One issue people have (and that I was emailed about this week) is when a neighbour doesn’t use their carts as intended and the green one ends up being used as a secondary garbage cart.

It can get frustrating. I get it.

But how do you deal with it?

I have a bunch of questions to start with.

Are they new to the neighbourbood or city?

They might not know how the cart system works. Yes, it’s getting to be a global standard but there are still places that haven’t switched over.

This would be a matter of education. Whether you want to take that on, is up to you. It could be something as little as giving them a link to the City website.

This question also relates to the next:

What size garbage cart do they have?

There are 2 sizes of carts. 120 L and 240 L. From what I have seen, the small one isn’t common but it is out there. Carts are assigned to the house, not to the people in it. When a new family moves in, they may not realize that their home has a 120 L cart and they can upgrade to a 240 L if the small one isn’t working. An email to info@sprucegrove.org should be able to fix that. (Side note: If you’re finding you consistently make less garbage than you’re 240 L cart is useful for, you can also downgrade your cart. It’s cheaper on your utility bill! Use the same email address to change cart size)

Do they know where to take excess garbage?

There are times when each and every one of us creates extra garbage. Typically around the holidays but this can happen at other times of the year like when you’re spring cleaning (Ugh. That’s coming up, isn’t it?)

In the cases where we have too much for our own black cart, there’s a couple different options.

If it’s a one-time thing and they usually make a lot less garbage, they can save the excess to put into their cart the next week.

If you have a good relationship with them, offer them space in your black cart if you have it.

Failing either of those two things, they can also take your extra over to the Eco Centre.

What to do when talking to them doesn’t work?

You can report them to the City using info@sprucegrove.org or call 780-962-2611. If once doesn’t work, keep trying.

I hope that helps! If you have any questions, use the ask a question link above!

Have a great day, everyone!

L