Essex Council will debate whether the garbage and yard-waste pickup schedule should change now that the Green Bin program has rolled out.
Staff will ask council on Monday night for the go-ahead to proceed with public consultations this fall on shifting garbage pickup from weekly to every two weeks starting in 2028.
Yard-waste collection could also shift to a consistent bi-weekly schedule across all wards.
The report says with the new organics system in place, it should mean less regular garbage heading to the landfill, and with collection costs rising, the town wants to see if its current service levels still make sense.
Mayor Sherry Bondy said this is a level of service that impacts every household.
"We know that residents are really concerned with the green bin costs that are coming up, so we want to go out there, we want to consult the public and say are there things you want us to do in order to save money on your tax bill going forward," she said.
According to the report, the town could save roughly $370,000 a year, or about $50 per household.
"$50, it is kind of significant," Bondy said.
"Is it significant enough for people to change? I don't know. I'm hearing a lot of people even say they don't have a lot of garbage anymore. I also want to find out how much is public consultation going to also cost. Those are some of the questions that I have."
Bondy said the discussion is timely with the new green bin and blue bins programs providing more waste options to residents.
She added that the decision will be made by the new term of council.
"Making the decision right now without wholesome public consultation isn't a good move, and it's something I always said that we really need to consult the public when we're doing this," said Bondy.
"Essex Council could say no, we don't want to change from every other week, and then this conversation is done, but, if our administration are going to do public consultation that want to actually start planning it now."
Council meets Monday at 6 p.m.