There has been a lengthy discussion on Cochrane's Rants and Raves Facebook page after a resident noticed someone opening their garbage and taking a peek.

Fabrizio Bertolo, Waste and Recycling Manger for the Town of Cochrane, says it is all about educating the public.

Beginning in 2018, the City of Calgary will no longer be accepting recyclable items in landfills and compostable items will follow suit. "One of the reasons we are doing this and why we need to divert our recyclables and organics from the landfill is because if we don't do that we are all going to pay the price. The landfills in Calgary are going to increase their ticket fees if they find recyclables or organics in our garbage and we don't want these fees to be paid for by our residents in Cochrane."

Bertolo says if they find items that could have been diverted they are simply leaving a note behind. "We are leaving notes saying there are organics or recyclables in your garbage bin but we are picking them all up. We aren't leaving them behind. If they aren't picked up it is because of another reason."

The educational tool is being utilized to help the town reach their 80% diversion goal. In May, the diversion rate was 65% but with summer yard waste they have definitely seen an increase. 

Bertolo says residents do not need to be concerned that they are looking at private items in your trash. "We are just checking whether there is raw material in your garbage bin just because we have a common goal for the community."

Whether or not residents will be mandated to use clear bags in the future, remains an unknown at this time. "It is a tool other municipalities are doing but we haven't talked about that yet; we have just implemented organics so we want that to work first of all. We will see in the future what else we need to put in place to get to our 80% diversion rate. It could be a clear bag or every second week garbage collection but all those decisions will be made by council at the end of the day."

Bertolo wants to stress that garbage is still being collected and fines are not being issued. If you have concerns feel free to call the hotline 403-851-2277 or check out their information page here which will teach you the ins and outs of proper diversion. 

Residents will see service for compostable pick up change second week of October when bi-weekly pick up will begin.