After yesterday's (October 17) extreme winds, you might find yourself missing your organics or recycling bin today.

If that's the case, there are some things you can do.

"The best option would be to take a look up and down either the alleyway or the street, wherever they set their carts out for collection, to see if they can find their cart," said Tracy Pagenhardt, Program Coordinator with Waste and Recycling at the City of Airdrie. "Each cart is assigned to that household, so they each have their own unique identifier, that serial number that's on there."

If you don't know what serial number your cart is supposed to have, you can call the City of Airdrie's Waste and Recycling Department to find out and track down your bin.

Pagenhardt also said you should take steps to make your cart more identifiable in case it gets misplaced.

"The best option is to take a Sharpie and write down your address on the cart itself. There is a white spot on both the green and the blue cart where you can write down your address, and that's an easy way to be able to find your cart."

If a neighbour's bin has blown onto your property, Pagenhardt said you can check to see if the address is written on it and return it.

"If there is no address on there or if you're not able to take the cart back to that house, certainly give us a call here at Waste and Recycling, and then we can track down who that cart belongs to."

Pagenhardt explained each bin is assigned to a specific address, and is registered to that household by the serial number. Every homeowner is responsible to care for the bin assigned to them. It's important to make sure you have the right bin at your house in case there is ever an issue that the City needs to resolve. There is also a replacement fee that must be paid if you need a new bin. Pagenhardt said the fee is a way to encourage ownership of the bins and make sure residents take good care of them.

 

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