Recycling contamination costs PoCo $20k
It’s time to sort yourself out – or at least to sort out your recycling.
After being hit with $20,000 in fines so far this year due to contaminated recycling, Port Coquitlam is calling on residents and businesses to take a little more care when deciding what to put in the blue bin.
“This collective effort is crucial to reducing contamination in blue bins, an issue that is incurring significant costs for taxpayers,” the city stated in a release.
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Besides incurring fines, Port Coquitlam’s 11.7 percent contamination rate has led to approximately 137 tonnes of potential recycling ending up in landfills, according to a statement from the city.
Recycle BC has a three per cent contamination cap.
Recycling loads that include either dirty items like unwashed containers or misclassified items like textiles tend to get rejected, leading to increased processing fees.
Some of the most commonly misclassified items include: scrap metal, wood, and plastic products like toys and patio furniture.
Residents can be fined as much as $300 for continually putting the wrong items in recycling bins.
To encourage better recycling habits, the city is invited residents to submit photos of a properly sorted blue bin for a chance to win a $100 gift certificate. More info here.
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