Curbside recycling in the rural areas of the Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) has been postponed until the board can get a clearer idea of the demand for the service.
The SCRD infrastructure services committee voted July 2 to push back the curbside pick-up plans until staff have a chance to educate the public on the options the SCRD is considering and to conduct a reliable survey.
The committee came to the vote after staff requested a "reconfirmation of recycling directives" following the May 14 vote to begin designing a request for proposals (RFP) for curbside recycling pick-up and unstaffed depots.
Several directors said they have heard conflicting opinions from their constituents on curbside recycling pick-up and would feel more comfortable with curbside knowing the public was willing to participate and pay for the program.
Area E (Elphinstone) director Lorne Lewis supported the idea of investing some time and money into research of public demand in each electoral area before sending out an RFP.
"Let me just say I'd rather spend money on democracy than on a contract we wish we hadn't gotten into I would like to have more information from the public," he said.
Area F (West Howe Sound) director Lee Turnbull said she would like the public to know more details about the RFP before asking them to weigh in on it.
"What I'd really like to do is take the RFP out to the public and say, 'What do you think?'," she said.
Directors are pushing for a multi-question survey done in such a way that results can be broken down by electoral area. Manager of sustainable services Dion Whyte said a reputable public opinion firm would have to be hired to ensure statistically significant results. The telephone survey would likely take place in September and cost the SCRD about $7,000.
Other options the committee was asked to consider were proceeding with the RFP as is, abandoning curbside recycling entirely or delaying the process until a referendum or alternate approval process (AAP) is done. AAPs act like a reverse petition, but directors soundly rejected the idea, saying the process was vulnerable to being hijacked by a small group of committed campaigners.
John France, chief administrative officer for the SCRD, cautioned the move would result in delays for sending out the RFP by about three months and would involve higher costs in an already tough budget year.
Area D (Roberts Creek) director and board chair Donna Shugar expressed disappointment at the delays the recycling issue has faced so far and said that eventually, the SCRD would have to make a binding decision.
"At some point we have to say, 'We are leaders here. We are committed to sustainability. We are committed to zero-waste and we're going to do what needs to be done'," she said. "I look forward to the day we actually do make a decision and stick to it."
