Penticton is at risk of paying more for recycling services after a summer audit found more than 50% of curbside bins checked contained an item that didn’t belong.
The city’s recycling contamination rate is currently 13%, well below Recycle BC’s requirement of 5.8%.
“Today, we have a door-to-door recycling service for $34 a year,” said the city’s sustainability officer, David Kassian. “If contamination remains at current levels, we run the risk of paying more for this service and losing the convenience of the service we have.”
The city hired two recycling ambassadors this summer to conduct random checks on 2,000 curbside trash cans, with plastic padded envelopes, hangers, plastic toys, dishes and recycling contained in plastic bags. plastic among the most common items.
Recycle BC, a nonprofit organization that manages residential packaging and paper recycling across the province, could fine the city of Penticton and remove the convenience of not having to sort items into bins or bins. separate bags if contamination rates do not improve.
“Recycling is something we can all do every day to reduce our impact on the environment,” said Mayor John Vassilaki. “These audits gave me the information I needed to improve recycling in my household and I hope every household will take the time to do their part.”
About 185 multi-family recycling containers were checked during the audit, with the city adding that all contained some form of contaminant. City ambassadors found some type of soft plastic in more than 90% of containers.
“If we can keep clothes, soft plastic, glass, Styrofoam, books, and disposable paper products like paper towels and tissues out of recycling bins, that will go a long way toward our goal,” Kassian said.
Most of the above items can be returned to PACE Electronics Recycling. A list of depot locations is also available at penticton.ca/recycling.
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