This is how many waste facilities Hamilton already has

One of the arguments against a proposed waste to energy "gasification plant" on the Hamilton waterfront is how many waste sites Hamilton already houses 47, to be exact.

And that's just the facilities that operate under provincial approval to store, process or receive waste.CBC Hamilton has found and plotted each facility in this Google map, based on information provided by the city. In some cases they are listed by a company name or owner, in others by a company number.

• READ MORE: Will gasification plan import waste into city?
• READ MORE: City wants the province to take a closer look at Port Fuels plant

Five of those facilities began construction since 2008. Many of the 47 are clustered in the industrial north end of the city, near where the proposed facility would be located on Pier 15. (Some of the sites plotted are city works yards, which have provincial certificates because of the materials they handle or store).

Councillors who oppose the project and other detractors worry the plant would make Hamilton a destination for other municipalities' garbage, and reinforce adetrimental, dirty image of the city.

"I'vealways been concerned about being known as the capital of dumping of garbage," Coun. Sam Merullasaid in a previous interview."That has always been a constant priority."

But not everyone sees the proposal as a negative for the city.

The company and Port Authority say the plant will bring leading edge environmental technology to the city.

Mayor Fred Eisenberger has called the project "intriguing" saying: "If we're going to be innovative, as we say we are in our mission statement, we can't keep shutting the door on anything that's creative and innovative."

Councillors voted earlier this month to ask the Ministry of Environment for a full environmental assessment of the proposed Port Fuels and Materials Services Inc. plant.

A city-hired consultant says the project still has question marks, such as the amount of emissions it will cause and how it will handle various types of waste. And the technology, Gasplasma, is largely untested on the scale that Port Fuels is proposing for Hamilton's waterfront.