The Cowichan Valley Regional District and PAN Disposal have reached an agreement on service during the transition to a new regional three-stream curbside collection in all areas of the CVRD.
PAN currently provides garbage and food waste collection in Cobble Hill, Cowichan Bay, Mill Bay and Shawnigan Lake, and will continue to do so until the CVRD’s new three-stream service starts in June 2025.
The regional district says its new service will include eligible households in all nine electoral areas, and the Malahat First Nation with alternating, bi-weekly recycling and garbage collection, weekly organics collection, and monthly glass collection.
The CVRD is presently working out the final details and says information on delivery of bear-resistant totes, kitchen waste catchers, and glass collection bins should be available in the spring.
Ilse Sarady, Senior Manager of CVRD Recycling and Solid Waste Management, says PAN has “filled a much-needed service gap in the south end for years,” and the regional district wants to recognize its efforts and supported of regional waste diversion objectives.
Sarady says the CVRD can provide curbside services at cost to residents and provincial grant funding allows them to get bear-resistant organics totes for all customers.
During the transition period to the new service the CVRD and PAN will collaborate on communication and operational strategies to minimize confusion and service disruption for existing PAN customers.
Andrea Davis, co-owner of PAN, says it’s been a challenge to adjust to the concept of a new government-mandated service, but they have reached an understanding with the CVRD team and are optimistic the new three-stream service will help continue the work of reducing the region’s landfill waste.
The three-stream service is an integral part of the CVRD’s Board and Ministry of Environment approved Solid Waste Management Plan.
The CVRD’s landfill was deemed to be full in the late 1990s and a new landfill site could not be found nearby.
Garbage from the CVRD is now exported to a landfill in Washington State.
