Weekly Yard Waste Pickup Resuming

 As we look forward to Spring 2024, please note that weekly collection of yard waste has now begun (as of March 4). You can use either containers or bags. If using bags, use only brown kraft paper bags, which can be purchased from any grocery store, hardware store, and other retail locations. If you wish to use a reusable container, it must be open and rigid and labled with "yard waste" stickers which are available from any Peel Community Recycling Centre or by callling 905-791-9499. A container must weigh less than 20kg. Do not use one of the wheeled bins provided by Peel for garbage, recycling or organics.

Acceptable yard waste items include:

• leaves and grass rakings 
• tree trimmings and branches
• brush and hedge trimmings
• household and garden plants (minus the soil)

What Type of Fireworks Dislays Are Permitted in Mississauga?

Over the past year, Mississauga City Council has been debating when and where private and public fireworks display can and should be permitted within the City. This is a touchy subject because fireworks have become such an integral part of celebrating holidays such as Canada Day and Victoria Day in Canada. Also many people who come to Canada from other countries have holidays unique to their countries and cultures which involve setting off fireworks. City Council has taken these into consideration and has consulted with group representatives and industry experts to craft a by-law that can be applied and enacted across the City and its residents.

Overview

The Fireworks By-law regulates the sale and use of fireworks in Mississauga. Fireworks in Mississauga are currently permitted on private property until midnight on Victoria Day, Canada Day, Lunar New Year and Diwali. Fireworks are not permitted on a public street, park or road without a permit.

Frequently asked questions

• When are fireworks permitted?
• Fireworks on private property may be used without a permit only on Lunar New Year, Victoria Day, Canada Day and Diwali. Fireworks are currently permitted until midnight and only for the holiday, not the days before or after.
• To use fireworks on private property any other day of the year, residents must obtain a permit from Mississauga Fire and Emergency Services.
• What kinds of fireworks are permitted?
• “F1” Family Class (low-hazard fireworks) are permitted on designated fireworks holidays without a permit. Members of the general public are not permitted to buy professional-grade fireworks.
• Where are fireworks permitted?
• Fireworks are permitted on private property that you own/occupy or the property of someone else with their consent. 
• Residents are not allowed to set off fireworks in a street, public property such as a park or any private property that is not their own.

Dangers of Fake Spider Webs as Halloween Decorations

Many homeowners have already begun to decorate their homes and yards for Halloween. This is  just a note of caution to consider all forms of wildlife that may inhabit or visit your yard while you are preparing to decorate.

Every year, birds from the size of hummingbirds to owls become entangled in seemingly harmless decorations. Fake spider webs can also be detrimental to small mammals such as chipmunks and squirrels. Even the insects that play a crucial role in keeping our ecosystem healthy can be affected.

Often, if wildlife is not injured when they first enter the fake web, they almost always sustain injuries while attempting to free themselves from the sticky material. So, for this Spooky Season (and future ones), ditch the fake webs to help keep the birds, insects, and other critters safe from harm.

NOTE: Many of us, including this writer, have been guilty of using the fake webs to help create a spooky atmosphere. Mine have now been consigned to the garbage pail. We hope yours have as well.

Have a safe and happy Halloween. Small children should always be accompanied by an adult, 
 

Yard Waste Collection

Our yard waste will be collected weekly until the beginning of December. Our final day for yard waste pickup in 2023 will be on Monday, December 4. 

Acceptable yard waste items

• Leaves and yard rakings with debris
• Tree trimmings, branches
• Brush, hedge trimmings
• Household and garden plants
• Please remove excess soil from roots before disposal
• Halloween pumpkins (without the candle).

Remember that yard waste should be in either paper yard waste bags or an open container (e.g. an old garbage can). For further information on using bins and containers for yard waste, go to https://www.peelregion.ca/waste/yard-waste.

Halloween in Clarkson Village 2023

Bring your children (all ages) in costume to Clarkson Village on Saturday, October 28 from 10 am to 2 pm. Stroll along Lakeshore Road West and stop by the many stores, merchants, and restaurants to sample some Halloween candy and goodies.

Fall Vacuum Leaf Pickup 2023.

