Town to become ‘strict’ with residential garbage
“The municipality shall supply one waste receptacle per existing dwelling unit on a one-time basis, and each new residence as constructed,” said Woodstock’s Chief Administrative Officer Allan Walker. “I want to call that out because council may choose to do something different with that. But our feeling is if somebody’s going to spend several hundred to build a house, we can spend $200 on a bin to welcome them to the community.”
Walker presented a draft of by-law 609 on waste collection and disposal at the Woodstock Town Council meeting on Sept. 8. The changes focused on Type A residential properties, defined in the bylaw as residential properties with 4 or fewer dwelling units.
The municipality will not provide dumpsters, waste disposal collection, or transportation services for residential properties with five or more dwellings, commercial properties, or privately owned businesses.
“This is not a change,” explained Walker. “We’re just being much more explicit on how it’s laid out in the by-laws.”
Because of changes to garbage collection, the municipality will be stricter about collection. Up till now, for Type A residences, the amount of garbage and the bins they have been kept in have been unlimited. With the changes, the town will provide each residence with an approved 240-litre plastic wheeled bin. These bins will be suitable for hydraulic mechanical collection, and each residence will be limited to what fits in that bin.
“This is one of the key changes,” said Walker. “Everything will be in this bin, or it will not be picked up.”
The bins will be provided to each residence only once; after that, the home’s owner would have to handle any replacement.
“The bin will be assigned to the address, and it’s supposed to stay with that address,” said Walker. “If it’s not there when it’s sold, the buying individual needs to buy a replacement.”
Some allowances are made for those who might need more garbage collected. Walker said that, for an annual fee, an additional bin may be allowed on a case-by-case basis. Those who want to dispose of larger items like furniture and other household items must wait for special days. Tires, automotive parts, refrigerators, air conditioners and other appliances may not be taken out for municipal collection at all.
The by-law also specifies fines for improper waste disposal ranging from $85 and up.
Walker told the council that the town spoke with the District of Carleton North, Hartland, and J.S. Bellis while working up this first draft to try and help keep things as consistent as possible across the municipalities.
The by-law passed its first reading at council. If anyone wants to review it for more information, it’s available to view on the Town of Woodstock’s website.
