City asking residents not to change recycling habits despite compost facility shut down

The city is asking Hamilton residents to keep their regular recycling habits, including separating food waste, despite the closure of the city's composting plant.

In a notice released late Monday, it says the closure doesn't affect any other of the waste or recycling streams.

The message to residents is to keep separating. Keep putting food scraps scraps and soiled paper products in the green bin. The city will take care of the rest. 

Mayor Fred Eisenberger issued a statement on the weekend, saying he's been in touch with the city's general manager of public works, Dan McKinnon, who said staff plan to "promptly" shut down the Hamilton Central Composting Facility on Burlington Street East.

"The [odour] is noticeable throughout the lower city and was very prominent at the Arkells concert last night," explained Eisenberger, who said staff told him the facility will "likely divert incoming compost to landfill until the issues are resolved."

Today, however, it is encouraging people to continue to compost, recycle, and participate in yard waste programs as usual. 

The city says all material that would go to the facility are now being redirected to a different place.

The city-owned facility opened in 2006 and is operated by Aim Environmental Group. It handles compost generated by Hamilton, Halton and Simcoe County — the equivalent of 70,000 tonnes per year, from roughly 1,668,000 people.

Here are some things the city wans people to be made aware of: 

• Food scraps and soiled paper products should still go in the green bin. At this time, some food scraps are being temporarily redirected to the landfill, but for operational reasons, residents are encouraged to continue using their green bins.
• All yard waste should go in a paper yard waste bag or other clearly marked open-top reusable rigid container (i.e. bins, baskets or garbage can without a lid).  All yard waste will continue to be composted at a different site to produce high quality compost.
• There are no changes to the blue box program.
• There are no changes to waste collection – each single family household can still put out one bag or can of garbage each week for pick up. Additional bags still require a trash tag.