Council this Week: Highlights from the May 22 County Council agenda - 20240522
Curbside collection changes, audited financial statements and more
County Council meetings are broadcast live at www.oxfordcounty.ca/livestream. To download the full agenda or view past recordings of council meetings, visit www.oxfordcounty.ca/council.
Next steps for curbside waste collection
Oxford County Council will be asked to approve a number of actions to prepare the County’s waste management program for upcoming legislated changes, including the start of a food and organic waste (green bin) program and the transfer of residential recycling collection from municipal governments to a new producer-led program. This includes:
- Negotiating contract extensions with Oxford County’s current waste collection service providers to bridge the timeframe when existing contracts expire (May 2025 to April 2027). These contracts are proposed to continue residential curbside collection services for garbage, large items and recyclables until December 31, 2025. A service change to collect and process non-eligible source recyclables is not covered under the new provincial recycling program starting January 1, 2026.
- Issuing requests for proposals to deliver future residential curbside collection services for garbage, large items, and non-eligible source recyclables, along with service enhancements to support a new green bin collection program.
- Negotiating a seven-year contract for processing organic waste collection, after which it is expected Oxford County will have established its own organics processing capabilities.
The recommendations in the report follow a six-week community engagement campaign in which Oxford County residents were asked for feedback on curbside waste collection. Key findings from that consultation showed:
- About 2/3 of surveyed residents set out one bag of garbage weekly.
- More than 70% of respondents throw organic waste, such as food scraps, into the garbage. In Oxford’s rural communities, 33% composted while 15% of urban residents composted.
- The main reason for disposing of organic waste in garbage was due to the lack of a municipal green bin program.
- More than half of the respondents supported a collection schedule of weekly organics pick-up and bi-weekly garbage collection, with a limit of two garbage bags.
- About 2/3 of respondents use municipal depots or transfer stations to dispose of brush, leaf and yard waste.
PW 2024-23 - Municipal Curbside Waste Collection Program | Survey results | Presentation
2023 Financial statements
Oxford County Council receives the 2023 Audited Financial Statements on May 22. The County’s financial statements show the County ended 2023 with an operating budget surplus of $1.76 million. The report includes an update on the County’s Long-Term Financial Sustainability Plan, which looks at a number of performance measures to assess financial condition, including financial sustainability, flexibility and vulnerability. Sustainability measures for 2023 reflect the County’s response to increased debt, capital expenditures and operating costs due to inflation.
Overall, the financial statements show the County is well positioned in the short and mid-term to meet its service and financial obligations, and that its strong liquidity position and moderate debt burden allow it to maintain strong financial performance and financial sustainability.
CS 2024-16 - 2023 Audited Financial Statements | Draft 2023 Consolidated Financial Statements
Other reports and presentations
- Delegation: Charges at Tillsonburg Transfer Station – Nicole Toth
- Public meeting and CP 2024-129: Application for Official Plan Amendment OP 23-13-7 – Harvest Ave Inc.
- Public meeting and PW 2024-22: Declaration of Surplus Land: 135 Main Street, Norwich
Questions or comments?
Council this Week previews the Oxford County Council meeting agenda for residents, community partners and employees. Please send your questions and comments to communications@oxfordcounty.ca