Thanks to our neighbours from Cabbagetown South Residents’ Association for this information! Cabbagetown South (bordered by Carlton to the north, Parliament to the East, Shuter to the south and Sherbourne to the west) was a test neighbourhood for the city’s new, larger green bins, which proved to be difficult for some residences with limited storage or yard space.
Cabbagetown South volunteers met with staff from Solid Waste Management (SWM) earlier this summer and report there are three alternatives to accepting the new, larger green bins, which are scheduled for delivery by SWM in mid-September
Call 311 if you want to arrange for an alternative solution.
1. Exterior clear plastic bag
– You can put smaller plastic bags within the larger exterior clear plastic bags.
– Does not matter what kind of the smaller plastic bags (not black).
– Seal with green painters’ tape with “organics” written on it or, with a black marker, write a big letter “O” on the bag to identify your bag contains organics.
– You can keep your existing green bin and use it to store organics between pickups.
– The old green bin will not be picked up at the curb.
– Your bag must be put out on the morning of pickup day, not the night before.
– If there is room in your neighbour’s (new) green bin already at the curb, place your clear plastic bag inside
– If animals get into organics bags, it is the homeowners’ responsibility to clean the mess
2. Share the new green bin with a neighbour
Talk with your neighbours and see if you can share a bin.
3. Combo bin for recycling/garbage plus new green bin (only two bins per household instead of three)
– The dual bin has a fluorescent green lid so SWM staff can identify it.
– Residents can arrange to have one bin for both recycling and garbage. Call 311.
– Only put out the garbage on Garbage Day and recycling on Recycling Day
– If there is a mix of garbage and recycling in the bin, it will not be picked up.
A new green bin will be delivered to you during a regular pickup day in mid-September. Call 311 if you want to arrange an alternative option. SWM may want to meet at your home to determine which option might work best. Your present green bin will be taken away unless you arrange otherwise.
Residents might also consider using bags and tags for their garbage and the bag option for recycling, getting rid of their bins altogether.
Read more information on the SWM website.
3 replies on “New, larger green bins roll out in September”
Will we get a reduction in our organic waste pickup because we have to purchase special bags? I am already buying blue recycle bags and yellow garbage bags. this system seems to be designed for the garbage trucks and the men who pick them up, NOT FOR THE TAXPAYERS!There are many many houses in Cabbagetown that are landlocked. Garbage bins are unsightly in front of houses.
It all started when the City of Toronto was shown an organic bin that had locking capabilities, but it said NO!
Then we were told that PLASTIC Bags were bad.
So some merchants, including Metro Grocers started to charge for plastic bags.
Still, people purchased them.
Now, the City has rolled out a much larger organic bin that has a lock, but expects that some taxpayers will SHARE its use.
And NOW, if we want to use those “Environmentally Bad Plastic Bags” – That’s O.K.(?)
Sorry City Hall but this may be a multi-cultural city but I never heard SHARE or SHARING in the same sentence.
Besides when one SHARES, does this mean that we also SHARE the cost of the bin?
And what will happen when someone drops a dead animal in it and you don’t know who did it?
I think this one deserves a municipal – Teddy Waste Award, nomination.
http://www.taxpayer.com/news-releases/19th-annual-teddy-government-waste-award-winners.
Re: sharing…rather than having your own garbage and recycling bins, you could arrange with your neighbour to use your bin for recycling and theirs for garbage. Makes sense because these bins are picked up every other week. Not sure how or why there would be money exchanged? Or dead animals in the bin(??)? The Cabbagetown neighbours I know are good and kind people who would work something out.
I’m not in love with the new green bin either, but this is the very definition of a first world problem.
Also, proud to say I’m a citizen, not just a taxpayer!