Concerns remain as London, Ont. gets ready to roll out new green bin program

The City of London will officially roll out its new green bin program on Jan. 15, ushering in changes to London’s garbage collection that have been delayed for years.

At a Civic Works Committee meeting on Tuesday, there was unanimous support for recommendations to make changes to the Municipal Waste and Resource Materials Collection By-law.

Green bins and blue box recycling will be collected once a week, and households will be permitted up to three containers of garbage every two weeks.

Diapers, incontinence products and pet waste will not be permitted in green bins.

"I think it’s terrible when they sit for two weeks in the garage, especially during the summer, during the hot temperatures and spread bacteria — never mind the smell,” said London resident, Michelle Krohn.

Ward 11 Coun. Skylar Franke admitted it will be a challenge for some families, but said new change is an important step to reducing waste.

“I will struggle a bit to be honest, because I have a toddler that's in diapers, and I have two cats and I use litter, but I am going to figure out as many ways as I can to reduce my garbage, I think that's the whole point," said Franke.

Director of Climate Change, Environment and Waste Management with the City of London, Jay Stanford said 127,000 households have received their green bin and kitchen container so far, but among the concerns with the changeover is that not everyone has their bins yet.

“There are about 3,900 units in townhome complexes that we have to get to that will require a little bit more time, so a special system will be put in place for the month of January and February to help those folks get ready for the green bin system,” said Stanford.

Stanford added they are aware of the challenges and encourages those who did receive their bins to ensure they look at their new collection calendar.

"Most of Ontario municipalities, they have a two week pick-up for garbage and then a weekly compost and recycling, so I think if most Ontario cities can do it, London could probably do it as well," added Franke.

The city is holding an online session on the green bin program from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday evening.

Residents are encouraged to join and ask city representative’s questions, and learn more about the new program.