Coquitlam residents living at six multi-family complexes are testing out a city pilot program for recycling food scraps.
The three-month disposal initiative started last month at a highrise, two condo buildings, two apartment blocks and a row-house complex.
Verne Kucy, Coquitlam's acting manager of environmental services, said the units were chosen based on their type, location and serviceability by the city's collection contractor, Smithrite. The names of the buildings were not disclosed.
Kucy said the food waste is dumped at Fraser Richmond Soil and Fibre, an organics processing facility.
Participating residents were educated on the food recycling program before it started on July 4 and were given a kitchen catcher, Bag to Earth bins and brochures.
Kucy said should the $8,500 pilot program be successful, the city may expand it to other multi-family housing complexes in Coquitlam.
Information about the pilot program was released last week as part of the minutes for the sustainability and environmental committee, which met in late June.
The city's green can program for single-family homes started in September 2010, allowing homeowners to mix their kitchen left-overs with grass clippings. That came after a six-month pilot program involving 500 homes in the New Horizons sub-division to see if bears would be drawn to the food/yard waste cans.
Both Port Coquitlam and Port Moody have been collecting food scraps at multi-family homes for at least two years. Region-wide, Metro Vancouver estimates close to 200,000 tonnes of food is thrown out with other household garbage each year.
