REDCLIFF, AB — Residents have signed an informal petition saying that the current system of garbage collection is fine the way it is.
Town council are in negotiations, working out a contract which would bring curbside pick-up to households.
The new bins would be for garbage and recycling.
Right now, much of the town shares large bins which are placed in the back alleyways and doesn’t have a recycling contract.
Many residents oppose the possible changes and have shared their frustrations on social media over the last few weeks.
Darlene Weiss helped in getting the petition started and worked at collecting signatures.
Residents signed the petition, agreeing with the statement “the current system of garbage is fine the way it is. Many seniors or physically disabled are not able to roll out the garbage bins onto streets and roll them back. More costs will occur from this change.”
Many people have voice their concerns for people living with disabilities and seniors, and the trouble these new bins could cause.
Roughly 500 signatures were collected in the last few weeks.
Weiss said she lives with cerebral palsy, which affects the right side of her body and makes getting around difficult.
She said she’s just looking out for other people like her.
“It was kind of important to a lot more people than I thought in Redcliff and I’m glad it is, because maybe we can make a difference if we stand together as a community,” she said.
All of the signatures will be handed over to town council.
The next council meeting is scheduled for Monday February 12th at 7 p.m.
Jordan Weiss, Darlene’s son, will be making a presentation to council about the bins and why he and others don’t want to see curbside pick-up come to town.
“I think the biggest reason we don’t really want the change to happen is it’s a system that currently works,” he said. “They want to bring in recycling, I think it’s a good idea but maybe not necessarily curbside. Maybe there’s some other options.”
Some residents are also afraid of how much more they’ll have to pay for the service, which is something staff say they’ve kept at the forefront of the talks they’ve had.
