RDKB provides garbage and green bin collection services in the Boundary, click here for the calendar for your region: Christina Lake collection calendar, Grand Forks collection calendar, West Boundary collection calendar.

FAQs

The RDKB supports programs that reduce the amount of material buried in landfills. By making REUSE a part of our Kootenay/Boundary lifestyle, both to acquire and dispose of items, we can REDUCE waste and make our communities more livable.

Trash to Treasure Day
This one-day event is your chance to help reduce waste by giving away your used household items or claiming old treasures from your neighbours.
[Event link - latest Trash to Treasure Day]

How to Participate

1. Collect unwanted household items
2. Place them by the curb where treasure hunters can access them without disrupting traffic
3. Create a sign to let treasure hunters know that your items are up for grabs
4. Remove all your remaining items by 4 p.m.
   
   Download the poster.
   
   Download a FREE STUFF sign in PDF format.

The RDKB is a beautiful home for people and wildlife. To make sure it stays that way, we each need to take responsibility for managing our garbage so it doesn’t attract wildlife and cause harm.

The majority of bear/garbage interaction takes place in people’s back yards and carports between garbage collection days. This means we have to be aware of bears and other wildlife when handling and storing garbage, recycling and organic waste.

Why are there bears in my yard?
Bears are attracted by anything that smells to them like it could be edible. If we contain or eliminate items that cause odours we remove a wildlife attractant. You can minimize a bear’s access to your garbage by following a few basic guidelines:

●    Ensure your bins are bear resistant (see the WildsafeBC for tips)
●    Store your garbage/green bin/recycling in a secure area – a shed, enclosed garage or basement
●    Put out your garbage/green bin/recycling only on the morning of collection
●    Use a liner or rinse your green bin/blue box after each use 
 

How can I keep bears away from my compost?
If your compost pile isn’t properly aerated and isn’t getting enough oxygen, it will decompose anaerobically. Anaerobic decomposition produces methane which is both a Greenhouse Gas (GHG) and a bear-attracting gas. 

Use your curbside green bin collection service (Grand Forks/Christina Lake) for items like dairy, meat and sugars. Smelly items such as cooked leftovers are very attractive to passing scavengers.

Design your compost bin right. Ensure it is has adequate ventilation and can drain excess moisture. Many black plastic composters retain too much moisture, which can cause the pile to ‘go anaerobic.’

What else can I do to be bear aware? 
Visit WildsafeBC for more information about how to reduce human-wildlife conflict, and make your yard or home less attractive to black bears or other wild (or domestic) scavengers. 

Learn more about what can go into your Green Bin, how to dispose of food waste, build your own composting bin, and more!

Food Scraps Collection
The Boundary region is the first rural area in the B.C. Interior to provide residents with a waste diversion program targeting food scraps. This program targets organic material (anything that was once a plant or animal) and diverts it to our composting program.

How does the food scraps collection program work?
Residents are provided a Kitchen Bucket and a Green Bin. The RDKB also supplies each home with a sample pack of paper bucket liners. These may be useful to help keep the bucket clean. Additional bags can be purchased at local hardware/grocery stores. 

Fill the Kitchen Bucket with the proper materials and dump it into your Green Bin when full. Each week, the Green Bin will be collected. 

What can I put in my Green Bin?
●    Baked goods like breads, cookies
●    Cheese rinds, mouldy cheese
●    Candy
●    Leftover snacks
●    Muffin/cupcake papers
●    Coffee, including filters
●    Tea bags or loose tea
●    Sauces and gravy
●    Fish bones, skins, guts
●    Meat, bones, skin, fat
●    Rotten fruits and vegetables
●    Rinds and peelings
●    Rice and pasta
●    Eggs and egg shells
●    Lobster, oyster/clam shells
●    Fruit pits, seeds and shells 
●    Seed/Nut shells: peanuts, sunflower
●    Tree nuts
●    Paper hand towels
●    Soiled, waxed or oily paper
●    Biodegradable clamshell containers, pizza boxes
●    Wet newspaper
●    Houseplants, including small amounts of soil
●    Holiday Fruitcake
●    Paper Plates
●    Wilted flower bouquets

Must be Contained in a Bag/Box:
●    Kitty litter
●    Bird/hamster cage shavings
●    Pet waste
●    Kleenex/facial tissues

What is not allowed in my Green Bin?
●    Plastic bags, even polymer ‘biodegradable plastics'
●    ‘Compostable plastic’ bags  (the composting process doesn’t break down these polymer materials)
●    Wood ash
●    Cigarette butts
●    Dryer lint and dryer sheets
●    Vacuum cleaner bags
●    Disposable coffee cups
●    Twist ties/rubber bands
●    Swiffer mop pads
●    Disposable face masks
●    Yard and garden waste 

Where should I store my Green Bin and Kitchen Bucket? 
Store the Green Bin securely in an area where animals can’t access it. It will contain the same material as would have been in your garbage, so it won’t smell any more or less. Please place your Green Bin at the curb where you would normally place your garbage/recycling after 7am on the day of collection. Do not put your garbage out the night before.

Should I put kitchen/Green Bin waste in a bag?
To reduce the incidence of goop sticking to the sides of the Green Bin, you can try using kraft paper bag liners. Plastic bags, even ‘biodegradable plastics,’ are not allowed. You can also try to restrict the amount of fluids you put in the bucket/bin. 

You can also:
●    Line your Kitchen Bucket with newspaper, paper bags or a hand towel
●    Try using only the Green Bin bag liner
●    Try using only the Kitchen Bucket liners and place these in the bagless Green Bin
●    Try using folded newspaper in the Kitchen Bucket
●    Try without any liners and rinse buckets and bins regularly

What are some other Green Bin tips? 
The RDKB is trying to reduce the amount of food waste that is buried at the landfills. Take a look at the infographic to see how you can help.

Questions about Green Bins and food scraps?
Check out the Green Bin User Guide or contact:

RDKB: 1.800.355.7352
City of Grand Forks: 250.442.8266
Alpine Disposal: 1.888.791.1190

There are many great ideas about how to build your own compost bin to be found online, as well as how-to and DIY videos on Youtube, pins on Pinterest or try one of these links:

• woodworkersworkshop.com
• https://backyardgrowers.com/23-ingenious-diy-compost-bin-ideas/
• https://homesteading.com/your-ultimate-guide-to-diy-compost-bins-for-homesteading/
• https://www.diynetwork.com/how-to/outdoors/gardening/diy-wooden-compost-bins