Last month, Council supported a staff recommendation to begin a pilot project for the collection of kitchen waste in the village of Millbrook. The collection will be incorporated into the existing curbside collection contract with Wither’s Waste and the pilot will run for nine months to coincide with the completion of the existing collection contract with this service provider.
Waste management for the township is managed at the county level, but as one of the highest waste producers in the county, Cavan Monaghan has been seeking a kitchen waste collection program for residential organic waste for a few years to reduce their contribution to the landfill. Peterborough County is in the process of updating its Master Plan with no deadline yet established for its completion and have advised that they will not consider any new programs until this has been completed. Encouraged by many residents seeking a green waste diversion program, Cavan Monaghan Council decided to go it alone to determine how much waste diversion this program might produce.
The recommended pilot project will collect kitchen waste from approximately 1,000 homes in the village, including ones in the new development. Waste diverted through this pilot will be deposited at SusGlobal Energy Centre located in Belleville.
The project requires a capital cost for the curbside and kitchen collection bins and their distribution to Millbrook residents totally $26,000, for which the township will be establishing a tender. The total cost over the nine months is roughly $110,000, which will be funded by a Ministry of Municipal Affairs grant applicable to modernization initiatives in rural communities that the township has already received. KG
