County's recycling collection service to expand April 1
Fourteen villages, towns will receive services – not just downtown areas
WELLINGTON COUNTY – The county's free recycling collection service for businesses is set to expand this spring.
The recycling cart program began on July 1, when the county transitioned its blue box recycling program to producer responsibility organization Circular Materials.
The provincial directive left local businesses with no access to curbside recycling collection, as it applied only "to the residential recycling sector," county manager of solid waste services Das Soligo told the Advertiser.
County council made the decision early last year to offer recycling service to local businesses.
From February through August, county staff identified businesses and institutions requiring the service in the county's 14 downtown core areas: Elora, Fergus, Mount Forest, Arthur, Clifford, Harriston, Palmerston, Moorefield, Drayton, Hillsburgh, Erin village, Rockwood, Aberfoyle and Morriston.
On April 1 the county will expand the service to include those entire villages/towns – not just the downtown areas.
The county was paying just over $128,000 annually for downtown recycling and the expansion will add an additional $110,000 to $153,000 to the cost.
"The final cost will be dependent on the number of businesses which register for it," Soligo said.
He explained business owners in the 14 areas "must register to receive a cart and they must do so as soon as possible."
Those who register by March 1 will receive a recycling cart by April 1.
"Folks who register after March 1 may have to wait a period of time until they receive their cart," Soligo added. "There will be an initial delivery done sometime in March."
Every business is eligible to receive two, 240-litre recycling carts. Each holds about three blue boxes worth of material.
"When the county was responsible for blue box services we had a limit of six blue boxes at the curb so the two carts nicely match with what our previous level of service was," Soligo said.
An online registration form for businesses can be found at wellington.ca/BlueBoxTransition.
Businesses outside of the 14 communities listed above "that still wish to recycle ... are able to register to receive a minimum fee exemption card," Soligo said.
The card allows businesses to drop recycling off at any of the six county waste facilities at no cost.
