Time to get on with composting plan

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 11/09/2023 (780 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Pay now, compost your food scraps sometime in the next decade.

That’s the laughable recommendation received last week by the city’s water, waste and environment committee regarding the rollout of a long awaited city-wide curbside composting program.

The report, penned by city staff following a two-year pilot program, recommends charging homeowners a new $8 annual fee beginning next year for a compost collection program that’s slated to start operating in 2030, a full six years later.

That’s a pretty dismal return on investment. Especially considering currently strong public support for such a program.

The topic of residential composting has been on the books since at least 2011, when the city adopted its Comprehensive Integrated Waste Management Plan. The guiding document charted a course for municipal waste reduction and diversion through new facilities, more efficient garbage collection and targeted public education campaigns, with an overarching goal of diverting 50 per cent of household waste from the landfill by 2020.

Spoiler alert: that goal has not been met.

Despite rolling out new garbage, recycling and yard waste programs over the last decade, the city’s annual diversion rate has plateaued at about 32 per cent. While it’s an improvement to Winnipeg’s prior diversion rate, which was among the lowest in Canada, progress has stalled due to poor implementation and political lollygagging.

While curbside composting has been a recommendation in each subsequent review of the waste management master plan, the issue continues to be kicked down the road.

In 2019, it was determined that the city’s waste diversion target was impossible to meet without a residential food waste program. Rerouting organic waste from the landfill has also been accepted as an important component of Winnipeg’s greenhouse gas reduction strategy.

A step approaching action was finally taken in 2020, when the city launched a two-year composting pilot project. By all measures, the initiative was a resounding success with ample public support.

Of the more than 4,000 households that took part, 94 per cent supported the development of a permanent food waste collection program. A wide majority of residents also reported a willingness to pay an additional fee for the service.

However, it’s highly unlikely those survey respondents would be keen on the proposed timeline or fee structure, which would see the annual waste-diversion charge increase by $96 in 2030 when the green bins finally hit the streets. A pay now, compost later plan is a surefire way to reduce the goodwill that exists.

While there are valid reasons for the six-year time frame — namely a lack of funding and the need for a purpose-built composting facility — the current public service proposal ought to be trashed.

Thankfully, the plan seems unlikely to receive council approval, with Mayor Scott Gillingham indicating a desire to reduce time and cost.

Composting is a simple process: organic material is left to rot and, over time, it becomes nutrient-rich fertilizer. The rollout of Winnipeg’s eventual residential food waste program needs to be equally simple in order to encourage uptake among users. So far, it has been anything but.

The issue of curbside compost pick-up has been festering at city hall for more than a decade, leaving Winnipeg as one of the last remaining major Canadian municipalities without green bins.

Let’s stop wasting taxpayers’ time and get on with diverting waste.