Get ready for a waste collection crackdown in Chatham-Kent.
Decals will be placed on toter carts and other waste items at the curb that don't comply with collection rules to make the program cleaner and more efficient.
The warning decals start February 6 and the warning period ends at the end of February. The crackdown and the enforcement will then begin in March.
Waste and Recycling Services Manager Rick Kucera says the intent is to remind residents of the collection rules, but if there are repeat violators, waste will not be picked up.
“It is not fair to the majority of residents who abide by the regulations and keep the community clean and safe if we have some who habitually ignore them and still have their non-compliant waste collected," he says.
Kucera says if trash is left behind, it's the residents' responsibility to dispose of it, adding the municipality won't collect it and charge the resident.
He points out an overflowing toter cart is more than the garbage limit of three bags and says violations slow down the collection process. Kucera adds that overloading carts allows waste to be accessible to animals and crows often resulting in litter.