Blue bin showdown in York Region hits breaking point with mayors threatening to scrap new recycling deal

Mayors of the Northern Six Municipalities say they have had enough and are demanding smaller blue bins for residents.

If you’ve been trying to follow the battle over York Region’s new recycling system, the fight took another turn this week, and the mayors of the region’s northern communities say they’ve had enough.

The mayors of the Northern Six (N6) municipalities released a strongly worded joint statement after a meeting with Ontario’s environment minister, along with executives from Circular Materials and GFL, earlier this week and their message is clear: residents need smaller blue bin options, and they need answers now.

The mayors say they’ve spent the past week pushing Circular Materials — the company taking over recycling collection on Jan. 1 as part of Ontario’s new producer-led system — to offer different bin sizes, emphasizing one size does not fit all.

They argue the 95-gallon bins being delivered are too big and too heavy for many households, especially seniors and people with mobility issues. They also say some homes, walk-up apartments and single-car garages simply don’t have room to store them.

Aurora Mayor Tom Mrakas says the province has already agreed smaller bins should be offered, a position he says was confirmed by both the premier and the environment minister over the weekend.

Environment Minister Todd McCarthy echoed that in a written statement, saying the province is working to ensure appropriately sized bins “that meet residents’ unique needs” will be offered.

But Circular Materials still hasn’t committed to making those smaller sizes available for N6 residents.

“This is particularly concerning,” the mayors wrote, pointing out that other municipalities in the GTA have kept their existing box sizes and weekly pickup schedules under the same provincial recycling rules. Meanwhile, N6 communities are being moved not just to larger bins, but also away from a weekly pickup schedule to bi-weekly.

Georgina Mayor Margaret Quirk raised similar concerns in recent days, noting municipalities weren’t told until late August the program would involve oversized carts and less frequent collection. She says residents deserve more transparency, especially since the decision to purchase the large bins was made months earlier.

The mayors also accuse Circular Materials of ignoring municipal input through the entire rollout.

“To be clear: Circular Materials has dictated the terms of this program since its inception and has ignored input from municipal staff throughout the past year. N6 municipalities were never consulted on the size of the new bins or the changes to collection schedules before the rollout began earlier this fall,” the joint statement reads.

Circular Materials says it plans to discuss bin sizes at a board meeting later this week.

“We’re evaluating options right now, and we appreciate communities’ patience while we work toward identifying a solution that meets residents’ needs,” said Allen Langdon, CEO of Circular Materials, in an interview with CTV News on Tuesday.

But the mayors say patience is running out.

If the board doesn’t commit to smaller bins right away, they plan to ask the province to scrap Circular Materials’ contract altogether and return control of recycling to municipalities, including maintaining the current system and service levels.

“[We} will not stop advocating for fair, flexible, and responsive recycling options for all N6 communities,” the mayor’s statement finished.

The new program is set to take effect in the new year.

The N6 consists of Aurora, East Gwillimbury, Georgina, King, Newmarket, and Stouffville.