City of Peterborough Shifting Waste Collection Days For 8,200 Households Starting On Oct. 31

The City of Peterborough is shifting waste collection days for roughly 8,200 households to improve worker safety by balancing collection routes within a growing community beginning on Oct. 31.

File photo.

The City is handing out notices to households and affected businesses that receive municipal curbside collection and could see their weekly waste collection day change on Oct. 31. Delivery of the notices started Thursday and is continuing for the next few weeks.

Residents can view the new Waste Collection Zone map to see if their day has changed.

Over decades of residential development, where some areas of the City have seen significant growth, and other areas have had limited growth, the routes for waste collection days have become unbalanced.

Routes for waste collection have become unbalanced due to varied growth in several parts of the City according to a press release. It is a concern for worker safety as well as the reliability of service delivery.

Oct. 31 the same day when the City introduces the new Green Bin service for household organic waste collection and requires clear bags for curbside garbage collection. Garbage collection will be every other week as a result. Recycling collection remains a weekly service by private contractor Emterra Environmental.

The weekly Green Bin service to collect household organic waste will remove a substantial amount of household waste from the residential garbage stream, up to 20 per cent, including most heavy and stinky bits of household waste as stated by the City.

Green Bins will be delivered beginning in September to eligible residential properties including residential properties with six units or less and specific condominiums selected as part of a pilot for Phase 1 of the Green Bin service rollout.

Residents are encouraged to look inside their Green Bin when it is delivered to find program materials, including:

• The 2023-2024 waste management calendar and guide with collection schedules and important waste management service information;

• A what’s-in-what’s-out list of items that shows what can and what cannot be put into the Green Bin for collection;

• Samples of GLAD Compostable bags/container liners (small size) that can be used in the Kitchen Catcher sized Green Bins. 

• An info sheet on the new requirement to use clear bags for curbside garbage collection along with a free clear garbage bag sample and $2 rebate coupon provided by GLAD; and

• Details on how to recycle batteries with a collection cube provided by Call2Recycle.

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City of Peterborough Large Item Collection on July 24

The City of Peterborough will pick up items larger than the weekly garbage allowance such as furniture and appliances for a fee. The next large item collection is on Monday, July 24.

file photo.

The cost for this service is $30 for the first item and $10 for any additional item. Mattresses and box springs are $30 each and do not count as a first item.

Large item collection continues monthly until September. The upcoming dates for collection in 2023 are:

• Monday, August 28

• Monday, September 25

Residents who have scheduled collection should have their items to the curb by 7 a.m. the first day of collection. Depending on the number of pickups scheduled each month, collection could take a few days to complete. Residents are asked to leave the items they have booked for pickup at the curb.

Refrigeration items must have the Freon removed prior to collection.

Automobile parts, televisions and monitors are not accepted in this collection. These items can be disposed of at the Hazardous and Electronic Waste Depot at 400 Pido Rd., open Wednesday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Residents can book their collection online or by phone at 705-742-7777 ext. 1865. The deadline for booking is 4:30 p.m. the Tuesday before each collection date. For example, for service on July 24, the collection must be booked by 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 18.

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Green Bins, Clear Bags and Garbage Collection Plan in The City of Peterborough

With the start of the weekly Green Bin program for household organic waste collection on Oct. 31, the City of Peterborough will at the same time shift to every-other-week garbage collection and requiring the use of clear bags for curbside garbage collection.

photo courtesy of the city of peterborough.

City Council approved the waste management service changes as part of the Waste Management Master Plan Update on Feb. 27.

Collection for household organic waste (Green Bin program) and recycling (Blue Bin program) will be provided weekly, which will greatly reduce the amount of waste that goes into the garbage. Garbage amounts are expected to reduce by between 40 per cent and 50 per cent, which will allow garbage collection to shift to an every-other-week schedule that is common in other communities that have Green Bin programs.

The use of clear bags for garbage will support waste diversion efforts and improve worker safety for garbage collectors by helping to avoid incidents with sharp objects in garbage bags.

Together, the waste management service changes are expected to bolster the community’s waste diversion rate from about 52 per cent currently to between 76 per cent and 83 per cent by 2030. Increasing the waste diversion rate to 75 per cent will add another five to six years of life to the landfill.

Public education and awareness activities will be taking place over the next eight months leading up to the start of the Green Bin program and the other changes for waste management services.

Information on how to participate will be shared through local television, radio, newspaper, and online media sources as well as on the City website at peterborough.ca/ReduceWaste. Program education resources will include pamphlets, a waste management calendar, a what’s-in-what’s-out sheet that details what organic waste can go in the Green Bin, and other helpful resources, including the City’s waste management app “City Waste“ that features a collection calendar and a tool for what goes where when you sorting garbage, recyclables and, beginning Oct. 31, organic waste.

