How to Green Waste: Queen of Green Coaching project
Waste is a huge topic, and can be somewhat confusing to some. A lot of people think that all waste should go in one bin, which is not good for the environment.
If you live in Edmonton like me - I've put together an Edmonton-specific guide to recycling and waste here!
Here are some tips from the Queen of Green on how to green waste:
Recycling (blue bin) dos and don'ts
Check with your municipality to find out HOW to sort things properly so they actually get recycled! If you live in Edmonton, check the What Goes Where? guide to refresh your memory on what goes in the garbage, recycling, and eco-station. You can even download the Edmonton WasteWise app and search for specific things to find out where they should go!
Reduce is the first "R".
How much packaging is entering your home? How about purchasing fewer prepared foods, buying in bulk and packing waste-free lunches?
Got a baby?
Switch to eco-friendlier diaper options or fall in love with cloth diapers.
Recycle less!
Reuse that glass pickle jar – it is easy to wash (dishwasher-friendly), has an air tight seal and doesn't leach any toxics like Bisphenol-A (BPA). Store leftovers (even in the freezer), store dry goods or pack your lunch! What other items could you reuse or repurpose and stop recycling?
Minimize household energy waste.
Save energy with small changes to household habits. Maybe it's time to kill vampire electronics – turn off and unplug.
Hang laundry to dry.
Or shrink drying time with wool dryer balls. Check out my post on greening your laundry here!
Recycle batteries, old paint, electronics, small appliances, and gardening chemicals that seem to pile up in our garages and basements.
(These can all be taken to an Eco-Station in Edmonton.) About 96 per cent of the materials in mobile devices are recyclable, but only 12 per cent of used mobile devices are being recycled in Canada. In Edmonton you can recycle your old cell phones at London Drugs, bring to an Eco-Station, or to an Electronics round-up.
Call-2-Recycle will take used household batteries. This includes single-use and rechargeables, too.
London Drugs has a "bring back the pack" program. Bring in the receipt and they'll recycle cell phones, batteries, disposable cameras, small appliances, AND the packaging (like Styrofoam)! Recycling fees apply to items not purchased in store. London Drugs accepts batteries and electronics for recycling.
Best Buy has a Trade-In program where you can bring in electronic devices in exchange for a Best Buy gift card (depending on the value of your item). Apple also has a Trade-In program for credit towards your next purchase or an Apple gift card, or if it's not worth anything to them, they'll recycle it for free.
Donate something!
You'd be surprised at how much of what you're not using is needed by someone else and how easy it is to give. Chances are that if you aren't using it, someone else will! You could also join a local swap page to sell or give away your items!
Start composting or vermicomposting.
Only 30 per cent of Canadian households compost. With households still responsible for half of the country's greenhouse-gas emissions, why not start there? Your garbage is about 40 per cent organic waste and composting keeps all that garbage out of the landfill. Backyard composters are cheap. I actually got mine through redeeming Air Miles!
I am definitely making a goal out of improving my composting. I use the composter to put all of my kitchen scraps but am not good at getting the "brown matter" to balance it out. I'm going to work on figuring out how I can do that to be more effective in my composting.