What is happening?
9/10 people find recycling more confusing than investing, doing their taxes, or assembling Ikea furniture.
The levels of recycling contamination across the nation are remarkably high as a result of confusing recycling programs that leave citizens wondering “Is this recyclable?”. High rates of recycling contamination have forced municipalities to reevaluate their recycling service as municipalities are forced to pay large fines for recycling contamination.
The average cost of recycling a ton of blue bin materials has increased by 50% from 2003 to 2017, as contamination rates across the nation have skyrocketed. Toronto and Edmonton, two of the largest cities in Canada, maintain the highest rates of recycling contamination in the nation. The contamination rate of recycling in Toronto peaked at 30% in 2019. Because the city surpassed the threshold of a 27% contamination rate, they were required to pay an expense of $5 million totheir waste management processor.
Recycling programs have become a net loss for municipalities with the cost of processing contaminated recyclables reaching nearly one million dollars per year for several municipalities. The net loss is forcing many municipalities to consider abandoning recycling programs altogether or adopting producer responsibility models. Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) transfers the full cost of blue bin programs from municipalities to packaging producers. These programs reduce the liability for municipalities but when responsibility is shifted to the producer, issues can arise.
Learn more about Extended Producer Responsibility here. (LINK TO EXTENDED PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY BLOG)
Other municipalities are considering a different approach, fines for recycling violations. Fines are issued at the household level and are the equivalent to the costs of managing a contaminated recycling bin, up to $20 per occurrence, per bin. These responses to high levels of contamination are following China’s announcement of contamination level restrictions. China restricted recycling waste to a contamination level of just 0.5%, a major feat for Canada’s average contamination rate which sits above 10%.
Why is this happening?
Why are contamination rates so high nationwide? Well, a leading cause of recycling confusion is due to regional differences in acceptable and unacceptable materials. For residents who live in densely populated metro areas, it is no surprise why contamination rates are so high. Take the Greater Toronto Area for example; there are 5 municipalities, each with its unique recycling program of acceptable and unacceptable materials. For individuals who work in a municipality outside of the municipality they live in, the inconsistency of recycling information is a nightmare.
All of these metro hubs are within a 1-hour drive of each other. Could you imagine the level of confusion you would face if you worked in Durham but lived in Peel?
An additional reason why recycling has become so confusing for so many is the confusing labeling of consumer goods. While a lot of packaging is recyclable, much of the items are rarely accepted within a curbside recycling stream. Various types of plastics, cups, and glass are recyclable, however, not in the curbside recycling streams. These materials are required to be sent to specialized processors where a specific machine is used to deal with the unique material type. Often these material types are accepted to drop-off sites, not within the curbside recycling cart, as many believe.
It’s not surprising there is mass confusion surrounding the recycling of plastics. Below are labels that identify the different material plastic material types, which of these is accepted within the recycling stream and which are required to be delivered to a drop-off location?
Lastly, new residents moving into an area can contribute to recycling contamination. Whether it be international or interprovincial migration or families on vacation, there are countless situations where new residents are in a new area with a unique recycling program that is different than what they have seen previously. While we encourage folks to become familiar with their recycling program when relocating, the lack of education made available online can make for a steep learning curve.
The Canadian interprovincial migration rate has increased since 2020, and if this is a trend that is to continue, recycling education needs to be delivered to residents to meet them where they are in their recycling journey.
Why is this concerning?
Recycling is at a crossroads, to either be a viable component of mitigating climate change or continue to be a net loss operation and an ineffective public works initiative. Recycling programs were established to divert recyclable materials from landfills, and add to a circular economy where recycled products are directly used for other goods. But after 30 years of operation, recycling management still has its flaws. Recycling programs with high contamination need to address the structural issues of the program; a lack of cart auditing, minimal accountability, and ineffective education programs.
Thanks for following along to learn why contamination threatens the future of the recycling industry. We see a solution, want to learn how to solve this problem?
Head to this link to learn how custom, relevant education can reduce contamination in the recycling stream. Every municipality needs custom education, the impact of contamination means every city needs to adopt a solution to solve this critical problem.
Prairie Robotics worked with municipalities, regional districts, haulers, and residents across North America to make recycling simple. We perform automated curbside recycling cart audits and issue custom education to each household. All of this information is automatically gathered and provided to administrators, allowing them to focus on program and policy design instead of data collection.
