A new organic waste program being considered for Chatham-Kent is drawing mixed reviews from the community.
Ontario's landfill capacity is projected to be exhausted by 2032 and Chatham-Kent's waste generation is on the rise.
In August, Chatham-Kent council directed the Waste Management Team to conduct a feasibility study of a comprehensive organics diversion program for the municipality.
As part of this initiative, the Municipality asked the public to share their thoughts through Let's Talk Chatham-Kent.
And while some residents are for developing a curbside green bin program or a home composter program, others are not.
"I have mixed feelings on this," read a submission. "One is what about the smell and rodent problems that accompany these bins? We are not allowed chickens within the city for those reasons. Seems double standard to me."
Another submission agreed that the program sounded good on the surface, but said that the municipality should be focused on education and reduction rather than collection and recycling.
"These bins all come at an environmental cost through manufacturing, distribution, and collection," the submission read. "Improperly cleaned or stored bins can lead to more critter problems. High winds cause items to blow out of recycle bins and that may very well happen with the organic bins."
Many communities across Ontario, including neighbouring communities in London and Windsor, have already adopted a curbside green bin program.
In the late 2000s, Chatham-Kent offered backyard composters to residents at cost, but the program had limited success and was discontinued.
"This program is long overdue," read a submission. "Food and organic waste make up about 30 per cent of landfill content. The capacity for landfills in Ontario will be exhausted in approximately 10 to 13 years. So, if people don’t want to see more landfill expansion - like what we are seeing in Dresden - we had better commit to this now, and maybe speed up the process."
Waste Management does intend to review best practices and get public input before recommending a final, sustainable green bin program to council.
For more information, residents can visit the Let’s Talk Chatham-Kent Organic Waste page to access project updates and share their insights.