Ongoing Calgarians throwing things into the wrong bins thread

[stampsx2]

Originally Posted by Tyler

you're that guy, eh.

Yup. You got it and won't be changing. Me and the other 55% of people who don't like the green bin according to a poll.

[Finger Cookin]

$6.50/month? Who ####ing cares?

[Tacopuck]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

When I hear this it makes it sound like 90% of household garbage can go into blue or green bins. Is that about right? I always tried to make sure I don't put un-recyclables in the blue bin.

http://calgaryherald.com/news/local-...ll-out-in-2017

Calgary landfills have roughly 30 years of capacity left at current rates but diverting organic waste from that stream should prolong that lifespan, said Valdarchi, noting, “Alberta Environment isn’t necessarily in the habit of awarding additional landfill sites.”

Sometimes a "money grab" is an investment to avoid bigger future costs that would undoubtedly be passed onto taxpayers / users. Look at the bigger picture

[photon]

If they're using different trucks (since you can't just mix garbage and composting) then the cost would go up, so that they're not charging more is good. If they're using the same truck (like with separated areas) then the cost wouldn't go down, the trucks are still going out every week.

Or maybe the cost was going to have to go up soon but now it doesn't have to because of reduced cost of garbage.

Assuming the cost should halve since pickups are half is often is making far too many assumptions I think, one would have to look at the details to determine if it was a cash grab.

[stampsx2]

Originally Posted by Finger Cookin

$6.50/month? Who ####ing cares?

I know. You're probably ok with the 6% increase in property taxes and the increase in electricity/heating/gas/alchohol taxes (jan 1st, 2017), additional transmission and distribution charges next year, are all no big deal as well.

Sneaking in taxes where people won't notice.

[Hockeyguy15]

Isn't the cost more than just for pick up? The cost would also cover how they deal with it after pick up, which could be where some extra fees are. I would assume more would go into the compost facility than the dump.

[photon]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

When I hear this it makes it sound like 90% of household garbage can go into blue or green bins. Is that about right? I always tried to make sure I don't put un-recyclables in the blue bin.

80-90% sounds right, depending on how much effort one puts in. Stuff like plastic food containers that normally would go in the garbage can be recycled if they're washed out first.

[RedHot25]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

What's your response to not getting a reduction on our bills for black cart pickup? Why the $6.50 in additional charges?

Doesn't bug me at all. Its $6.50, and its likely needed for something in the waste process (not you in particular, but for anyone else I'll save the problem - "cash grab!" "city taking all your money"!)

Originally Posted by stampsx2

When I hear this it makes it sound like 90% of household garbage can go into blue or green bins. Is that about right? I always tried to make sure I don't put un-recyclables in the blue bin.

I don't know if its 90% but its significant. In Ottawa I had a house of 3 - me, wife and newborn (to 1.5 years before we moved). Huge reduction of garbage, we found pick up every 2nd week no problem for garbage.

But then again, now with a household size of 4, I look here and see some people in my neighbourhood that are 2 people households that always have garbage packed on top of their black bins. Whereas my black bin is maybe half full on average. I don't get it, but who knows.

[ken0042]

Originally Posted by Tacopuck

Look at the bigger picture

Ok, $6.50 per month works out to $78 per year. Guessing 300,000 households so $23.4 M per year. They say this will save us between $50-100M over the 30 year lifespan of a landfill.

So we are spending $700 M to save $100 M.

The only way this makes sense is for the environmental aspect.

Now, for those of you who use this already, how does your waste go into the green bins? Just loose and stinky, or can you put it into plastic bags? (Or some sort of special bag?)

[Hockeyguy15]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

I know. You're probably ok with the 6% increase in property taxes and the electricity/heating/gas/alchohol taxes, additional transmission and distribution charges next year, are all no big deal as well.

Sneaking in taxes where people won't notice.

It's not really sneaking them in since you're aware of the change.

