“Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.” — William Morris, English textile Designer
They came from all points of Bowen Island. They came to discard, to throw away, to purge and get rid of household items that are no longer serving a purpose.
Mattresses, stoves, fridges, dishwashers, patio furniture, bicycles, barbecues. Soiled, spoiled stuff. Damaged detritus. Stuff that that no longer works.
Dave McIntosh of Bowen Waste Services says that eight staff over two shifts serviced approximately 500 vehicles that generated 30 tonnes of waste on Saturday.
The waste collection days on Bowen are enormously popular and necessary. Everhard van Lidth de Jeude, an islander of many years, says, “This saves me going to town. This saves on ferry costs. This saves on gas. It is a wonderful thing.”
“We’ve been doing these waste days for over 20 years,” McIntosh says. “Up until six years ago there were two per year. Now for the last six years, there are three per year.”
Things began to shift somewhat last fall when negotiations between Bowen Waste Services and the municipality took place in terms of redefining what Bowen Waste would do with recycling and waste management.
“It was never discussed that the waste days might disappear until about January of this year when council decided that the waste days would be cancelled. After that I fought hard to keep at least the paint and hazardous waste disposal service. But a month or so later council decided to reverse their decision on the free waste days so they are maintained,” says McIntosh.
“We were told in many meetings that we had better think about doing something else,” says Bowen Waste partner Louise McIntosh. “People don’t have garbage anymore.”
At Saturday’s event, cars lined up from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. to take advantage of the chance to discard damaged and useless items. The wait time varied from 40 minutes to over an hour.
Yet, a random sampling of drivers displayed patience and gratitude for the opportunity to rid their homes and sheds of unwanted junk.
Islanders Lorna Lewis and Barb Rendell approached the day by first going to the library. They sat in the shady comfort of their cars, waiting their turn and enjoying a good read.
Others had music or radios playing. Friends or partners had crossword and Sudoko puzzles on the go. What they all had in common was patience and good humour.
“They would have to wait a lot longer and pay a lot more if they lined up at the North Vancouver Transfer Station,” says Dave McIntosh.
A few ideas were tossed about as I went from car to car, discussing garbage collection and wait times on these days.
One passenger suggested that each person in the line provide their phone number and when their turn was 20 minutes away, someone from the collection crew could text them.
Another rider suggested that residents be assigned a time for their particular neighbourhood.
For example, if you live in Hood Point, you could bring your refuse down between 10 a.m. and noon. However, the system that is in place now seems to work for most, and after 20 years Bowen Waste management may not be inclined to tamper with it.
Cheryl Evans is one of many satisfied customers.
“We love it,” she says. “We are so glad Dave is doing this. It is fantastic. It helps us all get rid of things properly.”
Currently, there is no cost for residents to throw away their stoves and fridges. The cost to provide the service is built into the yearly contract signed between the municipality and Bowen Waste Services.
Although Coun. Tim Rhodes agrees the service is essential on Bowen, he feels that a surcharge of $20 per vehicle would go a long way to cover the cost of the day-long pick up and disposal.
The fact that the service is free to residents may change moving forward.
“Five hundred vehicles for 1,500 or 2,000 households maybe suggests it should be user paid,” Rhodes says. “ I think with the hazardous waste, it’s a good idea for that one to be free because you don’t want anyone to get in the way of that being dealt with properly.”
At this point, the cost to each taxpayer for the service of waste disposal is $3.75 a day or $13.66 a year.
This is less than the cost of a ferry trip across to town and certainly less than the charges at any transfer station. It would cost someone approximately $50 to drive to and from the North Shore transfer Station plus four to six hours of time.
McIntosh is determined to keep the service affordable for islanders.
“Bowen Island has the best recycling and waste removal of any of the 50 communities between Metro Vancouver and Chilliwack. We have the best services for the best price,” he says.
After the deluge, Bowen Waste Management takes the eight containers of rubbish holding 30 tonnes of waste to the North Vancouver Transfer Station.
The metals go to a place where they can be recycled. The mattresses have a specific designated spot as well.
“There are various aspects of recycling that are part of the free waste day,” McIntosh says.
“It is a well used service and people love it.”
