City of Windsor clarifies funding of green bin program amid public confusion

Windsor-Essex officials are speaking out, clarifying misconceptions about the green bin program. CTV Windsor’s Chris Campbell has the details.

The City of Windsor says residents will not face a new or additional charge on their 2026 property tax bills to pay for the rollout of the provincially mandated Green Bin Program, pushing back against what it describes as inaccurate information circulating on social media.

In a media release issued Thursday, the city said it is not considering an added levy or standalone fee to recover the costs of implementing the organics program, including the purchase of new green bins.

According to the city, incremental program costs in 2026 — as well as the cost of the bins themselves — are proposed to be covered through available capital funding sources, in line with Windsor’s stated commitment to affordability.

The green bin program is required by the Province of Ontario and is being introduced across Windsor-Essex in phases. While overall costs are shared between the City of Windsor and the County of Essex through the Essex-Windsor Solid Waste Authority, the city noted that each municipality independently determines how it funds its share.

The clarification comes amid growing public discussion about the cost of the program, including a petition circulating online that questions green bin fees in some Essex County municipalities.

Petition starter and Essex County resident Carolyn Crankshaw said many residents believed the program would not result in a direct charge.

“Everybody was pretty much told that this was not going to be a cost to us. And then finding out later, three, almost four months after it was rolled out now, that we’re getting charged a fee and it’s going to be rolled into our property taxes,” she said.

Crankshaw said the $189 figure cited in the petition reflects a 15-month billing period, including the final months of 2025.

“And that $189 is because it’s for actually for 15 months. They’re billing for October, November, and December, and there’s still people to this day that don’t even have the bins, and they’re being charged for it,” Crankshaw said.

“Some people didn’t get the bins ‘til November or December, and they’re being charged the full amount. So, this is a kind of blindsided charge that nobody was even notified about, and there’s no opt out. It’s just very frustrating.”

She told CTV News that residents in rural communities should be given the option to opt out.

“I think the ability for residents to opt out would be important because of the fact that we’re in a rural area. We don’t have the same issues of rodents that the city has,” she said.

“So it’s important for residents to be able to use their own compost for their own garden instead of having to give it to the city, and then have to purchase it.”

Essex Mayor Sherry Bondy said part of the frustration stems from communication around the county portion of the program.

“The question is, whose job is it really to get this communications out about the green bin cost? It’s not the locals’ job, it’s not the employees of the small municipalities to get out this county tax,” she said.

Bondy said county council opted to show the green bin cost as a separate line item to make the expense clear to residents.

“County council did have the option of embedding it into taxes or putting it as a standalone line item… We really did want to be transparent and say, ‘this is how much the green bin is costing’ instead of just lumping it in everybody’s taxes,” she added.

She said the full cost was not known until the program had been operating long enough to project expenses.

“So the $189 is a high bill because it captures the 2025 program as well… Going forward, we’ve been told it’ll be around $150, which is a significant amount of money for people in the communities.”

Bondy said she is sympathetic to residents affected by the cost and has brought forward a notice of motion to Essex County Council seeking further clarification.

“We are sympathetic… I encourage residents to follow what is going on at the county… follow my notice of motion at the county on Feb. 4.”

The City of Windsor said claims suggesting Windsor residents will see a new charge related to the green bin program on their 2026 tax bills are not accurate.

Windsor city councillor Mark McKenzie said confusion has arisen because Windsor and Essex County municipalities fund waste services differently.

“There’s lots of confusion. And I think there’s confusion here because Essex County municipalities and the City of Windsor do things a little bit differently,” he said.

McKenzie said Windsor has always funded waste collection through the municipal tax levy and is not adding a standalone green bin fee.

“In Essex County, the green bin, the organics program, it’s being shown as a separate line item. In Windsor it’s not… there’s no standalone green bin fee being added to Windsor property tax bills,” McKenzie said.

He said Windsor worked to offset the cost of the program by aligning its rollout with changes to recycling responsibilities.

“It comes at a cost… but it wasn’t a significant increase over previous waste costs… we’re still presenting a zero per cent tax increase for this year,” he added.

McKenzie said failing to implement an organics program would result in far higher costs in the future.

“Maybe 10 to 15 years from now, we’d have to purchase or develop a new landfill, and that’s going to cost hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars,” he said.

The program is designed to divert food waste and organics from the Essex-Windsor Regional Landfill, which the city said is projected to reach capacity by 2040. According to the city, diverting organic waste can reduce household garbage by up to 40 per cent, lower greenhouse gas emissions, generate renewable energy, and produce nutrient-rich fertilizer.

In a statement, Mayor Drew Dilkens acknowledged confusion surrounding the rollout and funding of the program.

“While we cannot take responsibility for misinformation making the rounds, I am sorry that Windsor residents have been left questioning how the provincially mandated and important green bin program is rolling out and being funded in the City of Windsor,” he said.

“Let me be clear: No, Windsor is not adding a separate charge to tax bills to cover the cost of the program nor of the new bins themselves. In Windsor, we are recovering costs for the program through capital funding and will not be levying an additional charge.”

Dilkens said many Ontario cities have long-running programs that are successful in diverting organic waste from community landfills. Since rollout in Windsor in October of 2025, the results have been positive in the community.

“We’re working to divert waste from the landfill, extend its life, avoid the high costs of establishing a new landfill – which could be well over $600 million – and doing our part to reduce greenhouse gases,” he said.

“I encourage Windsorites to participate in the program to help make a difference today and for future generations.”

The city is encouraging residents to seek information from official City of Windsor channels and verified sources when questions arise about the green bin program.