Leamington residents will soon see changes in the way their waste will be collected.
Councillors voted on Tuesday night to award a new trash pickup contract to Miller Waste Systems and change trash pickup from weekly to biweekly starting in January 2027.
The start date for the biweekly collection will be two months after the Municipality begins green bin collection.
In the report presented to councillors, the switch would result in residents saving about $1.6-million over the course of the six-year contract, while keeping the weekly pickup would result in costs rising by 39 per cent.
Councillor Tim Wilkinson said he was willing to move forward with the plan, despite the hiccups that took place during the first phase of the green bin rollout.
"It's been great to hear the results coming out of this," said Wilkinson. "The impacts on our landfill, which are super important. I don't think people realize that the inspiration behind this is to lessen the impact on our landfills."
Mayor Hilda MacDonald said the foray into an organic waste program is long overdue in Leamington, as other communities across the province have been doing it for some time.
"Guelph has been doing it for 30 years, like shame on us," said MacDonald. "And when I look at the numbers, and I see how the City of Windsor has jumped on us, the rest of us should be darned embarrassed."
The mayor added that she understood that some residents may be resistant to trying something new, but that the future benefits outweighed the risks.
Leamington will join Tecumseh in the switch to biweekly trash pickup, with the latter starting in February 2027.
Complete information about collection in Leamington can be found on the Municipality's official website.
