Chilliwack (with files from Black Press) – When a good thing goes south, in a hurry.
On May 1, the City of Chilliwack started their new garbage collection program The city’s new curbside collection program with Environmental 360 Solutions.
Off the bat, there have been “significant challenges.”
The city announced on May 15 that they would start fining the company, as complaints were racking up in a hurry about late or no collections. The social media backlash spilled over to many angry emails to City Hall. From the City: ” the contractor is expected to fulfill their obligations under the contract, and the city will be issuing fines to the contractor for missed collections, as per their agreement.”
Chilliwack City Councilor and 2026 Mayoral Candidate Jason Lum posted a statement to social media on May 19:
“I want residents to know that I’ve heard your frustrations loud and clear regarding the ongoing missed garbage, recycling, and compost pickups since the transition to the City’s new waste collection contractor.
I fully understand that for many households — my own home and neighbourhood included — this has gone far beyond simple “transition issues.” Many residents have experienced repeated missed collections over multiple weeks despite reporting them through the proper channels. I am not going to make excuses for that. It is not acceptable.
Council has tasked staff and the contractor with finding solutions and resolving these issues, full stop. There will be time to debrief what went wrong and why, but right now the priority is getting people’s curbside materials picked up as quickly as possible and restoring reliable service.
I have impressed upon staff and the contractor how critical it is that these issues are resolved quickly and that service levels return to the expectations residents have. I understand mistakes can happen and transitions can be difficult, but the citizens of Chilliwack have been more than patient.
Today, staff outlined several actions the contractor has committed to, including bringing on additional trucks and staffing resources. Council has also directed staff to secure additional equipment, at the contractor’s expense, to help address the backlog of missed pickups.
We will be monitoring this situation daily, and I strongly encourage residents who continue to experience missed collections to report them so outstanding issues can be tracked and addressed.
These are not the types of posts I enjoy writing, but I’d rather address it up front instead of a template email response. Accountability matters. I can do better. We can do better. We will do better. Thank you for your patience.”
