It’s been a winter like every other here in Ontario, but fortunately Winter will be on its way out over the course of the next month. We’d like to start here by saying how much we appreciate the work done by those who keep the roads and highways of the Province drivable when there’s snow and ice build up, and the thanks we have should be a given considering what our work involves as a Trenton Colborne dumpster rental and waste disposal business.
What has been different about this winter is how all of the COVID-19 protocols put into place has changed our lives, and the way we experience life in public. As civic-minded people we always support the municipal governments and know that they make these decisions based on the based science based on restricting the spread of the virus. So we’re happy to see that most people have been wearing masks, and especially when indoors in public places as that’s where the protection is really needed.
However, it doesn’t take much to imagine how many disposable masks are ending up in the trash these days. And – as you would also expect – we are very qualified to be telling you that’s exactly what’s happening. So many of them are being thrown out that you could take 3 of our disposal bin rentals and fill all over them in just a day or two! Maybe not quite, but it’s true that massive amounts of disposal masks are in the trash these days.
The waste can be processed, but the problem is if these masks don’t end up being disposed properly they can harm wildlife. So if you need to throw out a disposable mask just take some time to quickly tug hard enough on the ear loop strings to tear one end off the mask. Both sides.
Doing so will mean that there’s no chance that mask might end up around the neck of an animal or obstructing it in another way. But an even better suggestion is to buy a good quality reusable mask and then you won’t need to use the disposable surgical masks.
So that’s one truth, and what we’ll do now to complete this short blog entry is disprove 3 common myths when it comes to recycling. The second one in particular is really good to know, as high recycling rates for food packaging plastics is something that’s really important for major urban centers in Ontario and all across Canada.
MYTH #1 – Most Canadians are good with recycling as much as possible.
You’ve got to be committed and proactive if you’re going to a good recycling household. Is there more than one location in a household to store recyclables? If not, recyclables in areas outside the kitchen may get tossed out. Is there only one person in the house who’s expected to deal with the recycling? It’s known that making recycling a whole family thing – where everyone participates – leads to the most recycling of the right materials.
MYTH #2 – Containers need to be completely clean to be accepted and recycled.
It’s better if bottles, cans, and containers are as clean and free of food or drink residue before you recycle them. But the truth is they don’t need to be squeaky clean. Just make sure they’re clean enough to avoid contaminating other materials, and usually just a fairly good cleaning of them will do.
MYTH #3 – Even if it’s not in the recycling cart, the hauler will sort everything anyway.
More and more different types and varieties of non-recyclables and items that require special handling are arriving at waste disposal and recycling facilities in Canada. When they do they must be removed by hand by staff or sorted out mechanically. This has to be done as some items will negatively affect the ability of other legit items to be recycled properly themselves.
Non-recyclable garbage and materials requiring special handling placed in recycling increases the cost of the recycling process as well as the cost of waste and recycling collection services.
And the biggest problem is plastic bags. Workers need to climb into the machinery to cut plastic bags out of gears and screens.
Place recyclables directly into your blue bin or recycling container all the time!
That’s all for now, remember to always calls us if you need dumpster rentals in Trenton or Colborne or you need waste removal and disposal around here too.