Spring 2015 - Wellington County

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A Message from our Chair
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Solid Waste News
A friendly newsletter from the County of Wellington Solid Waste Services Division
Spring 2015
2015 Event Days
Don McKay
Solid Waste Services Committee Chair
Well, the new four-year term of County Council has started and I am pleased to have been re-elected Chair of the Solid Waste Services Committee
for the next two years. We have one returnee to the Committee - Councillor Gary Williamson. Our new members are Warden George Bridge and
Councillors Gregg Davidson and Pierre Brianceau. I look forward to working with them and staff to continue to make Solid Waste Services an efficient,
responsive, and major component of the services provided by the County of Wellington.
With spring finally here, our thoughts turn to spring clean-up and getting that backyard composting pile working again. You will see in this
newsletter that the County is providing workshops on how to compost. If you are interested in composting, I recommend that you sign up.
We are also continuing our Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) and electronics event days for another year. Since we have provided bins for
electronics at our waste facilities, fewer people are taking advantage of the dedicated electronics event days. To be more efficient, we will be
accepting both materials at a single event day - one in each municipality. After this year’s events, we will revisit how best to provide these services to
County residents.
I want to take this opportunity to congratulate our Gold Box winners for 2014. Keep up the good work and let your friends and neighbours know how
they can get one in the future.
Backyard Composting Workshops
This year, Solid Waste Services (SWS) is partnering with the
County libraries to celebrate Earth Week. We will be jointly
hosting two backyard composting workshops.
These workshops will benefit both those who are new
to composting and don’t know where to start, as well as
those who have experience composting, but need a little
help or advice. Get answers to questions such as: How
does composting work? What can I put in it? Will it attract
pests?
Join us at the Harriston Library on Saturday, April 18 or at the Rockwood Library on
Saturday, April 25. The workshops run from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm. Please register
in advance at the Library branch. Space is limited to 25 participants per workshop.
Remember, composting not only diverts organics from landfill, it can save you
money on your weekly garbage disposal too!
ALTERNATE FORMATS AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST.
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SWS 2015 Calendar
Feedback
2015 is the third year Solid Waste Services (SWS) has
distributed an annual calendar in the Wellington Advertiser.
We would love to hear what you think about this year’s
calendar. Did you read it? Did you keep it? Is the information
interesting? What would you like to see in next year’s issue?
Visit our website at www.wellington.ca/sws and fill out the
short on-line survey by May 31. Just for giving us your
feedback, you will have the option to enter into a draw for a
Samsung Galaxy Tab 4.
We look forward to hearing from you!
County of Wellington Solid Waste Services
519.837.2601 • 1.866.899.0248 • www.wellington.ca/sws
New this year, our annual Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) and Electronics Waste event days will be combined. You can bring both materials to the
same location on the same day. We hope combining these events will be more efficient for both you and for us.
Each event is from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm. Materials are accepted at no charge. Events are for Wellington County residents only.
May 2
June 6
July 11
July 25
August 8
September 12
October 24
Erin Centre 2000
PMD Arena
Grand River Raceway
Wellington County Brucedale Roads Garage
Town of Minto Municipal Office
Wellington County Aberfoyle Roads Garage
Liquidation King
14 Boland Drive
68 Main Street West
7445 Wellington Road 21
8436 Wellington Road 124
5941 Highway 89
7396 Wellington Road 34
480 Smith Street
Electronics Recycling
Household Hazardous Waste (HHW)
A partial list of acceptable electronic items includes:
A partial list of acceptable HHW items includes:
 computers  cellphones
 paint
 fluorescent bulbs
 monitors  cameras
 chemicals
 medications
 stereos
 pesticides
 sharps
 telephones
 televisions  VCR/DVD players
 mercury thermometers  batteries
 For a full list of acceptable items, visit our website at
 For a full list of acceptable items, visit our website at
www.wellington.ca/sws.
 Food bank donations are gratefully accepted - cash or
non-perishable food.
 Waste electronics are also accepted at all six County
waste facilities year-round during regular operating hours.
Erin
Drayton
Elora
Brucedale
Harriston
Aberfoyle
Arthur
www.wellington.ca/sws.
 Only HHW materials from residential homes will be accepted.
HHW materials from businesses or agricultural wastes will not be accepted.
 Select HHW materials are also accepted at five of the County’s waste
facilities. Visit our website for more information on materials and
locations.
In 2003, I began running a roll off truck in addition to
providing curbside cart collection to schools, multiresidential buildings and other institutions.
TIP!
