July 3, 2022

Winnipeg
19° C, Partly cloudy

Full Forecast

Contact Us Subscribe Manage Subscription Chat with us
Log in Create Free Account Help Chat with us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertising Contact
    • Submit a News Tip
    • Subscribe to Newsletters

    • Finding your
      information

    • My Account
    • Manage my Subscription
    • Change Password

    • Grid View
    • List View
    • Compact View
    • Text Size
    • Translate

    • Log Out
    • Log in
    • Create Free Account
    • Help

    • Grid View
    • List View
    • Compact View
    • Text Size
    • Translate
  • Coronavirus Coverage
  • Replica E-Edition
    • About the E-Edition
    • Winnipeg Free Press
    • Community Review East
    • Community Review West
  • Above the Fold
  • Front page
  • Arts & Life
    • All Arts & Life
    • The Arts
    • Autos
    • Books
    • Book Club
    • Cannabis
    • Celebrities
    • Diversions
    • Puzzles
    • Environment
    • Events
    • Faith
    • Food & Drink
    • Your Health
    • Life & Style
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Science & Technology
    • TV
    • Travel
  • Business
    • All Business
    • Agriculture
    • Personal Finance
    • Manitoba's Top Employers
  • Canada
  • Local
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Columnists
    • Editorials
    • Editorial Cartoons
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Send a Letter to the Editor
  • Sports
    • All Sports
    • Amateur
    • Auto Racing
    • Blue Bombers
    • Curling
    • Football
    • Goldeyes
    • Golf
    • High School
    • Hockey
    • Horse Racing
    • Winnipeg Jets
    • Manitoba Moose
    • WHL
    • MLB
    • NBA
    • Olympics
    • Soccer
  • World
  • Reader BridgeNEW
  • WFP EventsNEW
  • About Us
    • About Us
    • Advertising
    • Contact Us
    • Carrier Positions & Retailer Requests
    • FP Newspapers Inc.
    • History
    • Internships
    • Job Opportunities
    • News Café
    • Privacy Policy
    • Retail Locations
    • Staff Biographies
    • Terms and Conditions
  • Archives
  • Free Press Community Review
    • All Free Press Community Review News
    • East Edition
    • West Edition
    • Sports
    • Events
    • Contact Us
    • E-Editions
  • Classifieds
  • Contests
  • Coupons
    • All Coupons
    • Staples Copy & Print Coupons
    • Ripley's Aquariums Coupons
    • The Bay Coupons
    • Staples Canada Coupons
    • Altitude Sports Coupons
    • Nike Coupons
    • Tuango Coupons
    • Ebay Canada Coupons
    • Sport Chek Coupons
    • Roots Coupons
  • LifestylesNEW
    • All Lifestyles
    • Business Hub
    • Community
    • Drink & Dine
    • Life
    • Wellness
    • Whiskers & Wings
    • Sponsored Articles
  • Homes
    • Property Listings
    • Featured News
    • Renovation and design
    • New homes
    • Resale homes
  • Newsletters
  • Obituaries
  • Puzzles
  • Photo and Book store
  • More

©2022 FP Newspaper Inc.

Close
  • Quick Links

    • Coronavirus Coverage
    • Federal Election
    • Above the Fold
    • Home
    • Local
    • Canada
    • World
    • Classifieds
    • Special Coverage
    • Newsletters
    • Obituaries
    • Photo and Book store
    • Archives
    • Contests
    • Publications
    • Sponsored Content
    • Privacy Policy

    Ways to support us

    • Pay it Forward program
    • Subscribe
    • Support Faith coverage
    • Support Arts coverage
  • Replica E-Edition

    • About the E-Edition
    • Winnipeg Free Press
    • Community Review East
    • Community Review West

    Business

    • All Business
    • Agriculture
    • Personal Finance
  • Arts & Life

    • All Arts & Life
    • The Arts
    • Autos
    • Books
    • Cannabis
    • Celebrities
    • Diversions
    • Puzzles
    • Environment
    • Events
    • Faith
    • Food & Drink
    • Your Health
    • Life & Style
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Science & Technology
    • TV
    • Travel
  • Sports

