WATERLOO REGION - With garbage collection cuts looming, the region is preparing to help residents navigate the new rules.

But there are several issues still to deal with.

Politicians spent about 30 minutes at a committee meeting Tuesday asking several questions, including how illegal dumping and scavenging will be dealt with, as well as how homes with diapers can cope.

A medical exemption form won't be available online for a few weeks and bag tags are not yet available for purchase at several sites. The medical exemption is for people with conditions that produce additional garbage.

Jon Arsenault, waste management director, said the region will be ready to implement the program despite outstanding issues.

Information will go out and other loose ends will be tied up in coming weeks.

"It's all happening in the next month. We're ready to go," he said. "We've got information starting to be passed out quite aggressively this week to residents . All the information is there and it'll be ready to go.

"We'll be in good shape."

March 6 is the beginning of standardized collection regionwide and the first year of garbage cuts. Under the new rules, trash will be collected bi-weekly (every other week), while green bins and recycling will be collected every week. Four trash bags will be accepted initially, but that's expected to drop to two.

Residents will also receive bi-weekly yard waste collection from April to November, and bi-weekly appliance and bulky item pickup for three items.

After an introduction period, residents will be charged for going above the trash bag limit.

To help residents adjust in the first month of collection service, there will be staff in neighbourhoods to help with issue review and resolution and citizen education.

Coun. Geoff Lorentz and several other councillors asked staff to seek permission from the province to have a set fine for illegal dumping to deter offenders.

He said some residents angry about bi-weekly collection may dump their trash.

"We should be ready for that," Lorentz said. "Having the same old, same old, at least for the beginning, I don't think is going to work very well."

Coun. Sean Strickland said it's important to be transparent to the public about what the penalties are.

"As a regional council and as a corporation, we're saying this is what the fine's going to be and public, here you go, so you know what the fines are going to be and it's clear up front," he said. "I think that's good public policy."

Under current and future rules, the maximum fine for illegal dumping is $5,000.

It takes up to three months for the province to process an application that would allow the region to issue tickets for a set fine, said regional solicitor Debra Arnold.

Without the set fine approval, summons will be issued to offenders and they will be required to attend Provincial Offences court where a justice will be responsible for determining the fine or dealing with the offence otherwise.

That process will also continue to be used after set fine approval is received, depending on the nature of the offence.

Councillors also questioned who will deal with dumping - regional bylaw officials or municipal bylaw officials.

"Because our bylaw enforcement operations are different scope between the municipality and the region, we haven't always been able to deal with it as efficiently as we'd like to in the downtown," said Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanovic.

Regional staff will discuss the issue with municipal staff.

Township of Woolwich Mayor Sandy Shantz asked if there is any hope some small businesses can receive collection.

"Would we consider providing service to small businesses if they could match the requirements of residential in terms of the amount of waste that is at the curb," she said.

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Thomas Schmidt, commissioner of transportation and environmental services, said staff can look into it, but it's unlikely.

"I think we tried to provide a fair approach to providing service across the whole region," he said.

What residents should know:

• Will collection days change?

In the townships, yes. The majority of city residents will see no change, but some will. Check the waste collection calendars being distributed this week for collection days.

• When does the new system start?

Kitchener, North Dumfries, Wellesley, Wilmot and Woolwich will have garbage collection the week of March 6, including green bin and blue box. Cambridge and Waterloo will not have trash collected that week, just green bin and blue box.

• What are the collection limits?

Residents can put out four bags/cans of garbage and three bulky items bi-weekly. Three- to six-unit buildings have a 10 bag/can limit and a 10 bulky item limit.

• Where can bag tags be purchased?

Sheets of five bag tags are supposed to be available for purchase for $10 at more than 50 sites across the region including regional libraries, waste sites, bus terminals, community centres and recreation complexes. The region's waste website will be updated in coming weeks as the tags are available. They will also be available online at the region's website the first week of February.

• What about households with medical needs that require additional garbage bags?

A medical exemption form will be available online mid-February. Eligible households will receive bag tags free of charge.

• What about new green bin service in the townships?

This week, green bin kits will be delivered to each home in the townships that currently does not receive green bin service.

For more information on waste changes go to: regionofwaterloo.ca/en/aboutTheEnvironment/waste-management.asp.