Conclusion

Public engagement on beginning bi-weekly waste collection this spring ended Friday, February 28. Responses from the in-person engagement sessions, on-line survey, and handwritten survey responses were collected and summarized by Communications into a What We Heard Report and presented during the Monday, March 10, regular City Council meeting. Council decided to not move forward with a bi-weekly waste collection pilot this year.

BACKGROUND

Why does the City want my thoughts on bi-weekly waste collection?

The City of Wetaskiwin is considering switching from weekly waste collection to bi-weekly waste collection in spring 2025. Switching to bi-weekly waste collection would optimize resources, reduce environmental impact, and lower the costs associated with waste management. Bi-weekly waste collection encourages waste reduction through recycling and composting, which contributes to more sustainable waste management practices and prolongs the life of the City’s landfill.

While there are a lot of benefits to bi-weekly waste collection, we understand that this would be a big change for a lot of people and would like your thoughts on the potential switch.

A brief history of our garbage

In 2023, the City contracted out its waste collection services to C&S Disposal Inc., which was later acquired by Environmental 360 Solutions Inc. By contracting the services out instead of having them in-house, the City was able to offer more services for the same cost to users, such as curbside organics, which was introduced in early 2024.

What about recycling?

In April 2025, the City of Wetaskiwin will begin transitioning to the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) program, which shifts the physical and financial burden of collecting, sorting, processing, and recycling waste to the producer and away from local governments and taxpayers.

Circular Materials, the group responsible for overseeing community transition to EPR, will continue to run the recycling program in its current state until October 2026, at which point Circular Materials will provide a recycling program, equivalent to the municipality's current garbage collection practices (i.e., Wetaskiwin currently provides curbside garbage collection, so Circular Materials will provide curbside recycling).

If we switched, when would organic waste be collected?

Organic waste would still be collected on a weekly basis from May to October and on bi-weekly basis from November to April. Organic waste would remain on a weekly schedule during the spring and summer months to ensure the timely removal of yard waste, since warmer temperatures cause organic materials to break down faster.

How would I manage extra waste between collections?

Extra waste between waste collection days could be managed by switching to a larger garbage collection cart, ensuring that you are disposing all organic waste into your green cart, and by recycling paper, cardboard, and other products at the Wetaskiwin Recycling Centre. Administration would recommend all households be moved to the medium sized cart (242 litres) to accommodate the bi-weekly waste collection.

Did you know: the majority of Wetaskiwin residents use the smallest cart (121 litres) for residential waste disposal?

Does switching to bi-weekly waste collection lead to cost savings?

Yes, the shift to bi-weekly collection is designed to save money on fuel, labour, and equipment use. These savings would be used to keep waste collection costs down for residents.

What’s next?

After February 28, responses from the in-person engagement sessions and the survey will be collected into a What We Heard Report. The report will be included in Administration’s Bi-Weekly Waste Collection Engagement report to Council, which will be presented during the Monday, March 10, regular City Council meeting. Based on that report, Council will direct Administration on the next steps.

How can I share my thoughts on switching to bi-weekly waste collection?

Survey

Online: let us know what you think about switching to bi-weekly waste collection by filling in the online survey by Friday, February 28, 2025, at 12 p.m. The online survey can be found at the bottom of this page.
PDF: email community@wetaskiwin.ca to request a fillable PDF copy of the survey.
Physical: paper copies of the survey are available at the Manluk Centre: Wetaskiwin Regional Aquatics & Fitness (4514 50 Avenue), Wetaskiwin Public Library (5002 51 Avenue), or Wetaskiwin City Hall (4705 50 Avenue).

In-person

Join us for a snack and a chat to share your thoughts about the potential of switching to bi-weekly waste collection during these two in-person engagement sessions:

Session One
Date: Sunday, February 9, 2025
Time: 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Location: Co-op Place (4519 50 Avenue)

Session Two
Date: Thursday, February 20, 2025
Time: 7:30 to 10:30 a.m.; 3:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Location: Manluk Centre: Wetaskiwin Regional Aquatics & Fitness (4514 50 Avenue)

Coffee with Council

Can’t make it to the in-person sessions? Share your thoughts with Council members directly Thursday, February 27, at the Wetaskiwin Regional Airport (6301 47 Avenue) from 6 to 7:30 p.m. during the monthly Coffee with Council event. Learn more about connecting with Council at wetaskiwin.ca/coffee.

FYI: why do we need to extend the life of the Wetaskiwin Sanitary Landfill?

In 2024, the City conducted a landfill site survey and airspace analysis of the Wetaskiwin Sanitary Landfill to determine its remaining life. The report concluded — based on historical waste tonnage disposal averages — that the remaining lifespan of the Wetaskiwin Sanitary Landfill is between 13.1 and 17.5 years, with the landfill reaching capacity between February 2037 and July 2041. This lifespan projection is only if Wetaskiwinites don’t make any changes to their current waste disposal habits, however, further efforts to divert unnecessary recyclable and organic waste from the landfill would extend its lifespan. From May 2024 to November 2024, the curbside organics program diverted 595 tonnes of waste from the Wetaskiwin Sanitary Landfill. The cost to close the landfill is currently estimated at close to $3 million.

Bi-weekly waste collection survey