AH to launch Waste Wizard 

By Chad Ingram

Algonquin
Highlands is preparing to launch the Waste Wizard, a digital app to
assist residents with waste disposal and recycling.

During
a Sept. 5 council meeting, Melissa Murray, the township’s environmental
co-ordinator, gave councillors a demonstration of the application,
which will be housed as an easily accessible web page on the Algonquin
Highlands website. As Murray explained, the link can be easily embedded
into the websites and social media pages of lake associations, local
businesses, etc. 

The
Waste Wizard allows residents to search items by name to find out how
to correctly dispose of them. For items that are not recyclable – black
plastics, for instance – the app recommends more sustainable
alternatives. For other items, clothing or furniture, for example, it
provides local locations of places that accept donations. The township
can customize the app to give residents certain instructions for certain
items. 

The
app also provides analytics for staffers. They can see what items are
being searched by residents, for example, which as public works director
Adam Thorn pointed out, could be useful for landfill planning. 

“It does provide a lot of information for staff and the [environment and stewardship] committee going forward,” Thorn said. 

Councillors were pleased with the application and its implications. 

“It’s all the information you could possibly want in one place,” said Mayor Carol Moffatt.
The township is planning an official launch for the near future. 

Algonquin
Highlands and Highlands East partnered on the purchase of the app, the
annual cost for which is about $3,000, or $1,500 each. Each township can
customize its application to suit its needs.