Garbage overflowing in Metro Vancouver due to snow, ice and COVID-19
Posted January 12, 2022 6:19 pm.
Last Updated January 12, 2022 7:03 pm.
Social media users across Metro Vancouver have been voicing their frustration with the garbage piling up in the region.
In Vancouver, the City missed two days of collections at the end of the year due to ice and snow which prevented crews from pickups.
Albert Shamess, the director of waste management and green operations said collection was missed in about one-fifth of the city due to snow.
“And of course, moving into the New Year we had some weather issues as well. So while we were catching up on where we had missed, we were still trying to service areas that had been on that collection route.”
He added the warmer weather is helping crews catch up and garbage collection should be back to normal by the end of the weekend.
In New Westminster, that city has also been facing garbage collection challenges due to weather and staffing issues, with COVID-19 compounding the issue. The city has weekly recycling drop-off days on Saturdays and they’re expanding this to residents to drop off two bags of residential garbage.
“We’ve set it up as a drive-through format so it’s safe for residents to come drop off and they can feel comfortable not having to get out of their cars,” said Kristian Davis the Superintendent of Solid Waste and Recycling for the City of New Westminster.
While in Coquitlam, in an email statement to CityNews, the City said that if collection is missed as result of weather, the City’s collection contractor will attempt to return the following day. But this was not always possible over the last few weather events.
In all these cities, they agree the warming weather and heavy rainfall have helped to wash away snow, which is making it possible to safely clear the backlog.
