Calgary is a city that leads in innovation and conservation. We may get a bad rap for being an oil industry centre, but Calgary is actually an extremely conscientious city when it comes to keeping the environment healthy. The city does this by educating students, striving to go green as much as possible, protecting natural areas around and within the city and, most recently, giving every house a black and blue bin.
As you know by now, the black bin is for garbage and the blue bin is for recycling. This includes bottles, cardboard, paper, glass, etc. While a lot of things can go directly into this blue bin to be collected by the city, there are many things you shouldn’t put in it. The city website says it best: “When you put items that don’t belong in the blue cart or Community Recycling Depot, it can cause injuries to workers and shutdowns on the recycling sorting line.” Examples of bad additions would be harmful chemicals, condensed air or gas canisters, paint, or styrofoam.
Here are some easy tips to follow:
Paper Products: Collapse cardboard boxes to make more space for yourself and for disposal vehicles. If there are any traces of toxic materials, or if the paper product is covered in leftover food, do not recycle it. Shredded paper can be recycled, but contain it in a clear plastic bag.
Plastics: Here’s a helpful tip: if plastic stretches (like a grocery bag) it’s recyclable; if it crinkles (like a cereal box liner), it’s not recyclable. Regarding plastic lids, you can only recycle it if it has a recycle logo on it OR if it is bigger than a credit card.
Metals & Glass: Both these can be recycled, but make sure they have been rinsed off/out.
If you still aren’t 100% sure what to do with a particular item, visit the following link: What Goes Where?. You can search for specifications item by item and get a detailed description of where you can recycle the product.
Don’t simply throw away something because you think it’s unsalvageable. Furthermore, don’t dumb just anything in your blue bin. Sometimes, the presence of even just one, small, rotten item can make everything in your bin un-recyclable. Go the extra mile and get informed! It will do a world of good for the city and for the planet as a whole.
For more information, visit this helpful link: What Can You Recycle
Posted by Ken Richter on
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