Recycling Issues

[rickhd]

I see the Region is scolding us for not using our green bins.    Well I can give them a simple answer... KISS ...keep it simple stupid.    There are so many rules on recycling already don't make it worse.   Branches have to be certain dimensions,  cardboard has to be bundled according to certain dimensions, well you get the idea.   Then just to make it worse you add another bin.     If it is simple and I don't need multiple bins and a manual on recycling rules and regulations then no problem.    

Ron James did a skit on recycling explaining to his son about all the rules to follow and had a garage of bins.   It was funny but sadly almost true.  

Charging for garbage, well that will lead to a lot of illegal dumping everywhere and anywhere.   

[timio]

The issue I have is that as a resident of an apartment building that's not included in the trial, I can't contribute to the green bin program in a reasonable manner. The trial is supposed to last through 2016 before wide adoption. I sent a tweet asking if they had plans to move it up today, but didn't get a response.

[nms]

Does anyone know if the Region factored in existing home composting use into their green bin use calculations?

Presumably, those who home compost are more predisposed to sorting their waste. Our household happens to have three composters that were purchased as a part of various Regional waste reduction campaigns over the last few decades. The composters are well-used and our green bin has never been to the curb.

[mpd618]

Does anyone know if the Region factored in existing home composting use into their green bin use calculations?

They promote composting and are certainly aware of it. But it's not part of the green bin use statistics, nor is there very good data (I think) on compost use in the region. One metric they've used is waste audits, which show the portion of the current landfill stream that can actually be recycled or green binned. I think something like 2/3 of the landfill stream could be diverted.

[jerryhung]

Loss reaches $1.3M as green bins shunned in Waterloo Region
http://www.therecord.com/news-story/4890...oo-region/

My thoughts
- They should've started with Pay-per-use model in the first few years (instead of 10-year contract)
- More incentives!!! Easy ones are Garbage Bi-weekly pickup, or Limit # of garbage bags

It kills me to see most of my neighbours do not use Green bin at all, truly around 1/3 usage

[mpd618]

It kills me to see most of my neighbours do not use Green bin at all, truly around 1/3 usage

I set out my green bin less than once a month. Most organic waste goes in the compost, and the remainder goes into ziploc bags in the freezer until it's worth putting out. It's a pretty awesome system because it prevents stinky garbage.

My point is that even those who use a green bin don't necessarily look like they do if you survey on any given week.

[YKF]

I recall past colleagues of mine (they work in waste management policy planning at a GTA regional municipality) say that Waterloo Region's curbside collection system was a "cadillac standard", in that it's very rare for a municipality to have recycling sorted at the curb due to its high cost. Most municipalities (Region of Peel, City of Toronto, Halton Region) don't have curb-side recycling sorting, and instead have Material Recovery Facilities, massive semi-automated recycling sorting machines. These facilities allow residents to throw all of their recycling in a recycling bag/bin without the need for sorting, as the facility will sort everything out. Investing in such a facility would be very costly for the Region but would make recycling very convenient for residents and reduce the cost of the curbside recycling contract. It's likely that the initial capital costs of building such a facility outweigh any savings that would be a result of the reduced collection costs.

With regard to the green bin figures, I think that the tonnage numbers will rise as soon as the region introduces bi-weekly garbage collection when they sign the new waste collection contract in a few years. I'm also hoping that green bins will be introduced to apartment buildings and commercial and institutional buildings soon.

[rickhd]

Material Recovery Facilities would sound like a better idea for the average person. I wonder what the recycling rates are for Cadillac standard compared to Material Recovery? Which method works the best?

[mpd618]

The Region just recently finished a new Waste Management Master Plan. One of the outcomes is that the Region will be investigating thermal treatment as a possible replacement for the landfill (which has only 20 years of life left).

[Section ThirtyOne]

The Region just recently finished a new Waste Management Master Plan. One of the outcomes is that the Region will be investigating thermal treatment as a possible replacement for the landfill (which has only 20 years of life left).

So that's what they're calling incineration these days? Or is this something else entirely?

[Markster]

The Region just recently finished a new Waste Management Master Plan. One of the outcomes is that the Region will be investigating thermal treatment as a possible replacement for the landfill (which has only 20 years of life left).

So that's what they're calling incineration these days? Or is this something else entirely?

Looks like the answer is technically no, but basically yes.

[Smore]

mpd is onpoint. My family (includes a baby in diapers) puts out a garbage bag about once every 2-3 weeks. The green bin goes about as frequently. The recycling bins go out every week. The rest go to onsite composting (vermi and bins).

It is not hard, expensive or stinky - even in the summer. Hopefully its the converted that are reading this.

[MidTowner]

I just read this article, Every City Needs Vancouver's Ban on Food Scraps, on the Atlantic Cities. Interesting stuff, and I had not heard that they were to take it this far.

How far is Waterloo Region from such a plan, I wonder? My immediate reaction was that I would find it hard to adapt to a system in which no food scraps are tolerated in the waste stream: I compost and use my green bin, but also sometimes put things in the garbage that could go in the green bin if I tried harder. But I can admit that eliminating food waste entirely is a laudable goal.

[clasher]

Restaurants and grocery stores throw out so much food so it's nice to see they are included in the ban. I know more and more stores do send the fruits and veg to compost people but I bet all the packaged food still gets tossed... a good place to use material recovery machines. I keep a big tupperware bowl in the freezer and put all the compost in there. Sure it does take up freezer space but it helps prevent hoarding so it evens out, I'm not sure why it's not advocated as a solution locally, most people I know have too much old stuff in the freezer that should be green-binned.

[Pheidippides]

Options being considered in the new Waste Management Master Plan in May 2015:
http://www.regionofwaterloo.ca/en/region...f#page=175

Option 1- (Bi-Weekly Garbage Collection)
Four garbage bag limit per bi- weekly collection (potential to reduce to three bags);
Unlimited weekly blue box and green bin collection;
Bi-weekly yard waste collection (April to November);
Bi-weekly appliance and bulky item pick-up, three item limit;
Existing special and downtown business services; and Bag tag program.

Option 2 – (Weekly Garbage Collection)
Two garbage bag limit per week (potential to reduce to one bag);
Unlimited weekly blue box and green bin collection;
Bi-weekly yard waste collection (April to November);
Bi-weekly appliance and bulky item pick-up, three item limit;
Existing special and downtown business services; and
Bag tag program.