Pilot project sees Londoners in apartments and condos join green bin organic waste program

Three months after the launch of curbside green bin collection for homeowners, a pilot project will analyze expanding the program to include medium to high-density apartments and condominiums.

“I had residents in apartment buildings asking, ‘What about us? Where do we fit in the solution?’” recalled Coun. Elizabeth Peloza, who attended the launch event at an apartment building in her ward.

Two buildings run by Norquay Property Management, a 137-unit high rise and a 40-unit mid-rise, will be the first in the city to have organic waste collection.

“I have tenants that want to participate, and in a pilot project you want participation,” said Lisa Smith of Norquay Property Management.

Tenants separate organic waste into kitchen containers that can be carried to the parking garage where large green bin ‘carts’ are positioned next to the recycling containers.

“It’s very similar to how people in these buildings recycle now, so we’re mimicking an existing program that is already out there in 900 buildings in London serving about 60,000 units,” explained Jay Stanford, director of Climate Change, Environment, and Waste Management.

Hamilton, Ottawa, and Toronto already have partial programs in place.

The province is targeting waste diversion programs in all residential buildings by the end of 2025.

“Of the amount of waste that comes out of an apartment building, one third of it can go into the green bin,” Stanford said.

As the city’s building boom continues, Peloza suggests the program is a crucial part of London’s strategy to divert 60 per cent of waste away from the W12A Landfill.

“This is a huge piece that we’re rolling out ahead of timelines that are provincially mandated in order to get the program right,” she added.

Landlords who are members of the London Property Management Association are watching the results closely.

“They are very interested in it,” said Smith. “But [they] want to see the pilot project and see [that] any of the kinks get ironed out.”

Building residents and superintendents will be able to provide feedback as part of the pilot project.

“The next couple months, we want to bring on different sizes of buildings in different areas of the city as part of the pilot project to really learn how this program would roll out citywide over the next couple years,” Stanford said.