The new clear bag policy is moving forward for Muskoka, but some district councillors wonder if they’re making the right move.
During the Aug. 8 council meeting, District Coun. Don Smith suggested the gains from the yet-to-be-implemented strategy will be “marginal.” He said council should be targeting the “low-hanging fruit options,” notably the “truck loads” of construction-related waste that get dumped at landfills locally.
“We’re not really doing anything [with this policy],” he continued.
However, James Steele, commissioner of engineering and public works, pointed out the district’s mixed waste price is more than three times higher than the industry average so it’s “unlikely” commercial waste is coming to Muskoka.
Gravenhurst’s Mayor Heidi Lorenz, who was chair of the July Engineering and Public Works Committee meeting when the clear bag policy was approved, said the “dismal” 37 percent waste diversion rate shows that what is being done now isn’t working.
“For Muskoka, where we pride ourselves on being the crisp, clean place, we should be embarrassed by that number,” she added. “I am.”
The district is working towards meeting its 60 percent waste diversion goal before 2034, which District Coun. Brenda Rhodes noted is when the Ontario Waste Management Association estimates Ontario’s landfills will reach capacity.
During the meeting, council approved handing Fowler Construction a $2.4 million contract to build the fourth cell at the Rosewarne Landfill in Bracebridge. The Bracebridge-based business previously worked on building the second and third cells.
In a report to council, it’s explained that the landfill opened in 2016 with room for nine cells and 950,000 tones of capacity. It detailed how each cell is built ahead of the previous one reaching capacity.
The third cell, which was finished in 2022, is estimated to reach capacity before the end of this year.
Steele helped write the report and said the clear bag policy will be “critically important” in ensuring residents are managing their waste properly. “It will take some time for people to adjust how they do things,” he admitted. But he pointed out they will continue to accept black bags for a period after the new policy starts. Steele added they will also include privacy bags for items residents don’t want to toss in a clear bag.
He added prior to the policy being launched, which is tentatively scheduled for March 2025, district staff will go above and beyond to inform residents. “We don’t want to give folks a constraint without giving them the tools to solve that problem,” said Steele.
The policy was approved, despite opposition from Smith and three other councillors.
District Chair Jeff Lehman said with an “embarrassingly low” waste diversion rate, he believes this will be a positive step. He noted he’s heard comments from residents in areas that already have a clear bag policy who have said it hasn’t been an issue.
“It’s weird but it works,” he said.
