City puts out tender for curbside compost-pickup pilot program to begin in fall

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This article was published 11/05/2020 (2101 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Starting this fall, a few thousand Winnipeggers will have compost picked up at their curbs each week.

Winnipeg is now seeking collection bins to support a two-year, $1.8-million curbside compost collection pilot project, which is meant to help design an eventual citywide program.

In an email, city spokesperson Adam Campbell said the food-waste collection pilot, which is set to serve 4,000 homes spread across five collection routes, is “currently on track to begin in October 2020.”

A new tender notes the city hopes to have all carts and kitchen containers delivered “no later than Sept. 29, 2020.”

Coun. Cindy Gilroy (Daniel McIntyre), the chairperson of council’s water and waste committee, said the project is an important part of an essential service, so she doesn’t expect the COVID-19 pandemic to delay it.

“I think this pilot project is key for us to try to meet climate-change targets,” said Gilroy.

The city has long noted organics collection as a key step toward its goal to divert 50 per cent of Winnipeg’s total waste from the landfill.

A city tender is seeking suppliers to provide 120-litre curbside carts covered by a 10-year warranty, as well as seven-litre kitchen collection containers with a five-year warranty.

The winning bidder would also deliver the products to the homes selected to participate in the project.

Gilroy said she expects Winnipeggers may now be more aware of how much waste they create, after public-health recommendations led many residents to spend more time at home, eat more meals there and order more heavily packaged products online.

“There’s opportunities for us to be mindful of what we are doing day-to-day and what we can be doing day-to-day to help impact climate change,” said Gilroy.

A detailed report on the exact locations for the pilot project pickups is expected sometime this summer, Campbell said.

The pilot is intended to help guide a 2023 report with recommendations for a citywide curbside compost collection plan. However, there’s still no set date for when that broader collection could actually occur.

City council once hoped to add a food-waste collection pilot program by 2014 and implement Winnipeg-wide organics pickups by 2017.

Instead, the project was delayed several times, partly due to concerns over its potential cost.

Late last year, city staff estimated that adding compost collection throughout Winnipeg would cost about $17 million to implement, plus $9.6 million of annual operating costs. A preliminary estimate noted a composting facility needed to support the program could cost an additional $25 million to $58 million.

The city expects homeowners would be charged a user fee for citywide compost collection, should council approve it.

Joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga

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