YOU ASKED: Why does the City of Kamloops permit recyclable items to be buried in the landfill at Mission Flats instead of insisting that all applicable items be recycled?
— Brian
OUR ANSWER: Don’t worry. A ban on recyclables is on the horizon, says David Duckworth, director of utilities for the City of Kamloops.
“The reason we haven’t done that yet is because the multi-family sector is not fully serviced with onsite recycling,” said Duckworth.
Condos, apartment buildings and townhouses still don’t have curbside recycling, as single-family houses do, so they must haul their cardboard, tin cans, paper and glass to one of the recycling depots (a challenging option for seniors and other residents without vehicles).
The City plans to begin a $50,000 test-run of multi-family curbside pickup this spring.
Once the service is successfully in place at all condos, townhouses and apartment complexes, the City will start banning recyclables at the landfills.
“So we would prohibit newsprint, cardboard — all the things that would go into the recycling program,” said Duckworth.
Not only that, but anyone trying to dump a load of trash that contains more than five per cent recyclable goods would face double the tipping fee. Depending on the size of the load, that penalty could be anywhere from $10 to $120.
“So there is a plan in place,” said Duckworth.
“The reason we haven’t done that yet is that we would be penalizing people who don’t necessarily have the means to get their recyclables to a depot.”
