Do you know how to prepare your recyclables? Each year, it is estimated that Canadians throw away 3 million tonnes of plastic waste. As mentioned in my previous posts, ‘How to Use Eco-Friendly Laundry Strips’ and ‘5 Ways to Reduce Your Waste Consumption’ only 9% of plastics are recycled in Canada. While there are many contributing factors to this, two of them include our high consumption of single-use plastics along with not properly preparing our recyclables.
Our waste and plastic pollution problem is at large. The Government of Canada has a plan to achieve zero plastic waste by 2030, however until then, it’s important that we act as well. While we can’t completely reduce our waste and plastic consumption, we can certainly make changes towards a more sustainable future. Let’s support eco-friendly alternatives whenever possible and properly prepare our recyclables in 3 easy steps.
There’s no such thing as away. When we throw something away, it must go somewhere.
annie leonard.
1) Acceptable or Unacceptable Items. Our items come in a variety of packaging, everything from our food to our personal products. If you’re unsure whether an item can be recycled or not, refer to your city’s website. Most websites offer a list of acceptable and unacceptable items along with resources on proper disposal. It takes just a few minutes to double check and reduce the risk of contamination. Here’s an example of Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, and Toronto’s pages on recycling.
Did you know? According to The City of Calgary, anything smaller than the palm of your hand cannot be recycled. This includes beer caps, milk caps, bottle lids, etc. Instead of tossing them in the trash, find creative ways to repurpose them for craft projects.
2) Prepare. Make sure the items you are placing in your recycling bin are empty, dry, and clean. Properly prepare cans, glass jars, shampoo bottles etc., by pouring out excess liquids, giving them a good rinse, and allowing them to dry before placing in your recycling bin. Flatten cartons, containers and remove shipping label stickers from cardboard whenever possible. This ensures there’s no contamination and all items are clean and ready to be sorted in the recycling facility.
Did you know? Items that are contaminated with any type of food or product residue is considered garbage. Make sure you properly wash, rinse, and dry your items to avoid this.
3) Keep Items Loose. For items to be properly sorted for recycling, they must be loose and not packed tightly together unless specified otherwise. Most facilities rely on both human and state of the art technology to sort recyclables into proper categories. By following guidelines, you are ensuring an easy sorting process and that items successfully end up where they’re supposed to be.
Did you know? 70% of the sorting process in Calgary is automated and 30% is completed by employees by hand. By ensuring items are loose, it makes the process much more efficient.
I hope this post encourages you to look at your recycling habits and see if you can make any changes. Although it’s disheartening to know that only 9% is recycled, don’t let that deter you from putting items in the proper place. For more resources, visit The Government of Canada’s website for ways you can help reduce plastic pollution. Do you have any recycling tips you’d like to share? I’d love to hear your thoughts. For more eco-friendly posts, visit my tag here.
Hello, I enjoy reading all of your article. I like to write a little
comment to support you.
Thank you so much!
Thank you for all this useful information! I always wonder in the back of my mind how much of our recyclables actually get recycled…
Allie of
ww.allienyc.com
It’s mind-blowing how much actually gets recycled. Thank you for reading Allie!
We recycle as much as we can, whether it’s plastic, or just donating used stuff so it doesn’t just end up in a landfill.
That’s wonderful to hear! There are so many ways to repurpose an item before considering the landfill. Thank you for reading!
Thanks for these tips! I always have to remember to keep things separate instead of stuffing one inside another, haha.
Hahaha yes that can be tempting! Thank you for reading Isabelle!
Thanks for sharing more information on the right way to recycle!
Thank you for reading!
I practice recycling at home, thank you for sharing more information, I never knew about the small items, it is good to put in the extra effort to get recycling right.
Agreed, if it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing properly! Thank you for reading Eveclair!
We have lots of different bins for plastics, glass, metal, paper products, food waste, garden waste and then general waste – it’s a pain to sort them all out sometimes but we know it needs to be done. Thank you for sharing how you approach this in Canada 🙂
That sounds like a great system. I’m sure it ensures that everything goes in its rightful place. Thank you for reading Lisa!
This is very interesting. Recycling is so important, but it’s a very difficult job. And every city, and district does it differently. Great tips here!
Agreed! There are different rules of acceptance for each city/country and their websites are super helpful. Thank you for reading Wendy!
wow, this post was very insightful. i didn’t realize all the things to consider with recycling. thanks for spreading the word.
I’m glad it was insightful! Thank you so much for reading!
This is some really great information! Recycling is so important but what’s even more important is making sure we’re doing it properly. I’m starting to get into the habit of properly cleaning out my containers now but I didn’t know that not all cities accept smaller items, I’ll have to look into the guidance for my area! Thank you so much for sharing x
Different countries and cities have their own rules for what is acceptable and unacceptable. I’m glad that you’ll be looking into your area for guidance! Thank you for reading Ceri!
Recycling is so important especially considering that most things we dispose of simply goes in the garbage. I am trying my best to be more environmentally and eco friendly; I am definitely going to see if I can find some resources about recycling in the United States.
That sounds great Winnie! I’m happy this post serves as inspiration to find more resources on recycling in the States! Thank you for reading!
This is great information! There are so many differences between cities when it comes to recycling and I find I’m always referring to my city’s recycling information as things change frequently. Thanks for sharing!
I agree, there are so many differences between cities. I’m glad to hear you check your city’s website regularly! Thank you for reading Jodie!
I usually sort out the recycling in my house and I always make sure I wash everything out before putting it in the recycling bins or bags. It’s so important to do that! x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
That’s wonderful to hear Lucy, it’s very important! Thank you for reading!
I had no idea about the small items! That’s so good to know (even though it’s very disappointing!). My dad raised me to be a thorough recycler. My sister teases me because I often put containers through the dishwasher before they go into recycling. While that might be excessive, at least they are clean and dry! Thank you for sharing this – it’s helpful to know more so we can do better. Looking forward to your post on bottle cap crafts 😉
Colleen | ChooseYourUni
I commend you for taking that extra step Colleen! I often get teased for doing the same thing by hand, but it’s worth the extra effort. Thank you for reading and sharing your experience!
I try my best to clean out all recyclables when I place them in our bin. I didn’t know about the lids and things. Thank you for sharing your knowledge, this can be really helpful.
Lauren x
http://www.bournemouthgirl.com
I’m happy it was helpful! There are some cities that can recycle lids in a separate location, but it all varies. Thank you for reading Lauren!
That’s some good clear information. Hopefully it will inspire and support more people to recycle.
Thank you Sarah, I completely agree! Thanks for reading!
I learned a lot from this post! My Mum has recycled for quite some time now so I knew about how everything needs to be cleaned out before put into recycling. I didn’t know about the point of items being smaller than the palm of your hand though.
I’m glad it was informative! Thank you for reading Jenny!
My daughter created some at home bins to recycle (we live far in the country). Unfortunately we haven’t properly cleaned the items or separated them as well. Our intentions were good however without proper research (something super informative like this!) it was a waste. We have some work to do! Thank you so much for this!
That’s wonderful that your daughter created at home bins. I’m so glad this post was helpful and will result in positive changes! Thank you for reading Lo!
I didn’t know anything smaller than the palm of your hand couldn’t be recycled according to the city of Calgary. It’s an interesting point. I am about recycling, I love the earth. This post is important.
I had no idea until several years ago when I checked out the website! Thank you for reading Jeannie!