To kick off the program, informational material will be distributed along with Green Bins to all eligible properties starting in September.

The Downtown Business Improvement Area, apartment buildings, and private road serviced developments are not included in this phase of the program implementation.

Green Bin program

As part of the launch of the Green Bin program, a Green Bin for curbside collection and a smaller container for use in the kitchen will be delivered to all eligible households. The program is being rolled out to most residential properties, except for multi-residential and condominium properties that receive private waste collection services.

The Green Bin for curbside collection is a heavy-duty pest-proof cart with a locking mechanism on the lid.

Delivery of Green Bins to eligible properties will begin in September and is expected to be completed by mid-October. After receiving their Green Bins, residents are encouraged to wait until about Oct. 20 before starting to use them to store food waste for collection.

Weekly curbside Green Bin collection will start Oct. 31.

About 40 per cent to 50 per cent of current garbage material is organic waste that will be diverted from the garbage stream with the introduction of organic waste collection.

Every-other-week garbage collection

Taking out 40 per cent to 50 per cent of the current garbage generated by households and diverting it to the new weekly Green Bin program starting Oct. 31 will mean garbage collection can shift to an every-other-week schedule.

Along with being less garbage, the waste that remains in the garbage stream for collection will no longer include the food waste and pet waste – removing most of the smelly materials from the garbage can.

Every-other-week garbage collection is common in communities that have Green Bin programs, such as:

• Barrie

• Durham

• Guelph

• Niagara Region

• Ottawa

• Peel

• Simcoe County

• Toronto

• Waterloo

A waste management calendar with a map illustrating collection zones and clearly marked collection dates for each zone will be provided to each eligible household before the changes start on Oct. 31. The online tool at peterborough.ca/ReduceWaste and the City’s Waste Management App will be updated to reflect the new collection schedules.

It is expected that the number of garbage bags that each household can put out for collection every other week will be set at four bags from the current limit of two lifts.

Garbage collection in the Downtown Business Improvement Area will not be affected by the waste management service changes, including schedules and requirements for putting out garbage for collection.

Clear bags for garbage

The City is requiring the use of clear bags for curbside garbage collection to improve worker safety. Clear bags help protect garbage collectors from sharp objects that are hidden when inside opaque bags.

Using clear bags also supports waste diversion efforts. The City will accept garbage bags that have some recyclable materials in the garbage – a reasonable approach will be taken to encourage diverting waste from garbage – but using clear bags will allow for education efforts if there is clearly no attempt at sorting out materials for recycling.

Residents will still be able to use a small opaque bag, such as a grocery bag, as a “privacy bag” that could be put into the larger clear bag. The privacy bag could be used for items such as medical prescription containers and other confidential items that a resident may wish to prevent from being seen when the garbage bag is placed at the curbside for collection.

Switching to clear garbage bags has been shown to increase the amount of waste diverted through recycling and composting programs. Waste audits in Peterborough in 2020-2021 found that about 10 per cent of material in curbside garbage bags was recyclable material.

Residents can switch to using clear garbage bags at any time before the official change on Oct. 31. Residents are encouraged to use up their supply of existing opaque garbage bags over the next eight months before the change is required.

All eight townships in Peterborough County already require clear bags for garbage collection. Clear bag garbage supplies should be available in local stores. The City will be contacting suppliers and sharing information for stores ahead of the waste management service changes.

Recycling collection

There are no changes planned to the current weekly recycling collection program, which will continue to be provided on a weekly basis.

The Material Recycling Facility at 390 Pido Rd. has an area for dropping off materials that is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

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City of Peterborough to Collect Christmas Trees During Regular Garbage Collection For January

The City of Peterborough has started to accept natural Christmas trees as part of regular garbage collection pending weather conditions announced Monday.

Photo by David Tuan Bui.

The City is reminding residents to do the following before having their trees collected for compost:

• Remove all tree decorations

• Place it at the curb in a clear and visible location

• Not place their trees in bags

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Peterborough Municipal Election Signs Approved For Recycling

Municipal election signs have been deemed safe to recycle announced by the City of Peterborough on Tuesday.

Photo by David Tuan Bui.

The signs are made of white corrugated plastic sheeting — commonly called Coroplast — and have been added to the list of recyclable materials. City of Peterborough’s recycling services provider, Emterra, found a company that will accept the material for reuse according to a press release.

Coroplast election signs can be dropped off at the Material Recycling Facility at 390 Pido Rd. in one of the designated bins that are marked for election signs. Only the Coroplast part of the sign is accepted as any metal or wood post with it must be removed. The signs will not be accepted through curbside collection for recycling.

