9:00
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Dear Mr. Dupont,
I am writing on behalf of Cedar Court Housing Co-op (16 units) about the ‘pay-as-you-throw’ pilot described in the October 28 notice. As I understand it, starting December 1, each household will be allotted ten standard garbage lifts per month at no charge; additional lifts will be billed at $3.25 each. Organics and recycling remain free. The notice also states that bins are now RFID-tagged to the unit, contamination incurs a $25 penalty per occurrence, and any exception request must be filed online two business days in advance. November is a grace period for education only.
In principle we support waste reduction. Our concern is how unit-linked counting behaves in a shared-infrastructure building. Cedar Court has a single chute per floor and a night cleaner who consolidates bags and wheels out whichever cart is nearest. Several households share childcare and swap chores, so bags do not reliably travel with a specific unit’s bin. Two residents receive home-care twice weekly; medical packaging not eligible for recycling accumulates unpredictably. One foster family currently hosts siblings for three weeks each term; they generate spikes that are impossible to forecast two days ahead. Under the pilot, a full cart moved by the cleaner could register as two lifts for Unit 3 because that tag happened to be on the cart at the time. Those misattributed lifts would then trigger overage fees and, if a neighbour mis-sorts, contamination penalties as well. For low-income renters without utility accounts, the quarterly credits described in the FAQ are contingent on paperwork that our co-op cannot submit on their behalf.
To keep the pilot fair while still driving diversion, may I propose: a building-level pool of lifts equal to the sum of unit allocations, viewable in a dashboard by the property manager; contamination ‘first strikes’ logged as warnings with photo evidence before charges apply; an optional schedule upload so moves by cleaners are recognized as operational, not household behaviour; and a modest increase in the grace period to 60 days for multi-unit sites only. In addition, a simple caregiver exemption (clinic note or signed declaration) would protect essential visits. Finally, one included bulky-item pickup per month would remove the incentive to hide items in bags.
We are ready to participate constructively. However, without pooling and recognition of shared handling, these charges risk punishing co-operative practices rather than wastefulness. I would appreciate a response this week so we can brief members before the December 1 start.
Sincerely,
Elena Moroz
Property Manager, Cedar Court
I am writing on behalf of Cedar Court Housing Co-op (16 units) about the ‘pay-as-you-throw’ pilot described in the October 28 notice. As I understand it, starting December 1, each household will be allotted ten standard garbage lifts per month at no charge; additional lifts will be billed at $3.25 each. Organics and recycling remain free. The notice also states that bins are now RFID-tagged to the unit, contamination incurs a $25 penalty per occurrence, and any exception request must be filed online two business days in advance. November is a grace period for education only.
In principle we support waste reduction. Our concern is how unit-linked counting behaves in a shared-infrastructure building. Cedar Court has a single chute per floor and a night cleaner who consolidates bags and wheels out whichever cart is nearest. Several households share childcare and swap chores, so bags do not reliably travel with a specific unit’s bin. Two residents receive home-care twice weekly; medical packaging not eligible for recycling accumulates unpredictably. One foster family currently hosts siblings for three weeks each term; they generate spikes that are impossible to forecast two days ahead. Under the pilot, a full cart moved by the cleaner could register as two lifts for Unit 3 because that tag happened to be on the cart at the time. Those misattributed lifts would then trigger overage fees and, if a neighbour mis-sorts, contamination penalties as well. For low-income renters without utility accounts, the quarterly credits described in the FAQ are contingent on paperwork that our co-op cannot submit on their behalf.
To keep the pilot fair while still driving diversion, may I propose: a building-level pool of lifts equal to the sum of unit allocations, viewable in a dashboard by the property manager; contamination ‘first strikes’ logged as warnings with photo evidence before charges apply; an optional schedule upload so moves by cleaners are recognized as operational, not household behaviour; and a modest increase in the grace period to 60 days for multi-unit sites only. In addition, a simple caregiver exemption (clinic note or signed declaration) would protect essential visits. Finally, one included bulky-item pickup per month would remove the incentive to hide items in bags.
We are ready to participate constructively. However, without pooling and recognition of shared handling, these charges risk punishing co-operative practices rather than wastefulness. I would appreciate a response this week so we can brief members before the December 1 start.
Sincerely,
Elena Moroz
Property Manager, Cedar Court
Choose the best option according to the information given in the message:
1. What is the main purpose of Elena’s message?
2. According to the notice, when do charges begin to apply?
3. Why might RFID unit-linked counting misrepresent actual household waste at Cedar Court?
4. In the sentence, “these charges risk punishing co-operative practices rather than wastefulness,” the phrase “these charges” most likely refers to …
5. As used in the email, the word “contingent” most nearly means …
6. Which option best describes the tone of Elena’s email?
Here is a response to the message. Complete the response by filling in the blanks. Select the best choice for each blank from the drop-down
Dear Ms. Moroz,
Thank you for 7..... Your note shows how unit-linked RFID counting 8.... in buildings with shared chutes and night cleaning. While the pilot formally 9.... after the November grace period, we are issuing updates for multi-unit sites: an optional building-level pool equal to the sum of unit allocations; first-occurrence contamination warnings with photo evidence; and a manager upload for cleaner schedules so operational moves are not misread as household behaviour. We will also accept caregiver exemptions and include one bulky-item pickup per month. These measures 10.... fairness while we continue to track diversion and costs. Our team can meet next week to configure your dashboard—please send the folio number and bin-tag IDs. Clearly, 11....: reduce waste without penalizing legitimate co-operative practices.
Respectfully,
Marc Dupont
Program Manager, Waste Services