    • All Sports
    • Amateur
    • Auto Racing
    • Blue Bombers
    • Curling
    • Football
    • Goldeyes
    • Golf
    • High School
    • Hockey
    • Horse Racing
    • Winnipeg Jets
    • Manitoba Moose
    • WHL
    • MLB
    • NBA
    • Olympics
    • Soccer
  • Opinion

    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Columnists
    • Editorials
    • Editorial Cartoons
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Send a Letter to the Editor

    Media

    • All Media
    • Photo Galleries
    • Videos

    Homes

    • Property Listings
    • Featured News
    • Renovation and design
    • New homes
    • Resale homes
  • Canstar Community News

    • All Free Press Community Review News
    • East Edition
    • West Edition
    • Sports
    • Events
    • Contact Us
    • E-Editions
  • Coupons

    • All Coupons
    • Staples Copy & Print Coupons
    • Ripley's Aquariums Coupons
    • The Bay Coupons
    • Staples Canada Coupons
    • Altitude Sports Coupons
    • Nike Coupons
    • Tuango Coupons
    • Ebay Canada Coupons
    • Sport Chek Coupons
    • Roots Coupons
  • About Us

    • About Us
    • Advertising
    • Contact Us
    • Carrier Positions & Retailer Requests
    • FP Newspapers Inc.
    • History
    • Internships
    • Job Opportunities
    • News Café
    • Privacy Policy
    • Retail Locations
    • Staff Biographies
    • Terms and Conditions
The Free Press
Articles Read
Your Balance +tax
Day Pass Till
Day Pass
    • Contact Us
    • Advertising Contact
    • Report an Error
    • Send a Letter to the Editor
    • Staff Biographies
    • Submit a News Tip
    • Subscribe to Newsletters

    • Finding your
      information

    • Log in
    • Create Account
    • Help
    • Chat with us

    • Grid View
    • List View
    • Compact View
    • Text Size
    • Translate
    • My Account
    • Manage My Subscription
    • Change Password
    • Chat with us

    • Grid View
    • List View
    • Compact View
    • Text Size
    • Translate

    • Log Out
Log in Create Account Contact Us
Contact Us Manage Subscription
  • Sections
  • Local
  • Arts & Life
    • All Arts & Life
    • The Arts
    • Autos
    • Books
    • Diversions
    • Environment
    • Faith
    • Food & Drink
    • Health
    • Movies
    • Music
    • TV
    • Travel
  • Business
    • All Business
    • Agriculture
    • Personal Finance
    • Manitoba's Top Employers
  • Sports
    • All Sports
    • Amateur
    • Blue Bombers
    • Curling
    • Football
    • Goldeyes
    • High School
    • Hockey
    • Winnipeg Jets
    • Manitoba Moose
    • WHL
    • MLB
    • NBA
    • Soccer
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Columnists
    • Editorials
    • Editorial Cartoons
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Send a Letter to the Editor
  • E-Edition
  • Homes
  • Classifieds
    • All Classifieds
    • Announcements
    • Automotive
    • Careers
    • Garage Sales
    • Merchandise
    • Pets
    • Real Estate
    • Rentals
    • Services
  • Lifestyles
    • Business Hub
    • Community
    • Drink & Dine
    • Life
    • Manitoba’s Top Employers
    • Wellness
    • Whiskers & Wings
    • Sponsored Articles
  • Coupons
    • All Coupons
    • Staples Copy & Print
    • Ripley's Aquariums
    • The Bay
    • Staples Canada
    • Altitude Sports
    • Nike
    • Tuango
    • Ebay Canada
    • Sport Chek
    • Roots
  • Obituaries
  • Subscribe$1.50 for 5 months
Home Local

Advertisement

Advertise With Us

Curbside organics pick-up buried in red tape

By: Aldo Santin 
Posted: 2:43 PM CST Monday, Jan. 30, 2017
Last Modified: 6:40 PM CST Monday, Jan. 30, 2017 | Updates

  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Print
  • Email
  • Save to Read Later
Ruth Bonneville / Winnipeg Free Press</p><p>Green organic-waste bins won't be a regular sight on city streets anytime soon.</p>

Ruth Bonneville / Winnipeg Free Press

Green organic-waste bins won't be a regular sight on city streets anytime soon.

The plans for a city-wide, curbside organics pick-up program appears to be mired in confusion and city hall double-speak.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 30/1/2017 (1980 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The plans for a city-wide, curbside organics pick-up program appears to be mired in confusion and city hall double-speak.

