Do you Support these 5 Ways to Reduce Toronto Waste – a Discussion
There’s been a lot of research conducted on how cities like Toronto can reduce waste. So many different ideas have been proposed however it’s unclear on how Toronto can successfully move forward. Most of the proposals introduced have focused on demotivating waste production and motivating pro-recycling practices. In some cases, philosophies have targeted the economic aspect, arguing that to pollute should come at a cost – particularly for small businesses and corporations. Here are some of the current ideas being debated by the City of Toronto regarding how they would discourage and limit waste, and encourage the development of more sustainable alternatives.
#1 – Deposit return programs
Programs that reward consumers who refund items that they’ve previously bought – such as a bottle, a non-alcohol aluminum can, or plastic container – has been highly recommended. Even items such as batteries and e-waste are believed to have some potential for these type of deposit return programs. Across Canada, deposit return programs has been responsible for an average 80 percent return rate, though these type of programs differ per province. Many organizations continue to push for Ontario to accept non-alcohol plastic bottles for deposit exchange, similar to provinces like New Brunswick, however Ontario has yet to accept or favor an initiative like this.
#2 – Cutting taxes on small item repairs
Cutting taxes on small item repairs and offering income tax credits on the labor costs of repairs is a technique currently employed in Sweden. Though these laws were first enacted in 2017 and the data on them is still unclear on how successful they are, there are already some communities across Canada employing similar tax breaks, including Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. It will be interesting to see in the next few years how this impacts waste reduction.
#3 – Additional charges for single-use, non-recyclable products
More Canadian municipalities are banning single-use plastic bags, leading some to argue for additional fees rather than bans on other single-use items. For example, in the UK, a single-use plastic charge tax reduced plastic bag use by up to 80 percent. Employing similar fees for disposable plastic cups and takeout containers might help to foster a more recycling-friendly atmosphere. There has been some debate as to how this could affect small businesses who depend on single-use items such as this to deliver their product.
#4 – Charging customers for their waste
Canadians are charged a flat rate for their garbage disposal, no matter how much waste they produce. Instead of charging a flat rate, some have proposed a charge per bag or establishing a bag limit per household. The argument here is that this would encourage households to buy more recyclable items and/or products that could be reused. In some municipalities, such as Stratford, Ontario, this program has already been implemented. Charging residents $1.75 per garbage bag, a per-bag waste fee has been responsible for producing 35 percent less waste in Stratford and an increase in recycling of 62 percent. The argument against such a program is that it could potentially increase illegal dumping, recycling contamination, and littering.
#5 – Consumer incentives
Tires, mobile devices, and pesticide containers are all handled by industry-based waste and recycling programs. Some have argued that providing consumer incentives for returning and recycling these items could help in raising recycling rates. There are some businesses already providing similar incentives for customers looking to return products for recycling – including H&M, Best Buy, Apple, and cosmetics retailer Lush.
As Toronto moves towards a zero waste future, any of these 5 waste reduction methods could function as adequate. As a high quality Toronto waste management company, Core Mini Bins hopes to play its role in a future of limited waste and increased recycling.
