Originally published Mar 11/20 The Reminder. Flin Flon, Mb. Sponsored by North of 53 Consumers Coop.
Headlines that include the words ‘recycling’ or ‘garbage’ always catch my attention.
There have been many recently. There were the negative reports about ‘recycling’ being returned from foreign countries, and only one of three bales of plastic tracked was actually recycled.
Others have focused on how recycling is contaminated and ending up in landfills because people are mixing in non-recyclables like diapers and containers with peanut butter.
A recent headline ‘Your Lifestyle is making Blue Box Recycling Unsustainable’ confirmed what our statistics have shown. The weight and value of materials is dropping with fewer hard copies of newspapers and more plastics from prepared or prepackaged foods.
Today’s inspiration came from the headline ‘Let’s put the idea of garbage in the trash’. It focused on viewing waste as a resource and public space recycling.
There are recycling bins on Main St. in Flin Flon and community parks. This gives the positive message that our community recycles.
The contents of these public bins are not pretty. One quarter to one third is garbage. Many beverage containers were not empty when placed in the bin creating a mess. Any paper products mixed in are usually too contaminated to recycle.
Unlike some communities that don’t tolerate the mess and send them to landfill, we reclaim what is recyclable to honour the desire of those using the bins to recycle.
A garbage bin beside the recycling bin reduces contamination significantly and the contents of many locations are cleaner than in the past.
We continue to get the information out, and it is making a difference.
There are several newspaper articles and some pictures are on our Facebook page: Flin Flon Recycling. Check it out.
Headlines that include the words ‘recycling’ or ‘garbage’ always catch my attention.
There have been many recently. There were the negative reports about ‘recycling’ being returned from foreign countries, and only one of three bales of plastic tracked was actually recycled.
Others have focused on how recycling is contaminated and ending up in landfills because people are mixing in non-recyclables like diapers and containers with peanut butter.
A recent headline ‘Your Lifestyle is making Blue Box Recycling Unsustainable’ confirmed what our statistics have shown. The weight and value of materials is dropping with fewer hard copies of newspapers and more plastics from prepared or prepackaged foods.
Today’s inspiration came from the headline ‘Let’s put the idea of garbage in the trash’. It focused on viewing waste as a resource and public space recycling.
There are recycling bins on Main St. in Flin Flon and community parks. This gives the positive message that our community recycles.
The contents of these public bins are not pretty. One quarter to one third is garbage. Many beverage containers were not empty when placed in the bin creating a mess. Any paper products mixed in are usually too contaminated to recycle.
Unlike some communities that don’t tolerate the mess and send them to landfill, we reclaim what is recyclable to honour the desire of those using the bins to recycle.
A garbage bin beside the recycling bin reduces contamination significantly and the contents of many locations are cleaner than in the past.
We continue to get the information out, and it is making a difference.
There are several newspaper articles and some pictures are on our Facebook page: Flin Flon Recycling. Check it out.
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