The City is moving ahead with a waste collection pilot program that will include curb side recycling pickups and bag tags for garbage bags placed for collection in addition to the waste bin. New waste bins and recycling containers are expected to arrive next week and will be distributed to residents in the test areas early next month.
The pilot program is slated for the Rockwood Route which includes parts of Hawthorne Avenue – Mount Pleasant North – Wright and Seeley Streets – and other streets in that general area.
The Latimore Route is also part of the pilot program and includes parts of Grandview Avenue – Loch Lomond Road – Eldersley Avenue – hickey Road – Latimore Lake Road – and other streets in those general areas.
Councillor Ray Strowbridge is opposed to the idea of $2 tags for excess bags of garbage. He says it could present a financial hardship for some residents – lead to an increase in illegal dumping and/or people filling commercial bins with their excess garbage to avoid paying the fee. A staff report says this approach to solid waste service promotes “waste diversion allowing Saint John to reduce its burden on the regional landfill site at Crane Mountain.”
The pilot project will begin early next month and run through early July.
