The province has ordered private companies that are taking over recycling to offer such services for small businesses, if municipalities are willing to pay for it.
This means Northumberland County may face an unexpected cost for recycling services if it agrees to continue the current system of having the same trucks pick up residential and commercial material.
Or our local businesses may be forced to pay to have their recycling picked up, if no deal is reached.
One fear is that if no one pays for recycling the material will be dumped as waste and that will just fill dumps across the province sooner than expected.
In the story I wrote about 10 days ago the county said its staff was still looking for a viable approach. As of January 1, the private company that has been providing recycling service under contract to the county will take over full responsibility. But under existing regulations that responsibility does not include handling industrial, commercial or institutional recycling material.
Before I wrote that earlier story, I had contacted the province but not received any answers. I now have their comments. The short version is that there still is no solution in place.
In early June the province told the private companies that are taking over recycling “to offer continued Blue Box collection for small businesses where municipalities are willing to pay,” said Gary Wheeler, spokesperson for the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks.
“Municipalities and businesses could also choose to contract for recycling services on their own with private-sector service providers, as most businesses already do in Ontario,” he said.
Wheeler also noted that the province is seeking regulatory changes that will allow it to order the companies to provide such services, if they don’t do so voluntarily.
The companies, including Circular Materials Ontario, which is providing service here, have argued that picking up commercial recycling would interfere with their real job which is handling residential material.
County seeks climate opinions
Northumberland County is developing a plan for ways that our communities can adapt to climate change and is currently seeking your views on what needs to be done.
“Climate change is here,” its website says. “The past 10 years were the warmest on record, and Northumberland County is actively responding. We are committed to developing a comprehensive climate action strategy that aligns with our strategic plan objective to address the climate crisis.”
The county has already developed a plan to reduce the municipality’s own greenhouse gas emissions, the next phase is an adaptation and resiliency plan for our area. You can read more about the current project here.
“We need your voice to help shape this plan. We invite you to take part in a community survey designed to gather your experiences, concerns, and ideas about how climate change is affecting Northumberland County.”
The goal is to have the adaptation plan completed early in 2026. You can take the survey here. It asks you to rate what elements of our area area most important to you and where we should focus efforts to protect ourselves and the environment from damage.
“This plan will focus on reducing climate risks to our community, infrastructure, economy, and natural environment, while building resilience to better manage extreme weather and ongoing changes,” the county says.
You can read all Trent Hills News stories on my website here.