The City of Toronto is now launching a roll-out program to begin including apartments and condos in its popular Green Bin program.
The Green Bin organics program will be phased in for the more than 4,500 apartments & condos in the city. For the most part, currently only single-family households have had access to the Green Bin program.
Green Bins will be phased in over 18 months, with approximately 300 buildings added every month. Each unit will be given the same green bin that households are currently using, in order to store their organics. Residents will be able to drop off their waste in a larger bin located in the building. The city will provide a once-a-week pickup.
The city had run a pilot project of about 30 buildings to test if the Green Bin program might work for larger buildings. The pilot project was successful in diverting organic waste from garbage, and so the program is being phased in across the city.
There is some concern that having organic waste in apartments could cause an increase of pest infestations. In the Globe and Mail, Brad Butt, president of the Greater Toronto Apartment Association says "Our members are cautious that it can be successful", with the caveat that if residents do not empty the bins on a regular basis, increased infestations could occur.
On the one hand, most people who have lived in an apartment will recognize this as a valid concern - the actions of neighbours can affect your quality of life, and pests don't recognize rental boundaries.
On the other hand, it should be pointed out that any organic waste collected by the bins would have ended up in the apartment waste bins anyway - it's not new waste, just a new place to put it.
According to the city, currently 95% of single family households use the Green Bin program, and organics represent about 30% of household waste.
Image by Modern Times