As of March 31, SWS is no longer accepting
bale wrap for recycling at the Riverstown Waste
Facility. Switch Energy Corporation is a private
company that offers a convenient agricultural
wrap recycling programme at no cost to you.
As County-managed waste services approaches
its fifteenth anniversary, I look forward to seeing
what will take place in the future within the waste
industry in general, and specifically for waste
management in Wellington County.
Put lids back on empty bottles and jars for recycling. Small lids are difficult to sort at the processing plant and may
end up in the residue pile to go to landfill. Ensuring containers are empty and lids are left on, helps us divert even
more of your recycling materials. Every little bit counts!
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Carol B. Fergus
Janice C.Fergus
Bernadette C.Hillsburgh
Nancy G.Elora
Jonathan H.Rockwood
Florence J.Fergus
Switch Energy Corporation offers a bale wrap
pick-up service directly from your farm. There
is less preparation required and they accept
other types of agricultural wrap as well.
Visit their website for more information at
www.switchenergycorp.com.
In 12 years working at our transfer stations and
landfill site, it is interesting to see the large increase
in recycling and changes to waste volumes that we
haul, as well as the new materials we are able to
recycle and divert from landfill. We have managed to
meet the increasing demand within our Solid Waste
Services team.
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Hi, my name is Bruce and I’ve been a County of
Wellington employee for 23 years working in waste
and recycling. I started my career at the County
in 1992 as a driver doing curbside collection of
recyclables. In those days, the County only provided
Blue Box recycling collection. Each municipality
made their own arrangements for garbage collection
until 2001.
Congratulations to all the winners of our Gold Box Reward Programme in 2014! We hope you are
using your gold boxes proudly. You have earned them!
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Inside SWS: Bruce, Roll Off Driver
I enjoy the independence of working on my own
and being tasked with keeping our sites operating
smoothly while being part of a team providing waste
and recycling services to our County residents. I’ve
also enjoyed having the ability to do repairs and
general maintenance on our equipment. Being
a lifelong resident of Wellington County, I enjoy
meeting people I haven’t seen for a while and
touching base with those I see on a regular basis
at our waste facilities. The job has its advantages
working outdoors in most seasons. However, with
winters like the last two, the cold weather can cause
havoc on the equipment. It also causes problems
getting frozen material out of our bins.
Gold Box Reward Programme
Balewrap Programme
REMINDER
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The curbside collection service is now contracted
out, but the County still provides roll off services
to all six of its waste facilities. As part of the roll off
team, I run garbage bins from our six transfer stations
to our Riverstown Landfill. I also haul recycle bins to
recycling centres in Mount Forest, Cambridge and
Guelph.
Barb L. Mount Forest
Steve M.Erin
Jan M.Fergus
Michelle O.Fergus
John P.Elora
Titia P.Guelph/Eramosa
Rob R.Mount Forest
Susan S.Fergus
Sarah W.T.Fergus
Tipping fee increase from
$70 $75
.00
to
.00
per tonne
for all scaled loads effective March 31.
This affects the four County waste facilities
that operate weigh scales:
Aberfoyle  Belwood  Harriston  Riverstown
This only impacts loads over 133 kg (295 lbs). The minimum
fee of $10.00 for any scaled load has not changed.
All other fees remain unchanged at this time.
Have you noticed a neighbour or other community
member regularly using a “Gold Box” when setting out
material for collection? Have you ever wondered how
they got it, or how you could get one? The County’s Gold
Box Reward Programme is open to every household in
the County; households with curbside collection as well
as those who do not receive curbside collection and take
their recyclables to one of our six waste facilities.
Once again, we are looking for the best recyclers in the
County of Wellington. If you are committed to excellent
recycling and think your recycling has what it takes to
win gold, this friendly competition is for you. Winners
will be awarded with a “gold” recycling box, letting your
friends and neighbours know that you are a “gold medal
recycler”.
Curbside collection and site staff will randomly check on
how well your household is recycling over a number of
weeks. They will be evaluating your recycling based on
the following criteria:
• Only acceptable items are in the blue boxes.
• Materials are properly sorted into papers and
containers.
• Recyclables are clean.
• Cardboard is flattened and bundled if necessary.
• No recyclables placed in plastic bags; and
• Participation in recycling programme on a consistent
basis.
If you think you can meet the high standards of
a Gold Box recycler, let us know! Visit the Gold
Box Reward Programme page on our website at
www.wellington.ca/goldbox and nominate yourself by
filling in the on-line form. Or, you can call Solid Waste
Services at 519.837.2601 to speak with a staff member to
nominate yourself.