By Lyonel Doherty
Residents are having their say about a proposed “cart” system for garbage collection in Oliver.
On Monday, about 35 people attended an open house at the Oliver Community Centre, where regional solid waste management coordinator Cameron Baughen presented the proposal.
“At this stage we are looking for public concerns and feedback as no decision has been made if we are switching to a cart-based system,” he said.
The system, similar to Penticton’s, has homeowners separating their garbage, recycling and yard waste into their respective carts, which are left on the curbside for pickup.
Baughen said some people living in mobile home parks and strata developments have expressed concerns about the carts due to limited space for storage.
“Having seniors move the carts was another concern. These are common issues at all the open houses so far,” Baughen said.
In general, residents that use carts grow to like them, but there are properties that have a much harder time using the system, he noted.
In terms of odour, the main concern is cleaning the carts if food waste is collected in the future.
The regional district is looking at establishing a residential food composting facility at the Oliver landfill.
Baughen said the implementation of organics collection is several years away.