[Hockeyguy15]

Originally Posted by ken0042

Ok, $6.50 per month works out to $78 per year. Guessing 300,000 households so $23.4 M per year. They say this will save us between $50-100M over the 30 year lifespan of a landfill.

So we are spending $700 M to save $100 M.

The only way this makes sense is for the environmental aspect.

Now, for those of you who use this already, how does your waste go into the green bins? Just loose and stinky, or can you put it into plastic bags? (Or some sort of special bag?)

You can put it in compostable bags if you like.

http://www.calgary.ca/UEP/WRS/Pages/...locations.aspx

[Finger Cookin]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

I know. You're probably ok with the 6% increase in property taxes and the increase in electricity/heating/gas/alchohol taxes (jan 1st, 2017), additional transmission and distribution charges next year, are all no big deal as well.

Sneaking in taxes where people won't notice.

In the time you've spent whining about this with your replies here today, you could have instead been doing something productive to earn the monumental $0.22 you needed to earn today to pay for this outrageous cash grab.

[RedHot25]

Originally Posted by ken0042

Ok, $6.50 per month works out to $78 per year. Guessing 300,000 households so $23.4 M per year. They say this will save us between $50-100M over the 30 year lifespan of a landfill.

So we are spending $700 M to save $100 M.

The only way this makes sense is for the environmental aspect.

Now, for those of you who use this already, how does your waste go into the green bins? Just loose and stinky, or can you put it into plastic bags? (Or some sort of special bag?)

In Ottawa and Halifax, it depended on what we wanted to do. Little steel bucket under sink (from lee valley I think?) we just tossed that in loose, then loose into the big green bin. One of the cities gave us little tiny green containers and I think we used the brown bags. Worked just as well. Really its personal preference I think; as long as what you throw into there will compost...

[stampsx2]

Originally Posted by ken0042

Ok, $6.50 per month works out to $78 per year. Guessing 300,000 households so $23.4 M per year. They say this will save us between $50-100M over the 30 year lifespan of a landfill.

So we are spending $700 M to save $100 M.

The only way this makes sense is for the environmental aspect.

Now, for those of you who use this already, how does your waste go into the green bins? Just loose and stinky, or can you put it into plastic bags? (Or some sort of special bag?)

well put. Didn't even see that.

[stampsx2]

Originally Posted by Finger Cookin

In the time you've spent whining about this with your replies here today, you could have instead been doing something productive to earn the monumental $0.22 you needed to earn today to pay for this outrageous cash grab.

And you've done nothing to argue the point. Not one good arguement.

[Ironhorse]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

What's your response to not getting a reduction on our bills for black cart pickup? Why the $6.50 in additional charges?

I don't think a lot of people are aware of this particular twist in the scheme. If they are going to reduce black cart pickup in half, why will I still be paying the full weekly pickup amount in addition to yet another fee for the (non-voluntary) green bin.

[Finger Cookin]

My argument is that you're upset about something that isn't worth being the least bit upset over. But keep raging against the machine, man.

[surferguy]

can sawdust go into a green bin?

[Red]

People complain about a $3 raise in cable bills or cellphone charges till they are blue in the face, but when the city takes $20 per month for removal of garbage they are OK with it. Weird.
The blue bins are a profit for the city after they retrieve all the cans and bottles. So they could reduce that charge. I guess the almost 4K in property tax I pay is not enough...ugh, I. for one am tired of seeing my bills go up by 100's of dollars every year. It's been a steady stream of extra "taxes" in the last few years.

[Hockeyguy15]

Originally Posted by Ironhorse

I don't think a lot of people are aware of this particular twist in the scheme. If they are going to reduce black cart pickup in half, why will I still be paying the full weekly pickup amount in addition to yet another fee for the (non-voluntary) green bin.

Currently black and blue are picked up once a week. Then it changes to blue and green once a week, black every 2 weeks.

So now you have 2 bins being picked up once a week, and after it will still be 2 bins picked up once a week plus a 3rd bin every 2 weeks.