As August rolls around, District staff will begin focusing on enforcement related to the clear bag and waste diversion program at the curb.
Renee Recoskie, Director of Waste Management and Environmental Services, told the District Engineering and Public Works Committee on July 23 that staff have been out and auditing seasonal collection routes. “And we’ve been really using that as an educational opportunity and to help share the messaging on the program with those residents that might be back for the first time since the program’s launch.”
She said staff have been noticing significant improvement from the time warning stickers are issued to waste disposal behaviour the following week.
“This will mark the end of those informative education-led efforts on the clear bag program, so in August, we will be transitioning our focus to a compliance focus, and we are being very mindful of when that shift is occurring. We first started talking about this program in July of 2024,” she noted.
Recoskie said there has been a significant change in behaviour at the curb. “A lot of our routes are now at 80 to 90 per cent participation rates. We do have lower participation rates at some of the seasonal routes, so we wanted to make sure we gave enough time.” She said the District has been getting the message out through local resources, signage, and on social media. “But come in August, we will change the tone of that program, and that’s very important to make sure those that have participated have faith that that program is in place and is a requirement.”
She said the options for those whose bags have not been collected will be communicated. “You can take it to the transfer station. There will not be a recollection associated with that bag at the curb.”
Prompted by questions from District Chair Jeff Lehman, Recoskie gave an overview of how compliance is going. She said compared to last year,1300 tons of organics have been diverted. “And why that matters is last year, in the whole year, we diverted at the curb about 1500 tons.”
Recoskie said staff have set a target of diverting 1800 tons of organics at the curb and will communicate to the committee when that goal is reached. “But what we continue to see at the curb, which I think is really important, is about a 40 per cent decrease in the amount of garbage that’s set out in weight and an over 80 per cent increase in the tonnage of organics that are set out.”
The program will roll out to transfer stations in January, starting with education and then transitioning to enforcement. “And our first priority, in the initial phase, just like at the curb, will be making sure that they’re using a clear bag…,” said Recoskie.
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Take a walk around town and look at all of the dumpsters behind businesses and you will see that clear bags aren’t making as big a difference as claimed. The bins are overflowing by garbage day because everyone is sneaking around and dumping their garbage into them. Even furniture! There’s one by my place that’s emptied on Mondays and overflowing by Wednesday. It’s so much worse over the summer because of tourists and cottagers and the businesses have to pay dumping fees to have them emptied. 2-3x a week adds up.
If the District places the requisite trust in it’s residents to participate in the compostable organic waste and recyclable diversion program there wouldn’t be a need for clear plastic bags. Do you really believe that the clear plastic bags are being adequately inspected when they are being collected? The regulatory requirement for the use of clear plastic bags creates an unnecessary and useless supply of non-clear bags as well as increasing cost to the overburdened tax payers.
It’s interesting to think about, and I figure a lot of folks probably bought big packs of bags thinking they’d last forever—sounds like you’d be set for decades! With the changes happening now though, we’ll all have to get a little creative.
If you’re stuck with a bunch of extra bags, maybe you could use them for dropping stuff off at donation bins, or see if any local businesses or friends and family might want them.
I feel like taking my no clear bags, which I bought before Huntsville started clear bags, and dump on the town office desk.
Like Kathryn says, what do I do with my non-clear bags? I have a few thousand of them still left and have been so successful at decreasing garbage that I have been unable to use them all up. It seems kind of counter intuitive to throw away perfectly good, brand new non-clear bags and run out and buy clear ones. This is using MORE resources, not less.
I suppose if I put a large clear bag around maybe three non-clear bags then that might in some weird governmental way, satisfy the demand for a clear bag????
You never did tell me what the heck I’m suppose to do with the 200 green garbage bags I have. I also had to buy clear bags and blue bags. Its all about Control and costing us tax payers more in a time we are already hurting and trying to pay bills. Thanks for costing me more money. I guess i just put my green garbage bags in the recycle. What next?