‘Not as bad as snowfall-related delays,’ says Ridge Meadows Recycling after recycling pickup snags

Maple Ridge residents saw delays in recycle pickup this week due to the Ridge Meadows Recycling Society’s staff shortage caused by rise in COVID-19 cases. However, these snags aren’t as bad as the ones during the snowfall in the past couple of months, says the society.

”This week’s recycling pickup delays were definitely not as bad as the ones that occurred when snowfalls stopped the trucks from going out on the Thursday routes two weeks in a row (Dec. 30 and Jan. 6) — everyone already had so much volume from Christmas, and then to have no pickup for two weeks; You start to realize the amount of volume from two weeks of recycling just from one household! Luckily, we got through those challenges,” said Leanne Koehn of the society, adding that they were confident they would get out from under these latest delays as well, through resident cooperation.

The society updated residents that they might not be able to complete all the curbside pickup routes due to delays caused by staff shortage as a result of the pandemic.

“As with many businesses and organizations, COVID has brought its own set of challenges. We are following all safety guidelines, including asking employees to stay home if they are feeling unwell and do the online Self-Assessment for Covid symptoms,” she said.

The society also notified residents that if recycling boxes and bags are not picked up by 6 p.m., residents would either have to hold onto them until the following week, or bring them to the Maple Ridge Recycling Depot, located at 10092 236th Street off River Road.

“We post all changes and updates on our website and social media and are able to reach many residents directly through our mailing list to update them on any changes that affect their recycling pickup day. If someone is interested in joining the mailing list for updates on recycling services and programs, there is a link on our website at www.rmrecycling.org,” said Koehn.

Last year, the society had also faced shortages for their yellow bags, and glass and Styrofoam recycling was halted due to flooding in the province. The yellow bag shortage was shortly resolved and the glass and Styrofoam recycling was also restarted soon after the floods.

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