Multi-Family Recycling Strategy Information

Multi-Family Recycling Strategy Information

I understand that many of you have questions about the proposed multi-family recycling strategy. Here is a backgrounder provided by City Administration.

Background

– 13% of all city waste headed to City landfills comes from multi-family buildings

– 22% of garbage from multi-family residences is recyclable materials

– 163,000 dwellings in Calgary are classified as multi-family

– 35% of multifamily family buildings already have recycling service provided by private industry

Purpose: A recycling strategy for the multi-family sector provides an opportunity to reduce the amount of readily recyclable materials going into the landfills and an opportunity to clear citizen demand for more convenient on-site multi-family recycling options.

Advantages:

Oversite – A City bylaw will mandate that a minimum level of service is provided, including: on-site storage, separate from garbage and including specified recyclables, with communication, education, ongoing monitoring, stakeholder engagement and enforcement by The City.

Value for Money – It will leverage the existing private recyclers, allow for customization to meet unique needs of the marketplace and avoid large administrative costs by The City for billing and contract management.

Flexibility – It will provide a more flexible platform for customized service.  This allows residents and building management to select service providers based on their specific needs and recycling goals.

Diverse Marketplace – It will not place a limit on the number or type of service providers operating in the multi-family market.

Lower Complexity – Allowing the private recyclers to work directly with the multi-family building owners will drive efficiency.  Multi-family unit owners will be able to choose the private company that delivers the best value for their unique situation.