Saskatoon council votes to study trash user fees

Seeks to divert from landfill

City council endorsed moving ahead with a study on paying for trash collection through user fees rather than property taxes.

The motion passed 8-2 at city council’s Monday meeting.

Coun. Ann Iwanchuk spoke against the idea, saying she objects to moving a core service like trash collection to a user-pay system where people’s ability to pay will determine the extent of service they receive.

Moving waste services to a utility model is aimed at diverting more material from the landfill by giving people financial incentive to throw out less trash.

“I think there are many other things that could be looked at,” Iwanchuk said.

City hall administration will move forward with a study and a report is expected back in August.

Only Coun. Randy Donauer voted with Iwanchuk against the study.

Iwanchuk expressed concern that moving to a userpay system could penalize large families who generate more trash.

She suggested an expanded organic waste collection system could help address the amount of waste going to the dump.

Iwanchuk acknowledged there remain challenges with making an organic waste program mandatory because some yards are not large enough to accommodate three bins.

Waste and recycling bins are already mandatory.

The City of Saskatoon’s acting general manager of corporate performance, Jeff Jorgenson, addressed concerns in the community that the user fees would be added to property taxes. Jorgenson said any new model would help lower property taxes.

“We won’t be doubling up anyone,” he said.

Compared to other cities, only Regina has a worse rate of diverting waste from the landfill.

In 2016, Saskatoon diverted just 21.8 per cent of material from the landfill, well short of the city’s goal of diverting 70 per cent of material from the landfill by 2023.

“If we don’t do something different now, we hand it down to future councils and residents,” Mayor Charlie Clark said.