by Rachel Everett-Fry, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Mitch Bloom has conducted an independent survey of the Waste Management in North Grenville. The survey was conducted between August 12-19, circulated via Facebook groups focused on North Grenville. 316 people completed the survey, with 186 leaving suggestions and comments. Over half of the respondents live in Kemptville, with the rest being scattered across North Grenville.
Mitch spent 30 years working for the government, and did PhD work involving econometrics. He has also been involved in the municipality, sitting on committees such as the Mayor’s Task Force on Affordable Housing. He explained, “I got to know the Mayor and the Councillors, and I thought, you know what? Everyone is trying to help out here. So I started doing this.” Mitch has been running independent online surveys for about a year and a half.
“I just think we have a great council, with a great sense of focus. If we can all do something to help out, it just makes North Grenville a better place. And my impression is that, in North Grenville, everybody wants to do something. You know, we’re just a wonderful, wonderful community.”
Of course, this is a survey with a small sample size, and voluntary surveys typically attract people who feel strongly about any particular issue. With these limitations in mind, however, the survey results do provide valuable insight as to how many North Grenville residents feel about our waste management systems. Mitch will be turning these preliminary findings into a more fulsome report to bring to council in the coming months.
Preliminary results show that over 70% of respondents rated the overall waste management system 7/10 or higher on a satisfaction scale.
There is also evidence of concern regarding the bi-weekly garbage pickup, particularly during the hot summer months. While almost half of the community rated their satisfaction with the bi-weekly system at an 8/10 or higher, those unhappy with the system feel strongly, with almost a quarter of respondents rating the bi-weekly system 1/10.
Residents are obviously quite pleased with the eco-friendly aspects of our Waste Management system, reporting very high degrees of support for the organic composting green bins. Almost 3/4 of respondents scored this system 8/10 or higher. Likewise, the community is enthusiastic about plastic and paper recycling programs, with almost 80% of respondents rating this service 8/10 or higher.
One very divisive issue is the complexity of the system: the average satisfaction score was 5/10, with 43% rating less than 5 and 48% rating above 5.
57% of respondents feel they are producing less garbage since the introduction of the green bin system, but 33% do not. Over half of the respondents felt they could possibly do more to reduce the garbage they produce.
35% of people felt they were spending less on garbage than they were prior to the recent changes, while those spending more were around 26% of respondents. The rest were either unsure, or believed they were spending about the same.
