It's easier to be green with new blue bins
Early statistics gathered by city officials show that the new bins rolled out in Scarborough have increased recycling rates by as much as 15 per cent per household. If those sort of statistic hold citywide, then Toronto residents will combine to divert between 20,000 and 30,000 additional tonnes of material from landfill this year.
City waste chief Geoff Rathbone gleefully pointed out this week that this represents the equivalent of removing 3,500 garbage trucks from city streets. He further noted that because 70 per cent of that material is made up of fibre, it equates to nearly 300,000 trees escaping the lumberman's saw each year.
Phew!
Under the new plan, residents can choose from a series of bin sizes that range from small (the equivalent of two blue boxes) to extra large (the equivalent of six blue boxes). In Scarborough, fully 70 per cent of residents chose the largest bins, which directly relates to the significant hike in recycling rates.
And now that Scarborough residents have set the recycling template for the rest of the city, we strongly encourage residents in other neighbourhoods to embrace the new system as wholeheartedly as their neighbours to the east.
The last bins are being distributed now in Etobicoke, while other city communities continue to adapt to the new system.
In older areas of the city, where homes and properties tend to be smaller and more closely built, the large new bins have created some difficulty. But city officials must do what they can to accommodate those wrinkles in the system. As Ward 30 (Toronto-Danforth) Councillor Paula Fletcher noted this week, it's not that residents oppose recycling they can't physically accommodate the larger bins in their homes or on what are often shared driveways.
Clearly, Torontonians support the city's initiative as proven by the early recycling rates seen in Scarborough. If the rest of the city's residents and neighbourhoods can work toward this common goal, working with the city in those areas where unique circumstances exist, Toronto should be able to achieve its ambitious waste diversion targets.
Minimize your waste. Make sure you are diverting organic waste to your green bin. Pick the right recycling box for your needs. Use it every day.
It will serve everyone's needs best in the long run.
