The City of Peterborough is in the final stages of launching its new waste management service and green bin program.
As of Oct. 31, garbage collection shifts to a biweekly schedule. Clear bags will also be required for curbside collection.
City council approved the waste management services changes in February to serve more than 8,000 households.
Part of the goal is to streamline waste collection services as some areas of the city have had more residential growth than others.
“We have some parts of the community that have a lot of collection allocated on a certain day and other parts of the city, not as much,” said Dave Douglas, the city’s waste diversion program manager.
“So the trucks are running crazy on one day and they’re not as busy on others, so we’re just balancing the routes.”
The schedule change is similar to ones implemented in other Ontario municipalities, including Barrie, Durham Region, Guelph, Ottawa, Peel, Simcoe County, Waterloo and Toronto.
Clear bags are being seen as another waste diversion effort. Garbage collector safety was a key factor as they often handle garbage bags containing sharp objects.
“That’s being driven by worker safety because our workers are being pricked by needles,” Douglas said.
Inside clear bags, residents can place up to three privacy bags for items such as medical prescription containers or other confidential items.
All eight townships in Peterborough County already require clear bags for garbage collection.
“The city is working with local retailers to accommodate an increased demand for clear bags,” Douglas said.
The city estimates the service changes will bolster the waste diversion rate from about 52 per cent to between 76 and 83 per cent by 2030 — likely adding another five to six years of life to the landfill site.
Green bins
The green bin program aims to help reduce waste that ends up in the Bensfort Road landfill by up to 20 per cent. The green bins will feature a pest-proof lid.
“Although it is new to Peterborough, this has been in place for decades across Canada, with over seven million Canadian households already participating in such a program,” Douglas said.
Residents will begin receiving the containers in September, along with a smaller kitchen bin.
Collection of the green bins will be weekly. Residents are encouraged to wait until about Oct. 20 before starting to use them to store food waste for collection, the city advises.
The city says the Downtown Business Improvement Area, apartment buildings and private road-serviced developments are not included in this phase of the program implementation.
Recyclables (blue bin) collection remains unchanged as a weekly pickup, or recyclables can be dropped off at the facility on 390 Pido Rd., which is open daily, 24 hours a day.
— with files from Germain Ma/Global News Peterborough
- Stuck in B.C. lagoon for weeks, killer whale calf is finally free
- Satellite built by N.B. students not responding a week after entering Earth’s orbit
- T. Rex an intelligent tool-user and culture-builder? Not so fast, says new U of A research
- Nearly 200 fossil fuel, chemical lobbyists to join plastic treaty talks in Ottawa
Comments