It’s been a rough few weeks for those dutifully sorting their recycling in some of Vancouver’s most densely populated neighbourhoods — as operational issues have meant bins haven’t been picked up for six weeks.

Recycle B.C. say the issue, affecting some buildings in downtown Vancouver, False Creek and Mount Pleasant, stems from a transition to a new contractor servicing the region, and they’ve been facing operational issues since they began on Feb. 16.

The contractor, Recycling Alternative, told CBC News that two primary issues — difficulty accessing some buildings and obtaining new collection trucks — are behind the delays.

Thomas De Maleingreau, who is a strata member of the Carolina Manor building in East Vancouver, said the contractor has been assuring them their recycling would be picked up for over a month — but it hasn’t.

“It is frustrating because there there is not much we can do. I tried to call the city, without success,” he said on Friday.

“They were supposed to pick up the recycling on their the regular route yesterday, on Thursday, and they still failed to do so,” he added.

Ann Goulding, a spokesperson for Recycle B.C., said Recycling Alternative won the contract to service the downtown and False Creek areas as part of a competitive procurement process.

She said the transition from one service provider to another one created challenges — one being accessing some buildings that required key fobs.

“During the transition, we weren’t able to get access to all of the buildings,” she said.

“So this is largely becoming resolved now with access keys.”

Jeff Wint, a spokesperson for Recycling Alternative, apologized to residents for the inconvenience caused by the pickup delays.

He said delays in obtaining collection trucks is a challenge being seen across the industry.

“Tariffs have compounded broader supply chain challenges in manufacturing, which has contributed to delays in vehicle procurement,” he said in a statement.

“In the interim, we have been operating with a rental fleet that is not fully optimized for the service area, and mechanical issues have further impacted performance.”

Goulding said the contractor was committed to dealing with the backlog, including by servicing routes on weekends and evenings.

As residents look to deal with their recycling, she said they should continue to sort their waste as usual.

If they run out of bin space, the spokesperson said they should place sorted waste into clear plastic bags and label them with the category of recycling — containers, paper and cardboard, or similar.

“When the contractor comes, they’ll pick those those [plastic bags] up as well,” she said.

“Same for the new materials, the flexible plastic.”