Friday, August 3, 2012

An Outsiders Opinion ... I just can't stop my fingers!

I am not really back, but I was just listening to CJOB, the topic was overfilling dumpsters on 700 block of College. The resident said his new fancy garbage container just got emptied, but the hugely overflowing BFI autobin was still there, overflowing, in all it's smelly glory.
Now I am no expert on the current conditions of Winnipeg back lanes, and I have no desire to drive down my old back lane, or any other back lane in the North End for that matter. But from what I hear, there seems to be a problem in Waste Management at the City of Winnipeg.
Oh, and sorry to the reporter from The Sun who wanted to interview me on the subject. I don't do interviews anymore. But I do have to say something on this topic, right here, and right now.
When I was on the committee that made the decision on the new Garbage Masterplan, I distinctly remember saying there had to be a plan put in place to take care of the transition period in the North End and West End. I was told there would be. So, is there?
This is what I know about garbage pick-up for autobins. The  BFI truck drives down the lane. If the autobin is  too full, they don't pick up. If there are any items leaned up against the autobin, they don't  pick up. If there are any large items inside the autobin, they don't pick up. Oh, and they don't report the issue.
Now, if a resident reports that the autobin has not been emptied, they must describe the issue. If they do not mention items leaned up against the autobin, or large items inside the bin, and do not describe them properly, and say how many items there are, no truck is sent to correct the issue. If a truck does arrived to remove large items, it only removes items reported, to a maximum of 6 items, and does not report that it left anything behind. The resident must make a second complaint.
Now, if a BFI truck empties an autobin  and any garbage falls to the ground, they do not clean up the mess. That is up to the residents. In this case, if an autobin gets emptied, is there a truck right behind it to collect the empty autobin, or does it sit an hour, a day, or a week to be collected. If it sits even an hour, it will likely have garbage in it. I have seen dumpsters fill within minutes of being emptied.
If the dumpster has garbage in it again, the whole process starts over again.
Solution:
Get a regular BFI truck, and one that picks up bulky items. Team them with an employee who will pick up garbage that falls on the ground. And follow this with a truck that will pick up that dumpster. Make a parade out of it, and pick up one dumpster at a time.
The alternative is madness!