Candidates typically collect their election signs following elections.

Most election signs are made from Coroplast. The interior is a white corrugated plastic material which can be seen on the edges of the sign. Signs that have black interiors or edges are not made of Coroplast and are not recyclable.

Signs are to be recycled by no later than Nov. 30.

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Curbside Recycle Collection Experiencing Delays Due To Extreme Cold Weather

The City’s contractor for the curbside collection of recyclables, Emterra is experiencing delays on some routes due to Tuesdays extreme cold weather impacting the hydraulics on their collection vehicles.

Collection is ongoing, however the following streets may not have recyclables collected until Wednesday morning:

• Sherbrooke Street

• Dalhousie Street

• Alymer Street North

• Stewart Street

• Wolfe Street

• Townsend Street

• Rink Street

• George Street North

• Park Place

Residents on these streets are asked to leave their blue boxes at the curb, or to place them at the curb by 7 a.m. tomorrow morning.

If they wish, residents may to bring their recyclables to the Recycling Depot at 390 Pido Road. The facility remains open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

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Local Woman is Cleaning the City While Giving Back With Butt 1 Community

Donna Reid from Peterborough has been collecting cigarette waste for the last three years, and recycling it through Terracycles Unsmoke Cigarette Recycling Program.

Photo courtesy of Butt 1 Community.

Three years ago Reid participated in a community clean up with A Greener Future, an environmental nonprofit focused on litter cleanup and prevention, where she learned that cigarette butts could be recyclable.

“I just thought it would kind of be a no brainer, and I’d get people involved in the community - that’s why I called it ‘Butt 1 Community’, we’re all one.”

For the last three years Reid has been collecting butts, the ash from cigarettes and the cellophane that cigarettes come wrapped in. The carboard case can be put in the regular recycling.

She also invites community members to drop off waste they have collected at her house, and notes that she sometimes comes home to bags of cigarette butts on her porch, a welcomed surprise for her.

“I have sent just over 400 lbs of waste since 2018,” she says.

Reid ships her collection of cigarette waste to TerraCycle once a year. The program gifts her one dollar per one lbs of waste she collects, to donate to a local charity. This year she will donate the funds to Peterborough Streetvoice.

On Sunday Reid announced on social media that she submitted 147 lbs of waste this year.

“I’m getting more awareness out there so I’m hoping each year it grows a bit. The biggest thing is that people don’t understand that cigarette butts are actually waste. They’re the number one thrown out item in the entire world. Number one every time.”

In addition to raising awareness, Reid distributes ‘pocket ashtrays’ to people she sees smoking in public. A pocket ashtray is a small reusable container that suffocates a cigarette ember, contains the smell and allows the user to bring their butt home to throw out, rather than littering.

For more information on Butt 1 Community or to find out how to get involved visit their Facebook or Instagram.

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City of Peterborough Will Collect Household Batteries This Week

A special curbside collection of used household batteries by the City of Peterborough will take place during the first week of November.

Photo courtesy of the City of Peterborough.

Battery-recycling bags were distributed inside the Peterborough This Week newspaper on Oct. 21. Households that did not receive a bag are asked to use a zip-lock bag or pick up a battery bag at City Hall, 500 George St. N.

Residents are asked to place their bag of batteries on top of the blue box used for paper during the week of November 2 to 5 only. Please ensure the top of the bag is securely closed so batteries don’t fall out.

This is a special, one-week collection and batteries are not permitted in blue box or garbage collection at any other time.

Residents who miss this collection, or live in an apartment may take used batteries to the City’s Household Hazardous Waste Depot at 400 Pido Rd., open Wednesday to Saturday from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m.

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The City To Give Big Thumbs Up For The Best Blue Box Recyclers

The City of Peterborough is going to be giving a big “Thumbs Up!” to residents who are doing an excellent job of recycling this summer.

Collectively, the entire City is doing a terrific job—achieving a 57% diversion rate in 2014.

Certain households really stand out for their excellent recycling by using two blue boxes to separate containers from paper products and ensuring no garbage or hazardous materials find their way into the blue box.

City representatives will be in your neighbourhood this summer, searching for Peterborough’s best recyclers and thanking them with a “Thumbs Up” label for their blue box.

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Peterborough Now Diverts 53% Of Household Waste

In a recent media release from the City of Peterborough, we've crossed the threshold and now divert 53% of our household waste through blue box, green waste and backyard composting (up 3% in 2011 from 2010).

"We're extremely pleased and proud of this community's accomplishments," says Virginia Swinson, the City's Waste Diversion Section Manager. "City residents continue to embrace the culture of reducing, reusing and recycling all they can, and their efforts are being noticed."

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]

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