Emterra, city talking trash over problems with yard-waste collection

Winnipeg's residential waste-collection contractor says the city is to blame for problems with yard-waste pickup last fall.

In a letter to council's water and waste committee, Emterra Environmental chafes against a city claim that the contractor was to blame for problems with yard-waste collection in October and November 2015.

That claim was embedded in a water-and-waste department report about Winnipeg's waste-minimization efforts. 

"The collection contractor, Emterra Environmental, experienced equipment breakdowns during the peak fall season," solid waste manager Daryl Doubleday wrote in a report, which was accepted by the water and waste committee on Tuesday morning.

"This, coupled with the high volume of material placed out by residents, resulted in delays in collection. The contractor has submitted a fleet maintenance plan that addresses the equipment issues, which should alleviate any major delays in the future."

In the letter to the committee, Emterra vice-president Bill Waddell, the company's prairie operations director, said the delays were the result of the city decision to eliminate fall street-sweeping — a 2015 cost-savings measure in the city budget — as well a public city call to pick up yard waste from public property, boulevards and roads.

These two decisions drove up the volume of yard waste deposited by Winnipeg homeowners last fall, Waddell wrote.

"Between Oct. 19, 2015 and Nov. 15, 2015, Winnipeg residents put out a staggering 6,993 tonnes of yard waste," he wrote, stating that's almost as much yard waste as Winnipeggers deposited during during the previous two falls combined.

"This is equal to 1,100 truckloads, or seven truck loads being emptied every working hour over this four-week period."

Waddell said at the same time, the city limited the number of trucks Emterra could put on the streets. When backlogs started being reported, the city then demanded the firm revisit the missed pickups before moving on to other parts of the city.

"The result of this strategy was to increase the scope of the problem to all parts of the city," Waddell wrote. "This is contrary to what Emterra recommended to the department, which was to isolate the problem to specific parts of the city and take action over time to deal with the increased demand."

Waddell also noted the city's public works department insisted the elimination of the fall street-sweeping program "did not have a significant impact on the city and that negative effects could be managed."

The chair of council's water and waste committee rejected Emterra's claims.

"I don't think city budget cuts led to yard-waste pickup problems. There's problems with yard waste pickup every year," said St. Vital Coun. Brian Mayes.

"I doubt the council has messed things up for Emterra. They are eligible to bid like everyone else," he continued. "The idea that we the city are the ones that cause Emterra to have problems, I don't accept that."

Emterra's contract with the city expires in 2017.

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