The RM of Brokenshell is looking for a way to keep nonresident users out of its garbage disposal site and lengthen the life of the facility for the resident population.

The site, located just outside Trossachs, has maybe 10 or 15 years life left if only local people use it, said Reeve Don Watson.

"Its life can be shortened immensely if other people haul in materials. We're having a heck of a time with it," he said.

"Almost every area already has a garbage landfill so there's no reason for people to come here except that there's no charge here," said the reeve.

A huge pile of dirt was dumped into the site recently by an outside user who took up almost two-thirds of the remaining space. Watson said the person responsible is helping to remove the dirt, now that he's aware it was not acceptable.

Watson said council may have to look at a new method of operating the site and wants to hear from residents what they think would work.

The nearby town of Yellow Grass limits its landfill hours of operation to Saturday morning and Wednesday night and keeps it locked at other times. Brokenshell councillors have been looking at that as a possibility.

Another option is construction of a eight-foot fence around the site that can be locked, with the keys sold to residents, he said.

In the meantime, councillors and residents are on the watch and Watson said it's usually fairly easy to discover where the garbage comes from when it belongs to a nonresident.

Provincial conservation officer Lyndsey Leko said officers an issue tickets for littering just outside the gate of a landfill site.

Some people dump materials outside the entrance gate to landfills because they have no key, he said. In that instance, when their identity is discovered, they can be summoned to court and fined at least $100, he said.