The City of Ottawa is expanding its three-stream waste collection in Ottawa parks, separating garbage, compost and recycling. The bins have been installed in various parks across the city over the past several years as part of a pilot project to reduce the amount of waste going to the landfill. The project will now be expanding to 48 new parks. “It just makes it cleaner for everyone and it’s for the community, so help each other out. Keep it clean for everybody,” said resident Emma Lebrun. This three-stream installation is new to Bearbrook Park in Blackburn Hamlet. “I think with this park in particular, it is very busy. It’s the only park in my ward that actually has a pool. It’s between two schools. People will come and picnic here. We’ve got a play structure, a ball diamond, you name it, we’ve got it,” said Orléans West-Innes Coun. Laura Dudas. Rebecca Saaltink brings her 18-month-old daughter to Bearbrook Park often and says these divided bins will help greatly. “I know I don’t leave trash in the park, but I certainly have to stuff a lot in my stroller, so I will definitely be using them to put some of our trash away,” she said. Dudas says the park was an easy choice because it’s well used and the bins will provide a more environmentally friendly place for people to get rid of their waste. “I’m a huge fan of this program. I’ve really wanted to see it expanded over many years. I know that by 2029, the city is looking to include 350 parks and green spaces with the three stream receptacles,” Dudas said. “I think it’s the right move in the right direction to get more waste out of our system and into the places it belongs.”
