The only local government on the Sunshine Coast that offers curbside organics collection is a step closer to a major expansion of the program.
Councillors on Sechelt’s public works, parks and environment committee voted Jan. 24 to recommend the district join Recycle BC’s (the former Multi Material BC) Packaging and Printed Paper collection and processing program and use the savings and extra revenue to fund organics collection.
A staff report said joining the Recycle BC program could save the district approximately $142,000 in collection and $168,000 in processing costs per year.
With the Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) looking to ban household organic waste from the Sechelt Landfill in 2020, committee members were supportive of the staff proposal, but also had questions about how switching to the Recycle BC program would change the existing curbside recycling system.
The only product currently collected that would not be collected under Recycle BC stewardship is so-called film plastic. Staff, however, said they’re already planning to phase it out.
Film plastics, Styrofoam and electronics would still be managed through the depots.
Coun. Alice Lutes wanted to know what the plans would be for people in multi-family situations like condos, apartments or mobile home parks.
Engineering technician Paul Appelt said the possibility of including multi-family residential in both the Recycle BC and organics systems is possible, but it would be up to council to go in that direction and direct staff to come back with options and costs.
“I would really recommend that be done,” Lutes said. “Living in a condo or trailer park or apartment building, there’s nowhere for us to do composting. It just makes sense to me that those households would be included.”
The district has been doing curbside organics collection for 500 homes in the Davis Bay area since May 2014. According to staff, 136.56 metric tonnes were diverted in 2016 and 107.04 as of October 2017.
Coun. Darren Inkster, who chairs the committee, said joining Recycle BC and using the money that would be freed up to expand organics pickup beyond Davis Bay would also have another advantage. “If we can move forward expeditiously, it would help deal with an unfunded liability that we have with the existing organics program, which I’ve been concerned about for about two, two-and-a-half years,” he said. Inkster also said as local governments move forward on curbside initiatives they should be careful not to lose sight of which materials have to be trucked off Coast and the extra traffic and GHG emissions that could create.
Sechelt has until September to let Recycle BC know if it plans to joins the program.
The committee recommendation will likely go to full council for endorsement this month.
