Garbage tote prices increase in District of Squamish

District of Squamish residents will pay more for totes as well as for solid waste collection and landfill tipping fees.

At a meeting last month, council approved the solid waste fees increases. The increase in pricing for small, medium and large totes is as follows: Small tote fees have increased by 5 per cent, medium tote by 5.5 per cent, and a large tote by 5.3 per cent.

“Residential curbside collection fees proposed reflect the annual cost increases associated with the collection of the materials and the tipping fees at the organic material processing facility. The rates also reflect the costs associated with disposal of solid waste at the landfill. Small, medium and large totes experienced an approximately 5% increase in pricing from 2022,” says a District report.

The fees have also increased by an average of 5% for solid waste collection and 5% for landfill tipping, depending on the material. “Tipping fee increases reflect the ongoing costs of debt servicing for the Landfill Vertical Expansion in order to ensure the debt is settled before incurring new debt for the expansion,” said Rachel Boguski, media relations for the District.

“Solid waste collection fee increases reflect the rising costs of the totes as well as the increasing costs of managing materials that are diverted from the Landfill,” she said.