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Black bins on way to curbsides – Metro US

Black bins on way to curbsides

Calgarians will soon change the way they throw out their trash, as the city announced yesterday that black bins are on the way.

Following a nearly two-year pilot project involving six Calgary communities and 15,000 homes, the city will begin to roll out the black bins this fall.

“The pilot has been tremendously successful,” said Paula Magdich, project manager for the black bin program.

The bins will be distributed around Calgary at a rate of 20,000 per week, beginning in the southeast on Oct. 4.

Delivery to the northeast will begin in November, followed by distribution to the northwest in April and the southwest in June. Magdich said by June 30, 2011, the whole city will be equipped.

“Everything is so much cleaner … There’s a lot less flying around,” said Deer Run resident Sue Mitchell, who has had her bin since the pilot launched.

While the city will pay an up-front cost of around $14 million, Magdich said they will save about $1 million per year, as the current fleet of 60 two-operator garbage trucks will be reduced to one operator per vehicle.