South Glengarry Township is looking at obliging residents to switch to clear garbage bags as a means to stretch landfill site capacity by ensuring the sites are not being overloaded with items that could be recycled.
The proposal was presented at a recent council meeting by Sarah MacDonald, General Manager of Infrastructure Services.
Councillor Stephanie Jaworski and Deputy-Mayor Martin Lang stressed the need to inform residents of waste disposal costs and the limited life span of landfills. Jaworski brought up the “ick factor” of using clear garbage bags. While everyone recognizes there would be initial shock at the change, the need to extend the use of the landfills is imperative.
Residents will have two opportunities to have their voices heard on the potential plan at meetings April 24 at the Charlottenburg Tartan Hall in the Char-Lan Recreation Centre in Williamstown and May 1 at the Martintown Community Centre.
With the recent changes to recycling programs across the province, making producers responsible for their own recycling, there have been some concerns that not all businesses were able to make suitable arrangements. People are putting even more items into their garbage that could be recycled, thus increasing the amounts going to the landfills and reversing the progress that had been made through the previous recycling programs.
The City of Cornwall recently switched to using clear bags for garbage. After a “soft launch” phase, full implementation starts April 1. “We’ve seen great participation so far and want to keep the momentum going,” the city says. Personal or sensitive items can be placed in a small opaque bag which can then be put inside the clear bag.
