City staff are now performing curbside recycle cart inspections with the purpose of helping residents learn more about how to sort their recycling.
The goal of the recycle cart inspection program is to understand where residents require additional education about how to dispose of specific items.
When staff identify an item in a recycle cart that does not belong, this is considered contamination and a ‘You’ve Been Spotted’ notice will be left on the cart. This notice is for educational purposes and does not mean your cart will be skipped for collection.
“Recycle cart audits are one method for city staff to understand what residents are putting in their recycle cart that may be considered contamination,” said Madison Poultney, sustainability coordinator.
Penticton’s goal is to lower the community’s recycling contamination rate from 13.3 per cent to 10 per cent or lower by November 2023.
If the city does not meet its goals set out by Recycle BC, it could lead to increased costs to deliver the program as a result of fines. It may also lead to a less convenient recycling service, such as having to sort everything into separate bins or bags, which has been shown to reduce contamination in other B.C. communities.
Here are the top offenders found in Penticton’s recycling carts:
– Unaccepted material including books, scrap metal, electronics, ceramics, household hazardous waste
– Unsortable material, which means materials contained inside bags or different types of containers nested together
– Glass
– Plastic bags and overwrap
– Other flexible plastic packaging
- Soup tins, foil, plastic to-go items, plastic bottles, yogurt and margarine containers, plastic packaging and more.
For more information on recycling, visit penticton.ca/recycling and try the ‘What Goes Where’ tool, or phone the Recycle BC Hotline at 1-800-667-4321.