There is no sign of a council-ordered strategy that was to include public consultation and options for composting and was to have been completed months ago.

Instead, the acting director of water and waste, Moira Geer, told a civic committee Monday that any work on organics and composting will be postponed until the completion of a review of the city’s waste-minimization efforts over the past five years. That won’t be completed until sometime in 2018.

Committee chairman Coun. Brian Mayes later contradicted Geer, telling reporters Geer’s report was poorly written and that the public consultation on organics will be reassigned to an ad hoc civic committee studying the impacts of climate change.

However, the chair of the climate change working group, Coun. Jenny Gerbasi, said she didn't know what Mayes is talking about.

"I can't explain what Brian Mayes was saying," Gerbasi (Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry) said. "I'm a little confused by it too."

Back on April 27, 2016, council approved a motion directing the administration to carry out detailed work on composting and a review of the city’s waste collection and recycling program. The motion was a compromise over a failed attempt to launch a city-wide curbside compost pick-up program for late 2017.

At the April meeting, council ordered a detailed plan with specific deadlines to deal with composting and a review of the city’s garbage and recycling programs. None of those deadlines has been met, despite repeated extensions given to the department, and Geer told the environment committee none of that work has  been carried out.

Council gave specific directions and deadlines to the administration that included:

  • End of August — Develop a public consultation plan for opportunities for organic programs, and consult with the newly created climate change working group to explore funding partnerships and opportunities.
  • End of October — Develop a city-wide program to reduce organic waste from commercial, industrial and institutional waste; develop a city-wide organic-diversion program that would be community based and work with existing not-for-profit groups and organizations; review and suggest improvement to the existing program of subsidized organic bins for Winnipeg residents.
  • End of December — Conduct a comprehensive review of the city’s waste and recycling pick-up program.

Instead, Geer brought an administrative report to the committee on Monday that sought to go in a different direction — to conduct a review of the city’s waste-minimization efforts.

"We’ve done a lot of things in the first five years," Geer told the committee. "What we’re saying is let’s take a look at the effectiveness of those programs and look at what’s changed in the industry, look at what other cities are doing, where we’re at diversion-wise... The report will come back with a review of the five-year program, what is best (on how to proceed with organics) for the city of Winnipeg and its residents." 

But Mayes said Geer’s report should have stated there is a proposal to alter council’s original April motion.

"There’s been discussions with the administration, the mayor’s office and other members of (executive policy committee)," Mayes said, adding it was concluded it would be inappropriate for the administration to conduct a public consultation on composting because it could conflict with the recommendations of the mayor’s climate change working group, which is examining the city’s long-term plan for sustainable initiatives and will be conducting its own public consultations.

The Free Press | Newsletter

Want to get a head start on your day?

Get the day’s breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning.

Sign up for Head Start
Sign Up

Mayes (St. Vital) said there is the possibility the public would be confused by two consultation efforts on similar or possibly identical issues.

Gerbasi said the report of the climate change working group, which is also overdue, is being finalized and expects it to be presented to Bowman and EPC within a couple of weeks.

"I can't really comment on what (Mayes) said and try to explain what he was trying to say," Gerbasi said, adding there's been no change to the group mandate that was detailed publicly in April.

To add more confusion to the issue, the committee postponed any decision on Geer’s plan for 30 days. Mayes said the delay is necessary so he can have CAO Doug McNeil attend the next meeting and clear up any confusion over the responsibilities and obligations of consultants who might be hired to do the five-year review and to clarify how and when the public consultation for composting will be conducted.

aldo.santin@freepress.mb.ca

 

Advertisement

Advertise With Us

History

Updated on Monday, January 30, 2017 at 5:03 PM CST: Updates

6:40 PM: minor edit

  • Report Error
  • Submit a Tip
  • Refund
  • The Free Press is certified by

The Winnipeg Free Press invites you to share your opinion on this story in a letter to the editor. A selection of letters to the editor are published daily.

To submit a letter:
• fill out the form on this page, or
• email letters@freepress.mb.ca, or
• mail Letters to the Editor, 1355 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R2X 3B6.

Letters must include the writer’s full name, address, and a daytime phone number. Letters are edited for length and clarity.

Advertisement

Advertise With Us

Top