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Waste & Recycling Tips
Waste Reduction Week October 17- 23, 2016
Since 2001, National Waste Reduction Week in Canada (WRW) has been organized by a coalition of non-government, not-for-profit environment groups, from each of the 13 participating provincial and territorial jurisdictions across Canada.
Challenge yourself and your employees to reduce your carbon footprin
At work or school:
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Reduce paper use by using both sides
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Pack your lunch in reusable containers
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Rent items that are not used very often
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Purchase products with recycled content
When shopping:
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Reduce waste by avoiding over packaged or unnecessary disposable items
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Avoid food packaged in individual servings—where feasible and safe, buy in bulk
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Buy drinks in refillable containers where available
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Use your own cloth bags
Reusing
Reusing items give the resources they were originally made from another life, while reducing pollution and conserving the energy that comes with the manufacturing process or recycling the items.
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Purchase durable products that can be repaired and reused.
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Donate things to or purchase household items and clothing from charity shops or have a yard sale. You will be amazed - one person’s trash is another’s treasure!
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Reuse jars and containers for storage.
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Donate reusable equipment to schools, churches or other charity organizations.
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When shopping, consider buying used items. There are many “used” stores that offer refurbished items that work as good as new.
Recycling
Recycling and purchasing products made with recycled materials is the next way we can conserve resources. If we can’t reduce waste by avoiding it, and it can’t be reused, can we recycle it? 17 million Canadians (nearly 2/3 of us) have access to recycling.
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Recycle in the garden by composting organics such as food scraps, leaves and yard trimmings.
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At work, separate items for recycling - this can save your business money in disposal costs.
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At school, consider setting up a recycling program.
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At home, use the recycling services provided by your municipality or take end-of-life items back to where they were purchased or other take-back centers.
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When shopping, consider the material that the item is made from and packaged in. Have the resources already had a previous life? Are these resources renewable? How much of it is made up of recycled content? And only purchase materials which can be recycled again.
Christmas Recycling Ideas
Wrapping paper, although pretty, is the biggest source of garbage at Christmas time.
Choose from the following gift wrap alternatives to have a waste free holiday.
-The gift can be the wrapping
A sweater, scarf or pretty bowl can be the gift and the wrap. Just use twine or ribbon to finish it off.
- Cloth bags or holiday themed fabric
These can be sewn into bags or wrapped with ribbon & re used for many years to come.
Towels make a nice gift and wrap too.
- Newspaper, books pages or magazines
Got a reader in the family? Using pages from old books, magazines or newspaper can be a fun way to wrap these gifts
and can be recycled after the holidays. Be creative.
- Old maps
An old map can be a fun & interesting way to wrap a gift for the travel buff on your gift list.
Greener Gifting
- Minimize Gifting by doing a secret santa
- Instead of a gift, try going to an event together. The memories will last longer than that box of chocolates
- Everyone loaves homemade baking. Cookies, squares or a lemon loaf packaged in a reusable tin
makes for a wonderful green gift.
-Give the Gift of Time.
Going for tea once a week, visiting a senior or playing ball with a teenager. Your time spent with someone means more than a new mug.
-Assemble & create a family cookbook. Get together with family to add their favorite recipes.
It can then be printed or saved as a pdf.
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"Green" Summer BBQ Tips
Hot summer weather has us heading outside to barbecue and spend time with family and friends.
The WMABC offers the following tips to minimize waste, increase recycling and save money on your summer parties.
•Fill up pitchers of water, lemonade and iced tea instead of buying large quantities of personal-sized beverage containers. This not only reduces waste, but saves money, too!
•Encourage recycling by placing clearly labeled recycling bins next to garbage cans. Keep the bins next to each other to increase recycling.
•Avoid Styrofoam: Reusable plates and bowls are always the best choice, however if you are choosing disposable plates and bowls, avoid Styrofoam. Styrofoam cannot be placed in the recycling bin. Paper plates are a better alternative to foam; although they are not recyclable, they will take much less time to breakdown than plastic Styrofoam. Look for biodegradable and recycled-content paper goods.
•Buy in Bulk: Purchase large bags of chips and large bottles of ketchup and other condiments rather than individually packaged items. This will cost less money and will result in a lot less wrappers in the trash.
•Propane tanks: Whether you’re using a 1-pound or 100-pound propane tank, never place the tank in your recycling container or garbage can. Empty refillable and non-refillable propane tanks are accepted at most landfills and transfer stations for recycling as scrap metal.
•Grill with the lid down: not only is it more energy efficient, but also helps distribute heat thoroughly ensuring even cooking.
•Clean your grill while it’s hot: start cleaning your grill while it is still hot, using baking soda and a wire brush. This avoids using cleaners with phosphates or harsh fumes.
•Pack up leftovers: When the party comes to an end, make sure to pack up leftovers in reusable containers.
•Extras: Choosing organic foods, e-vites versus mail invitations and using homemade decorations over store-bought decorations will round off the finishing touches of your “green” barbecue.
