmates, they have welcomed the opportunity to teach and learn with them. The landfill team also shared positive comments about the program, and the pride the inmates take in the work they do.
Staff have also heard positive comments about the cleanliness of the landfill and say this is largely due to the inmate program. They have even taken suggestions from one of the longest term inmates about how to make both the service and processing of the recycling department more efficient and effective.
CSC says what the program offers to inmates--the development of employability skills and a means to safely reintroduce them into the community--is a priority. And while helping to reintegrate inmates following release is a priority, the organizations taking part in the program also receive the benefit of some extra help and “employees who are willing to work and learn.”
Other organizations taking part in the program include the Town of Drumheller and Drumheller Church of the Nazarene.

Thanks to lobbying on behalf of local municipalities, it appears the riding of Battle River-Crowfoot will remain relatively unchanged.
The Mail reported in the summer of 2022, under the proposed redistribution by the Electoral Boundaries Commission, Drumheller, Hanna, and parts of Special Areas could become part of the Bow River Constituency. Meetings were held throughout the riding, including Drumheller on September 22, where Drumheller Mayor Heather Colberg also spoke about challenges municipal governments may face with the proposed changes.
It appears the lobbying paid off. On Thursday, February 2, the report by the Federal Electoral Boundaries Commission for Alberta, outlining its proposed changes to the province's federal electoral map was tabled in the House of Commons.
“Following a review of the submissions received, the Commission revisited many of the electoral boundaries. The Commission is satisfied that it has achieved a fair balance with respect to the criteria for the redistribution of the 37 electoral districts in the Province of Alberta. Considering the size, shape and character of each electoral district, the Commission is satisfied that fair and effective representation has been achieved within each one,” said the Honourable Justice Bruce McDonald, Chair of the three-member commission.
The report notes the effort made by Mayor Colberg, the Mayor of Hanna and Special Areas Board chair Jordon Christianson. He made a written submission, and also attended a hearing in Drumheller.
“Our concerns were quite local. Special Areas operates as one unit, even though there are three distinct administration entities, the reality is we function as one organization,” said Christianson.
"When we saw the proposed boundary changes where they had carved off other portions of Special Areas Three and Special Areas Four keeping them in Battle River-Crowfoot and leaving the southern parts in the Bow River Riding, we just thought it made it complicated working with the federal government. We asked them from a boundaries standpoint to keep Special Areas intact in one riding. Rurally there is not a large population out here, so it didn’t have a big impact moving it one way or another."
Mayor of Hanna, Danny Povaschuk, was happy to hear the community would remain in Battle-River Crowfoot.
“We lobbied on behalf of Special Areas because they are a very important partner,” he said, adding he has a good working relationship with MP Damien Kurek.
There were a few changes, including the inclusion of Acme, Carbon, and Linden into Battle-River Crowfoot, and an area near New Serepta is now in the Leduc-Wetaskiwin riding.
Every 10 years, 10 Electoral Boundary Commissions are struck to report on the readjustment of the representation of the provinces in the House of Commons to reflect changes in population in each province.
Alberta’s population has increased from 3,645,257 in 2011 to 4,262,635 in 2021, and they are proposing adding three seats to the province to reflect this growth.
This means the commission is charged with redrawing the boundaries into 37 electoral divisions, which have reasonably equal population representation.
Each division has a quota of 115,206 and cannot deviate by more than 25 per cent.
The report, which was sent to the Speaker of the House through the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada, will be reviewed by the House of Commons Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs.