Clock IconHours: Mon-Fri: 8AM - 5PM

Location IconBarrie (Open On Sat 1 PM - 5 PM), Welland

Phone Icon Call Barrie:

705-722 -8711

Call Welland:

289-488-9910

Vancouver looks to curb waste, taking aim at single-use items

“Disposable cups make up 22 per cent of large litter items in Vancouver and are one of the mos

Commodity Corner

Vancouver Is Trying To Reduce Waste - Green-Go Recycling
Calendar Icon

06 December 2017

Comment Icon

0

Vancouver looks to curb waste, taking aim at single-use items

“Disposable cups make up 22 per cent of large litter items in Vancouver and are one of the most commonly littered items in the city. Unlike Toronto, single-use cups for hot and cold beverages can be recycled in Vancouver, but as containers rather than paper owing to their inked coatings”..

The City of Vancouver is taking aim at the scores of disposable cups, takeout containers and shopping bags tossed in the trash each week, filling up half the space in public waste bins and costing millions a year to collect.

Vancouver’s efforts to limit such single-use items come alongside similar actions from individual businesses, other cities and even entire countries to reduce their environmental footprints. Montreal approved a bylaw, effective Jan. 1, 2018, that prohibits retailers from offering customers single-use plastic shopping bags. Last year, France passed a law banning all disposable cups, plates and utensils countrywide starting in 2020.

Project spokeswoman Monica Kosmak said these single-use items are a significant issue for Vancouver, which has set a goal to become zero waste by 2040.

“We’ve got 2.6 million cups and another two million shopping bags going to garbage every week in Vancouver,” Ms. Kosmak said. “About half of the litter cans are full of disposed cups and takeout containers and it costs the city about $2.5-million a year to manage.”

The city is inviting public input from now through Dec. 7. Consultation results and a draft single-use item reduction strategy will be presented to council in early 2018.

Both regulatory and non-regulatory options are being considered, Ms. Kosmak said. Regulatory options include an outright ban on businesses distributing single-use items, requiring businesses to ask customers before offering such an item or requiring businesses to provide on-site recycling programs.

Non-regulatory options include education programs, working with businesses to develop voluntary fees on single-use items and exploring cup-exchange or container-exchange programs across businesses. For example: Portland, Ore., home to hundreds of food trucks, has a program called GO Box that has participating vendors serve takeout in reusable containers that customers can later drop off at designated sites.

Mark von Schellwitz, vice-president of Restaurants Canada, a restaurant and food-service industry advocacy group, said many businesses have shown leadership in voluntarily taking steps to become more environmentally friendly in recent years. He noted many members are already paying Recycle BC packaging stewardship fees to recycle packaging on their behalf.

“What is needed is more comprehensive consumer education on what they can do increase single-use packaging recycling,” Mr. von Schellwitz said. “What our members do not support are additional packaging fees or bans isolated to one municipality robbing consumers of the convenience they want, from picking up their morning to-go coffee to ordering takeout lunches and dinners.”

More than 100 cities in the United States – including Portland, Seattle and San Francisco – have banned restaurants and other food vendors from using polystyrene foam containers, according to a Vancouver report. Many jurisdictions – including Seattle, Los Angeles and Austin, Tex. – have implemented plastic-bag bans, fees on plastic bags or a combination of both.

Copper Rebounds In 2017 - Green-Go Recycling

With over a decade of
experience, we offer
the best prices
for your scrap

we accept thousands of different
household, commercial, and
industrial items.

Schedule a Pick Up

Schedule Online -
We’ll Call You To Confirm Your Request







    PLEASE PROVIDE DATE, SERVICE REQUIRED, BIN TYPE AND QUANTITY. THANK YOU.

    Testimonials

    Laurie Turne - Green-Go Recycling
    Laurie Turne

    5 February 2020

    Green-Go Recycling is extremely convenient, efficient, and environmentally conscious. Mike was exceptional - arriving with all requirements to move our large, heavy fridge. Randy was very helpful coordinating our drop-off and pick-up schedule. Thank you Green-Go Recycling staff!

    Nem Simcoe - Green-Go Recycling
    Nem Simcoe

    13 January 2018

    Green-Go Recycling has been very generous and helpful with our community project. It donated CD-ROM Drives and Power Packs we used to build a CNC Machine to demonstrate to young students how to code a CNC Machine during our annual National Engineering Month Event in March. We had the opportunity to see Green-Go's plant and was very impressed with its operation.

    Rudy Westerneng - Green-Go Recycling
    Rudy Westerneng

    17 September 2013

    So what if I own the company? It's freaking amazing, seriously. Come check us out. If everyone knew more about recycling everyone would recycle more!

    Kristina Parker - Green-Go Recycling
    Kristina Parker

    29 November 2019

    Great service and i would use this company again. Very prompt and friendly. I highly recommend them.