Dear Editor,
The new changes to the garbage pickup service is negatively affecting dog owners who, now, cannot place their dog’s droppings into the garbage bin.
Dog owners have been told to use a private service to remove their dog’s waste, but these services cost roughly $30 a month. That is $360 a year. Where are dog owners supposed to find this extra cash? They don’t possess any magical powers which allow them to pluck money from the trees.
Dog owners already pay so much for food, vet bills, doggy day care centers, and dog licenses. Is the city trying to discourage people from owning dogs?
The new changes also see a drop in how often garbage gets picked up. Instead of happening weekly, garbage pickup will now only occur twice a month. So, does this mean our annual rates for garbage collection will go down?
We are receiving less service, so why should we pay the same? I know that governments like to have it both ways, so I understand if the rates don’t change, but the previous guidelines under the old garbage service worked well for so long. Why did the city change what was not broken?
Vishan Hettiarachchi
Richmond
Editor’s note: The city claims money saved with bi-weekly pickup has largely been offset by weekly organics collection. The city has also reported losses on its MMBC blue box recycling contract.
