Annexation prompts garbage pickup changes

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This article was published 08/12/2017 (2330 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Effective Jan. 2, the City of Steinbach will make minor changes to its residential garbage day schedule as the solid waste department begins servicing homes in areas annexed from the RM of Hanover.

Department head Eldon Wallman said a half-dozen homes along Keating Road will transition from Day 2 to Day 4 in the new year.

Curbside pickup for the 60 or so homes found in annexed areas will also occur on Day 4, Wallman said. The changes will allow the city to retain its current five-day collection system.

Homeowners in annexed zones can choose to forego city garbage service if they prefer to continue with other arrangements.

“If they want to opt out of the service, they just simply let us know,” Wallman said.

While the high volume of garbage produced over the holidays makes it a challenging time of year to launch a service expansion, Wallman was confident his crews are up to the task.

“We have the resources to make it work, it’s not a problem” he said, noting the department can divert staff from landfill maintenance to residential pickup as needed.

Servicing the new areas will add an estimated nine kilometers to the Day 4 collection route and an additional 60 to 90 minutes to crews’ work day, Wallman estimated.

“Because of the distance in between homes, collecting from sixty homes in that area is not the same as collecting from sixty homes on Hanover Street,” he said.

Darryl Marsch, director of services for enVision Community Living, said Eastman Recycling Services will meet next week with city officials to determine whether and how it will provide curbside recycling pickup to homes in the annexation area.