County news release on user pay
Full user pay program puts power in your hands
Simcoe County news release February 25, 2011
The more you divert, the more you reduce, the more you save.
While this is the basic principal behind a full user pay system—less waste means more money in your
pocket—the program signals a shift in attitude and behaviour.
?Residents look to County Council to make informed decisions with the County’s best interest in mind,?
Simcoe County Warden Cal Patterson said. ?Generally, people don’t like change, but the change to a
full user pay system is truly a change for the better. This decision is best for the future of Simcoe
County and its residents.?
A full user pay system is structured to be more equitable as residents pay for the garbage they are
actually producing. This will replace the current system, where residents who actively divert waste and
generate smaller quantities of garbage, are in effect subsidizing those who produce more garbage.
As you may be aware, there has always been a waste levy on the municipal tax bill for single family
homes. It is listed separately in some municipalities, while in others it is blended into the final residential
tax bill, but it is there. These costs are related to curbside collection and processing of residential
garbage, blue box, green bin programs, as well as any special collections such as leaf and yard waste
and Christmas tree pick up.
On the implementation of full user pay, the costs for the collection and processing of garbage are
removed. The costs for blue box, organics and special collections will remain on the waste levy. In
general, the costs to operate the former system and the new system are equal. The amount the County
collects to fund the new system, through the waste levy and the sale of new bag tags, is intended to be
equivalent.
?This system puts the resident in control of their own waste management expenses,? County Councillor
Ray Millar said. ?If you choose to maximize diversion, and there are many ways to accomplish this —
from being a smarter consumer to being a stringent user of the County’s organics program — the less
you will have to pay.?
If a resident becomes aware of the impact of their choices as a consumer, added Ray Millar, the more
they will be motivated to reduce waste prior to disposal.
Simcoe County has made tremendous progress, having been formally recognized as being ranked 2
nd
in the entire Province for waste diversion, because of the tremendous participation and support of our
residents. This new system empowers residents to take it to the next level. User pay systems are not
new in Ontario and we therefore have the evidence to show that such systems increase diversion and
reduce waste. 2 | County of Simcoe Release
The full user pay system means the existing waste levy charged back to municipalities is decreased
and residents purchase tags or special bags according to the amount of waste for which they want to
dispose. Changing over to this new system is planned for implementation in summer 2012. County
Council’s Waste Management Subcommittee will be working on the mechanics of implementing the
new system and will be reporting back to Corporate Services Committee on their recommendations in
coming months.
County Council has acted on the recommendations of the Solid Waste Management Strategy and
feedback from the public through the public consultation process. The County of Simcoe will continue to
keep residents and the media informed on this Strategy, its process and the implementation of the new
system as this program is developed before its implementation in 2012.
County of Simcoe is composed of sixteen member municipalities and provides crucial public services to
County residents in addition to providing paramedic and social services to the separated cities of Barrie
and Orillia. Visit our website at simcoe.ca.
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