You can now recycle more single-use plastic items in B.C. than ever before. (City of Nanaimo)

By Jordan Davidson

single-use plastics

Recycling program expanded with some single-use plastics now blue-bin friendly

Jan 9, 2023 | 3:45 PM

NANAIMO — The province is now accepting more recyclable plastic items at their depots and through residential blue bin programs.

The announcement was made on Friday, Jan. 6, and will allow easier recycling of some single-use plastic items and packaging materials. The changes affect recycling collection for local municipalities and the Regional District.

Taaj Daliran, manager of sanitation for the City of Nanaimo, said some newly recyclable items can be dropped off at the depot while others can go into your blue bin for regular collection.

“What has changed for our blue cart, our residential curbside collection program, is that now we have most of the harder plastics singe-use items or multi-use items as well, like plastic bowls, cups, cutlery, straws, and those items, can be collected through our blue cart program from our residents.”

Items now accepted in the blue bins include:

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• plastic plates, bowls and cups;
• plastic cutlery and straws;
• plastic food storage containers;
• plastic hangers (that come with clothing);
• paper plates, bowls and cups (with thin plastic lining);
• aluminum foil;
• aluminum-foil baking dishes and pie plates; and
• metal storage tins (thin gauge).

Various recycling centres around the central Island are also capable of taking in more products, including soft plastics and flexible plastic straws.

Daliran said it means fewer items are ending up in the landfill.

He added the sorting process is easier at depots, compared to the blue bins which mix a bunch of recyclables together before they are sorted by machine.

“When they take these materials to our blue cart to the receiving facility, these are mixed items. But when it goes to the depot they have what we call a “source at the source”, they source them over there, then they have more ability to collect a wider range of materials. That’s why certain materials cannot be thrown in our blue carts.”

The changes were first announced in 2020, with the provincial government giving affected businesses and municipalities two years to prepare for the change.

Flexible plastics which will now be accepted at recycling depots only include:

• plastic sandwich and freezer bags;
• plastic shrink wrap;
• flexible plastic drop sheets and covering;
• flexible plastic bubble wrap (no bubble wrap-lined paper);
• flexible plastic recycling bags (blue, clear bags, or yellow or blue bags used for curb-side collection); and
• flexible plastic carry-out shopping bags (reusable).
  Single-use plastic items like plastics plates, cups, and bowls can now be added to your blue-bins. (File photo/NanaimoNewsNOW)

Daliran said the government will continue over the next few years to figure out how to divert more items from the landfill into recycling depots to eventually include items like mattresses and electric vehicle batteries.

“As more materials come to the market, we constantly work with Recycle BC and the Ministry of Environment to see how will be the best way to recycle those materials as well.”

He said they don’t anticipate these new changes will affect routes or pick-up schedules for the City of Nanaimo, even as it continues to expand.

“We have established a good program that is very reliable, it helps us to increase efficiency, decrease the pollution, and also the liability of our system to a point that we can trust that we can manage the existing zones and routes within the almost high-rate of new houses coming to the market.”

He said the City will be able to manage the collection of recyclable items for at least the next two years without any major changes.

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jordan@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @JordanDHeyNow