Changes are coming to how the city accepts commercial and in some cases residential cardboard at the landfill.
The contract for all of the city’s recycling expires at the end of June and the market for commercial cardboard, due to low market prices and high processing costs, has dried up.
Director of Finance Kari Bolton says they are now trying to figure out how much commercial cardboard goes into the landfill…
“So in order to be able to do that, starting July 1st, we’re going to make all commercial cardboard go over the scale and be dropped into the bin so that way we’ll be able to measure it, know how much is there and we can also watch for contamination.”
Bolton says the other part of that equation is that residential cardboard will no longer be accepted…
“At this point a lot of people, even residents, are still dropping cardboard off in the old landfill drop off where there is only supposed to be commercial cardboard.  All residents should be taking it to the Recycle BC Depot before the landfill.  So we don’t know how much is commercial versus residential, so one thing we need to do is figure out what the volume is.”
Bolton says they won’t be charging a fee for commercial cardboard, at least to start…
“In order to deal with these costs and ensure more user pay, staff are recommending that a rate for commercial cardboard be included in the comprehensive fees bylaw.  The Financial Sustainability and Audit Committee recommended waiting until January 1st to do that fee.”
Bolton says that means that this year she anticipates the city to be approximately 20 to 30 thousand over budget on commercial cardboard handling.