As condo owners, we can help mitigate this problem of increased waste by examining our own waste management practices. Are you knowledgeable about what can and can’t be recycled and where to take it if there is no curbside recycling where you live? Check out https://www.recyclemanitoba.ca. Does your condo have a blue bin system for recycling and do you know what you can put in and what you can’t? Check out https://myutility.winnipeg.ca/UtilityPortal/RecyclingGarbageYardWaste/sp/recycling

The City of Winnipeg has announced that it will finally initiate a household compostable collection project, but it isn’t clear if condominiums or multi-family residential will be included. There are five neighbourhoods in the initial trial - Daniel McIntyre, Inkster Gardens, Linden Woods/Linden Ridge, Mission Gardens and St. George. https://engage.winnipeg.ca/residential-food-waste-pilot-program?tool=qanda#tool_tab. If you live in one of the listed neighbourhoods and are involved in the program, let us know.

Independent of the City’s program, there is the option for a condominium corporation to go it alone to reduce waste. If interested, a useful website is https://www.compostwinnipeg.ca. As well, the Green Action Centre has a program for multi-family properties going with their own onsite compost systems, providing bins, aerators, workshops and support https://greenactioncentre.ca/module/composting-2/on-site-multi-family-composting/.

If you are looking for inspiration and innovative approaches to waste reduction in a condo environment, check out this article from a recent CBC’s What On Earth newsletter https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/what-on-earth-highrises-zero-waste-1.5711010. The article reviews the success of a Toronto highrise in its ability to reduce waste and save money. Since many highrise buildings are designed to just throw stuff down the garbage chute, accommodating recyclables and compostables can present an initial challenge, but ‘where there’s a will there’s a way’ as they say. Some of the innovative things they did include

• Converting their garbage chute into an organics chute (and making people take their garbage, which is less smelly, downstairs).

• Creating a main floor recycling room to handle a variety of waste, including cooking oil, e-waste, hazardous waste and reusable items that could be offered to other residents before being donated to charity. 

• Doing door-to-door outreach so residents understood proper disposal for each kind of waste.

Some of you may be thinking that yes it is nice to help the environment but at what cost? This property “...has more than 1,000 residents across 282 units, but manages to divert 85% of its waste to recycling and composting, saving $15,000 a year in waste fees. It now puts out just one dumpster full of garbage a month, down from 20 a month in 2008”. Think about how those savings could impact your monthly condo fees!

So at your next Board meeting, how about including an agenda item to save the environment and save some money?

Alan Forbes

Chair, Newsletter Committee