November
29, 2005
Waiting two
weeks to put out your garbage in the summer
conjures up a number of thoughts – none
of them pleasant. With what currently goes
into our garbage, the smell in the middle
of the summer would be unbearable and problems
with small animals would increase.
So why would
anyone think of reducing the frequency of
garbage collection?
The reason
given for collecting garbage every two weeks
is the part of the proposal that has not received
a lot of attention. Think of the things that
make your garbage smell:
• food scraps, including eggs shells,
dairy products and meat
• dirty diapers
• kitty litter
Under the
proposal for changing the frequency of garbage
collection, all of these items would be collected
once a week during the summer. The only difference
is that they would be collected with the Organics
Plus program that would compost them and keep
them out of our landfill.
Organics
Plus goes beyond what people can put in their
backyard compost heap. Because all food scraps
and things like dirty diapers and kitty litter
are included, the left-over items would go
into the regular garbage would be things that
don’t smell and don’t attract
rodents. Residents are telling me the city
has failed to make this point clear to people.
THE ONTARIO GOVERNMENT HAS SET A TARGET
OF 2008 FOR CITIES TO DIVERT 60% OF WASTE
FROM LANDFILLS
The provincial
government has mandated that by 2008, municipalities
across Ontario must reduce the amount they
are throwing into landfills by 60%. Currently
Ottawa is at 31%.
To meet the
provincial target, the city must almost double
what is diverted from the landfill. Introducing
the organics program helps the city meet the
target of doubling what is being diverted,
because approximately 54% of what is currently
going into landfills is organic material.
The process is no different than what happens
in your back yard. What is different is the
scale and the fact all organic material is
accepted - including meat and dairy.
INCREASING WHAT WE DIVERT FROM LANDFILLS
ALSO EXTENDS THE LIFE OF OUR EXISTING LANDFILL
Landfills
don’t last forever, and they don’t
come cheap! At some point every landfill must
be replaced. However, the longer the life
of the landfill can be extended, the less
often we face the cost of replacing the landfill.
It costs
$150 million each time we have to find a new
landfill – and that assumes that the
land can be found and the potential legal
hurdles overcome.
If waste
goes into the Trail Road Landfill at the current
rate, it will last for another 13 years at
the most. With the organics program, it is
estimated that the Trail Road Landfill will
be good for another 40 years on account of
the fact that organics currently represent
54% of all material going into our landfill.
Being able
to divert more waste from our landfill with
an organics program means we face the cost
of replacing the existing landfill less often.
When a new landfill costs $150 million, extending
the life of an existing landfill is good news
for taxpayers!
WHILE THE PROVINCE SETS THE TARGET,
IT IS THE CITY THAT PAYS THE COST
One of the
concerns about the organics program is cost.
While it is the province that is setting a
target of 60% for waste diversion, the province
is leaving municipalities – in other
words, property tax payers – to fund
the effort required to meet its target.
With the
Organics Plus program, the things that make
garbage stink or attract rodents will no longer
be going into the garbage bin.
Garbage collection
every two weeks will save $7.57 million over
six years. If the problems around smell are
addressed, it makes sense to take advantage
of the savings.
CHANGES ARE STILL NEEDED TO THE PROPOSALS
FOR GARBAGE COLLECTION TO ADDRESS ALL CONCERNS
Under the proposal for collection frequency,
organic material would be collected every
week in the summer and every two weeks in
the winter. For me that is still not good
enough. To ensure people do not see a reduction
in service, I will be pushing for weekly organics
pick-up year round if the program is to go
ahead.
WORKING FULL-TIME FOR KANATA
I appreciate
the chance to hear from you about issues affecting
our community. You can reach me at 580-2474
(office), 580-2514 (fax), or peggy.feltmate@ottawa.ca
For more
information, visit the following City of Ottawa
link to view the report presented to Planning
and Environment Committee on November 10,
2005: http://www.ottawa.ca/calendar/ottawa/citycouncil/csedc/2005/11-29/ACS2005-PWS-UTL-0028.htm
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