Eight hundred Red Deerians will be polled over the next few weeks to find out what they think of the city’s five-garbage bag limit, kitchen waste collection and drinking water quality.
The City of Red Deer hired Edmonton-based Banister Research and Consulting to conduct its annual telephone survey on how contractors are doing when it comes to waste management. This year, the scope of the survey has increased to include water, wastewater and storm drainage, as well as some Environmental Services conservation initiatives.
“It will give us an indication of how well our contractors are performing and whether they’re concerned about services,” Environmental Services manager Tom Warder said.
Plus, respondents are asked about conservation initiatives that the city is already involved in, such as the Kick it the Curb event where people can leave household goods out for anyone to pick up for free.
“How can we make those programs better?” said Warder.
And the annual survey also questions what people think about the five-bag limit. It will be part of discussions within the new Waste Management Master Plan that will get underway early in the new year.
“We think we probably want to reduce the bag limit, but we would want to consult with people since it affects 30,000 households,” said Warder.
People are also being asked whether they compost household waste and if they’d be interested in participating in a kitchen compost program.
Sylvan Lake recently approved permanent kitchen waste collection after a successful seven-month pilot project. It will get underway next spring when yard waste pickup renews.
Red Deer respondents are also being surveyed on water taste, smell and colour.
The telephone survey is expected to wrap up in early December. A report will then be given to city administration. City council would receive information compiled from the survey when specific actions are called for.
ltester@www.reddeeradvocate.com