Kawartha Lakes to enforce ban on recyclables in garbage starting April 20
Starting on April 20, Miller Waste collectors will be enforcing the bylaw that no recyclable materials can be in garbage bags.
On this date, Miller Waste will be leaving “oops” tags on any garbage bags that contain recyclables. For the time being, if recyclables are properly sorted and the bag is set out again the following week, Miller Waste will collect the bag as part of a grace period. However, residents are reminded this grace period will eventually end.
Residents can take excess waste to the landfill (fees apply) or, for a limited time, purchase and use bag tags for additional garbage set out at the curb.
At the start of the year, several items that were previously disposed of in the garbage started to be accepted in the blue box. “Now that the producers of recycling have taken over all parts of the program and have added items that can now be recycled, we want to make sure that all recyclables are not being landfilled,” said Ward 2 Coun. Pat Warren.
This change has been met with mixed reactions from residents, who have taken to Facebook to share their thoughts on the issue.
Some, like Suzanne Fountain think this is a positive change. “I am happy that we can take responsibility in not filling the landfill. It’s been a long time coming.” Others, like Dianne Bourgeois, are all for recycling but question how much the new rules will actually be enforced. “I appreciate the sentiment behind this initiative, however I’ve seen my garbage picked up and the gentleman doing the pick-up doesn’t even glance at the bag he’s tossing in the truck. Realistically, how
is it enforced?”
There’s also been some confusion in what exactly will be counted as a recyclable material. “The city needs to come out with a more comprehensive what goes where poster. Are we expected to wash out freezer bags that had food in them? Is bubble wrap a flexible plastic,” said Gord Bacon.
Others, like Celeste Kirk, don’t agree with the new rules at all. “I don’t think people should be asked to pick through their trash because they threw a recyclable away. It’s unsanitary and goes against our freedom.”
This change will support the city’s integrated waste management strategy, which focuses on reducing the amount of waste sent to the landfill and increasing recycling and diversion across the city.
“It is important that packaging that can be recycled is not put into the garbage stream. If garbage amounts increase, then landfills will get filled up. To find new landfills is very costly and may take many years to find the appropriate site, if ever,” said Warren. “I am hoping that one day in the not-too-distant future, that all garbage can be recycled or composted, so we won’t need landfills.”
The city is working toward a 53 per cent reduction in residential waste by 2048, which means more materials need to be recycled or composted instead of thrown away. Less recyclables in garbage means more items kept out of the landfill.
Residents are also reminded that starting June 15, households in the curbside organics program will no longer be allowed to have any organics in their garbage bags.
So it’s ok to go to the dump and pay to take it there if all in kawartha lakes just saved weekly garbage up and went on a Saturday and payed thats ok but not if you have somthing in the bag that is not to be there at the curb of the house it will not be picked up this is just a money grab its a crock they say it’s expensive to find another dump I can tell them it’s not hard to find any house hold in the kawartha lakes that are paying taxes that are though the roof seniors having to sell there house as they can’t afford the tax it’s not hard for them to raise taxes then we can pluck through our garbage we have nothing better
If you’re making these changes, please give us a list of what you do and do not want in the recycling. I know people say use your common sense.However everybody has different common sense. I worked in a complaints department for twenty years period.
I couldn’t agree more!!
Why didn’t you’ll us what Is recyclable and what goes to landfill . If I don’t know then others don’t know.
Need to have bigger bins to use instead of putting out like 6 containers ..when are they going to allow that?
We are not on the organic waste program as our in the country we do not have the green bins in our area what are we supposed to do with our food waste
So many adults now days are so lazy and irresponsible u have to be responsible for your own actions recycling is not rocket science get your life together gord and Celeste help keep our country beautiful
Do you realize that 80-90 % of the ‘recycles’ you put in the bin go to the landfill ?
So how much extra is Miller Waste charging to have their collectors sort thru every bag in front of every house to know which bag deserves an “oops” tag? Will these collectors clean up whatever mess they leave as a result of this sorting process? How much longer will this sorting process take, and will they finish there current routes each day, or will more collectors and trucks will be required? Will recollection of “oops” bags reduce the number of regular week’s garbage allowed to be set out next week? Glad to see that this program is so well thought out!
Very well said! At present, collectors hoist bags & toss them into the vehicle without so much as a glance. This has NOT been properly thought out!
Why would I use precious expensive municipal water to rinse out a can which will end up in a smelter. There the tin is melted and reduced to molten metal with any food residue burned off. Congrats on
helping out the corporation. How do I know? I worked in transportation and routinely moved tons of tin stateside for processing. Also took tons of used Wind turbine blades to the border where they headed to landfill. Recycling is a feel good industry structured for profit. Why would any company with hundreds of diesel polluting trucks roaming our neighborhoods and picking up recyclables fo or without producing a profit. Kawartha Lakes decides to build thousands of new homes with 4 bathrooms along with a minimum of 2 cars per driveway and i’m the bad guy puttin an apple core in the garbage?
The organic items are suppose to go into organic buckets, so do they go out with the garbage?
What about the wild life around? If so children who go on school buses most have their bus stop near the garbage. This isn’t just for rual areas. Children in Bobcaygeon, and Fenelon Falls, fall under this category. What would you suggest they do? After June 15 2026, will rual areas start the organic recycling?
Every household should receive the information in their mail. Not left to chance of not getting it from pick up or at times missed paper routes (no offence to the papers).
They took our blue bins away now we don’t have enough blue box space . What would you like us to do. The town says we can take it ourselves. See the problem?
We have received no such instructions in the mail. Where can we obtain the information online?
Are we still pretending that a substantial percentage of plastic gets recycled ? This nonsense is getting old.
Fully agree and we all know it . Not much garbage to pick up any more so why don’t they take grass clippings again . Maybe that could even tame the tick population . We still pay the same on our taxes ! Garbage or not .
This all started when Miller Garbage lost the recycling bid for picking up our recyclables.
Is that just a coincidence or payback….seems fishy to me.
Lots of interest in this story, clearly. I’m in the puzzled camp. We are supposed to be allowed one opaque kitchen/bathroom garbage bag for “personal garbage”. But is it true or even feasible that anyone is going to stand out front of my home, rip open my tiny opaque personal garbage bag, and let the whole street know I’m pregnant or on chemo drugs or other private information none of us should be forced to share with our neighbours? What if we don’t want local drug dealers to know I take pain meds? Won’t that increase the risk of a break-in? I dunno. I think this may be a psych-op by the recycling people to make us think they are going to check when they have no intention of doing so, because otherwise, this venture is a lawsuit waiting to happen.