The first phase of the pilot will last three months and includes ten street litter bins
This week, the City of Toronto is beginning a pilot project to test the collection of dog waste in street litter bins. The first phase of the pilot will last three months and includes ten bins adjacent to parks and in areas with a high concentration of dogs.
According to the city, one compartment on each of the pilot bins has been converted to accept dog waste. These compartments are labelled with stickers and should only be used to dispose of dog waste.
A pilot bin can be found near each of the following locations:
- 1989 Queen St. E.
- 125 Homewood Ave.
- 10 Niagara St. (three bins)
- 45 Dunfield Ave.
- 55 Rosehill Ave.
- 88 Broadway Ave.
- 150 Kilgour Rd.
- Lakeshore Blvd E. & Northern Dancer Blvd.
In a news release, Mayor John Tory encourages city residents to use the new bins when they go out with their four-legged friends. And he underlines that this type of initiative “is a great example of how our City is always looking for innovative ways to make it easier for our residents”, while contributing to the cleanliness of urban streets.
The pilot is a response to field observations and waste audits showing a steady increase in dog waste disposal in litter bins. A spring 2020 audit identified 45 per cent of waste (by weight) in street litter bins as organic material, and 99 per cent of that organic material as dog waste. The goal of the pilot is to see if dog waste collection in street litter bins is feasible and can help the City divert more organic material from landfill.
If the first phase of the pilot is successful, the initiative will expand to 30 bins for an additional three months and then to 100 bins for another six months.
For street litter bins where there is not a compartment for dog waste, the city is asking residents to dispose of it in the garbage or take it home and put it in their green bin. Dog waste should never be put in the recycling. Any bag can be used for dog waste; it does not have to be compostable.
People can learn more about the disposal of organic waste at https://www.toronto.ca/services-payments/recycling-organics-garbage/houses/what-goes-in-my-green-bin/. ■