It is that time of the year when autumn leaves fall from the trees and we have to find a way to get rid of them. You can "recycle" the leaves by using them as compost and mulch to cover your flower beds for the winter. Or you could rake them up and place them at the curb for vacuum pickup by the City. If you choose this latter option, our neighbourhood is included in the GREEN ROUTE. This involves pickup during two separate weeks in November -- Nov.6-10 and Nov.27-Dec.1, 2023. If you miss those dates, place leaves in yard waste bags for pickup on our regular waste pickup days (Monday). Please follow the steps outlined in the accompanying image. It is very important to move parked cars off the street and to keep the area free to allow the vacuum trucks access to the boulevard.

This will be the fifth year that we have had vacuum leaf pickup. For additional information, consult the post we made on November 3, 2018
 

Absence of new posts over past year

 Our Board executives have not actively been adding posts to this blog over the past year, mainly because effort has been redirected to the Facebook page for the Birch Glen Residents' Association (https://www.facebook.com/pg/birchglenresidentsassociation).

We are not abandoning this blog!

It is always a challenge to determine the best means of getting information to the people we think are the readers of this blog. In a perfect world, the authors, editors, and administrators of our sites should be able to type/enter information for a post once and have it appear on/in every site in the appropriate format. Or at least be able to share the post from one site to another. We still have not been able to determine how to do this across platforms.

Until we can figure this out, we are required to retype the information separately -- once on this blog, again on Facebook, and once again on the website. We haven't figured how to "cut and paste" from one platform to another.  Since this is time-consuming, we have been focusing on our Facebook page. Unfortunately, not all residents of our Association are Facebook users. 

Ah, it was simple when our only means of communication was the printed newsletter! We would gather the information and attempt to publish it in a timely manner with one newsletter every quarter (every three months). Of course, that did not allow for items that came across our desks after the newsletter had been printed. This was a great incentive to going online, knowing full well that many older residents were not computer savvy.

We will attempt to post news items to this blog in a timely manner. However, we also ask that people do check out our Facebook page (above) and LIKE and FOLLOW that page.

Meanwhile, please stay safe. The Covid-19 coronavirus is still very much present worldwide and we will be living with it for quite some time to come. 

It is that time of year again to Fall Back!

Remember that Daylight Savings Time ends this weekend. Turn back your clocks one hour Saturday night before going to bed (so you have an extra hour of sleep Sunday morning).

Great News! Fall Leaf Pickup coming to Birch Glen!

Fall Leaf Pickup During the fall, the City of Mississauga provides Vacuum Leaf Pickup service to streets that are more than 35 years old and contain many mature large trees. Streets with fewer and younger trees are not included in the program. Addresses eligible for Leaf Pickup will receive a direct-mail notice that indicates when leaves will be picked up in their area.  Our neighbourhood (and surrounding area north of the Lakeshore) qualify under the GREEN Flyer Schedule, which means our leaves will be vacuumed the weeks of Nov. 5-9 and Nov. 26-30.  Rake leaves to the edge of the grass by Sunday of the week before your scheduled vacuum leaf pickup. Do not rake leaves onto the road. Do not mix items such as wood, brick or brush with the leaves as they can damage equipment or injure workers. Help reduce potential flooding by keeping curbside storm drains clear of leaves. Help our crews by removing cars from the street during leaf pickup. http://www.mississauga.ca/portal/residents/leafpick-up Missed Leaf Pickup? Here are your options for disposing leaves: The Region of Peel will also pick up leaves on your regular waste collection day until December 13, 2018. Leaves must be placed curbside in open, reusable containers such as bushel baskets, labelled rigid plastic containers or paper yard waste bags weighing less than 20 kgs (44 lbs) when full. Do not use plastic bags or recycling boxes. You can also compost your leaves or spread them around the base of your trees. Leaves will fertilize the soil and act as a buffer against extreme temperatures. Remember that oak leaves are difficult to compost. Questions? For more information on the City's Leaf Pickup program, contact 3-1-1 (or 905-615-4311 from outside the City) from Monday to Friday between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. For more information on Region of Peel yard waste collection, call 905-791-9499 or visit their website.