The City of Barrie is cracking down on curbside pickup because some residents are trying to dispose of garbage in yard waste bags.
The city says they’ve found dog toys, plastic containers, and hoses shoved in bags filled with grass and shrubbery.
“Doesn't compost and it results in us not being able to sell back to the public,” says Tracy Quann-Strasser, waste diversion supervisor for the city.
When curbside yard waste is picked up, it is brought to the city landfill. It’s then processed and turned into compost. Each pile of compost is worth about $20,000.
“It's a huge deal. Coming from something where the residents probably don't think it's a big deal from what they're doing in their yard,” says Ed Modrowski, landfill operations attendant. “If it didn't grow, it doesn't go.”
They city says if it has to toss the compost it would represent around $350,000 in landfill space.
Staff will be taking a closer look at bags during the pickup process. If it is deemed unacceptable for pickup, it will be left at the curb with a tag.
