With its curbside collection contract about to expire, Norfolk County councilors will be looking at options for disposal of the municipality’s waste.
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Norfolk residents will also be asked for their opinions on the best options for collection of garbage, organic waste, leaf and yard waste and bulk item pickups.
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After a lengthy conversation at a council-in-committee meeting on Tuesday, it was decided the conversation would continue during a council workshop sometime before August.
“We need to really analyze this,” said Coun. Doug Brunton. “It’s going to be really costly no matter which way we go, and we’ve got to keep it competitive – period.”
Norfolk’s current curbside collection contract expires in 2026, with contracts typically running for about seven years. Final decisions on a waste collection contract must be made by September.
A detailed report from Merissa Bokla, supervisor of waste management, said the county provides curbside waste collection services to about 31,500 single-family homes.
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“There are many different options available from manual to automated collection, green bin and organics programs, leaf and yard waste collection, bulky item collection and the collection of the public space containers in Norfolk County’s downtown areas,” said Bokla.
The blue box recycling program will no longer be part of the curbside collection contract as it transitions to a new model requiring the companies that produce blue box material to fully fund and operate the recycling system.
Among the options to be considered by council are:
- Curbside garbage collection:
Currently picked up manually with a four-bag residential limit and an eight-bag commercial limit.
Options include retaining the status quo; reducing the bag limit; and implementing a bag tag system with residents paying for extra trash.
The collection method, which is currently done manually, could become automated with carts provided to residents.
A change could be considered for the collection frequency, now once a week, to biweekly. - Organics/Green Bin program:
The county has launched a FoodCycler counter-top unit pilot program with a limited number of residents. Backyard composters are available for purchase.
Norfolk is required to have an organics program in the urban areas by 2025 under the Food and Organic Policy Framework.
Pickup could be weekly or bi-weekly. - Leaf and yard waste collection:
Currently collected several times a year in the spring, summer and fall in 11 urban areas. Future options include adding more weeks of collection and pickup in communities requesting collection – Pinegrove, Normandale, Lynedoch, Port Ryerse, Booths Harbor and Gilbertville – and all hamlets. That would add about 2,600 homes to the collection area. - Bulky item program:
Residents currently pay $40 per pickup.
Future options include a subsidized monthly appointment system or a biennial one-day collection.
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Bokla said 87 per cent of the community wouldn’t be impacted if there was a reduction from four bags to three in regular garbage collection, and 78 per cent wouldn’t be impacted if the bag limit was reduced to two.
“A reduction of at least one bag is warranted if we’re looking at reducing waste and cost,” said Mayor Amy Martin. “For the majority of the taxpayers, that’s manageable. I have no opposition to bag tags so there isn’t a hard and fast rule about how much waste people can put out.”
Bokla said bag tags cost between $1 and $3.
Coun. Chris VanPaassen said he favors a system with pickup options, perhaps using bins in urban areas and manual pickup in rural areas.
“This might be one of those situations where you’re not going to get exactly the same services no matter where you are in Norfolk County,” he said. “No matter which one you pick, half the people won’t like it.”
Councilors approved a staff recommendation to ask residents for their opinions through surveys and community outreach sessions, with dates to be determined.
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