The garbage is piling up along the streets of our neighbourhood. Because of the holidays, the pickup day has changed. But some households still put out their garbage and compost for the old pickup day. Many of the bins are so full that the lids can’t be closed because of the holiday surge in garbage. I wonder what the scene will be like on actual pickup day, after the additional days of accumulation.
Keeping track of garbage pickup day can be a hassle. People in some Greater Victoria municipalities can ease the task by signing up for email or text alerts; see details below. (For example, alerts for our household arrive the day before at 6 p.m.) You can also download pickup calendars for both garbage and recycling. All of this assumes that your neighbourhood gets municipal pickup; you are on your own for garbage in some parts of the Capital Regional District — hire a private hauler, or haul it yourself.
If your bin is so full that the lid can’t be closed, you might receive a warning sticker. There’s the possibility that the bin won’t be emptied if it’s overfilled; I’ve seen that happen. Some municipalities sell stickers to put on bags of extra garbage. If you regularly find that your bin isn’t big enough, you could pay for a larger bin, or pay to have an additional bin on standby for garbage surges.
Check these links for dealing with extra garbage in Victoria, in Saanich, in Oak Bay,
Or you could aim for zero waste.
Our household adopted this routine to keep smell and pest issues at bay. Buy compostable bags in bulk. (Packs of 90 are available for a good price at Crystal Pool and Victoria City Hall.) Put kitchen scraps into the bags and immediately put them in the freezer. Top up the bags in the freezer. Put the frozen compostables in the composting bin the night before pickup day. This helps to keep the compost bin from becoming unpleasant. Of course, maintaining your own compost pile is also an option.
Check these websites for details on garbage and recycling pickup schedules:
Recycling for the Capital Regional District
- - -
These Greater Victoria municipalities do not provide garbage pickup; you need to hire a hauler or do it yourself.
