The garbage myth

Garbage pickup the same throughout city, but upkeep is the responsibility of residents

Litter in congested areas of the city can give the impression that garbage pickup is lacking there – but city authorities deny any privileging.

The common perception that some neighbourhoods get better garbage pickup than others is simply not true, said Darryl Drohomerski, manager of Solid Waste Services for the City of Winnipeg.

“The pickup service is the same around the city,” he said.

It doesn’t seem that way, said third year University of Winnipeg education student Alexis Moritz.

“I work downtown and I notice not as much garbage pickup in that area,” she said. “Cans are frequently full and messy.”

Moritz, who lives in Southdale in the city’s southeast corner, said that garbage truck drivers in her area do not usually pick up stray garbage, but it depends on who is doing the route.

You get more illegal dumping the further away you are from the Brady Landfill.

Darryl Drohomerski, manager of Solid Waste Services for the City of Winnipeg

Sometimes a driver will make the extra effort to clean up litter downtown, but it seems like it doesn’t happen as often as in other areas like southeast Winnipeg’s Island Lakes, she said.

“There’s not so much garbage in the streets there,” Moritz said. “Maybe people make a bigger deal of it in more rich areas because they pay more taxes and expect more.”

Drohomerski attributes the difference in litter levels to higher pedestrian traffic levels downtown and in Osborne Village.

“There’s a lot of dumpster divers downtown. People jump in, pull out the bags and spread it around,” he said. “Most times they just walk away. You don’t see that so much in suburbia.”

He said that garbage truck drivers are not supposed to leave their vehicles, but some do to help clean up that extra little bit.

Much garbage accumulates downtown as people leave mattresses or furniture by the dumpsters. Garbage trucks do not pick up these bulky items; residents can call 311 and request their removal.

But since there’s a $20 fee, many people choose to dump illegally, said Drohomerski.

“You get more illegal dumping the further away you are from the Brady Landfill,” he said. “Like putting a carpet in the dumpster behind an Applebees.”

He also advises that large dumpsters are only to be filled to the water mark, or just below the rim.

This ensures garbage doesn’t spill out when the hydraulic trucks pick up the bins. Anything that does spill out is the responsibility of the property owners, Drohomerski said. Drivers may report repeated overfilling.

Eventually, it is up to individual downtown residents to keep the area around dumpsters clean.

“We’re at your residence for 15 seconds a week. The rest of the time it’s up to you,” Drohomerski said.

Published in Volume 63, Number 27 of The Uniter (May 20, 2009)

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