Photo: New rules for blue and black recycle bins
Confused by the new Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) recycling program?
By Della Wilkinson
The Glebe Community Association’s Environment Committee has been hearing from Glebe residents who are unclear about the new recycling program. Among the most common concerns:
- what should go into the blue and black bins under the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) recycling program.
- how residents get broken or missing bins replaced.
After confusion in early January about whether residents must pay for replacement blue and black bins, the Environment Committee contacted Circular Materials and Miller Waste to get some answers to these basic questions.
Let’s start by clarifying the roles and responsibilities between these two organizations. Circular Materials is a not-for-profit organization that designs and monitors recycling systems to help producers meet their obligations under EPR. Miller Waste has been contracted by Circular Materials to collect residential recycling and to provide replacement recycling bins.
A visual list of accepted materials can be found on the Circular Materials web page https://www.circularmaterials.ca/resident-provinces/ontario/, but the simple rule is if you buy a consumable product, the packaging and the container should go into the recycling with the following exceptions:
- alcohol containers
- aerosol sprays showing a toxic, corrosive or flammable symbol (however, cooking and cosmetic spray containers are recyclable)
- books
- cooking pots
- diapers
- hazardous materials such as paint and batteries
- toys
Residents can pick up a replacement blue or black bin (not green bins, which are managed by the City of Ottawa) free of charge at Miller Waste Systems (East), 1815 Bantree Street. Residents must have a form of identification, such as a driver’s licence, that shows their address and complete a form. Millar Waste is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday except statutory holidays.
We have asked how residents with mobility issues or those that do not own a car can get their bins replaced and are awaiting an answer from Circular Materials.
Of course, the best option is to give materials a second life, which is why the GCA Environment Committee is once again collaborating with the Enviro Crew of Old Ottawa South on a “big collection” of items that we can recycle, reuse or repurpose. We will have our spring collection on Saturday, April 25 between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Drop recyclables at Brewer Park, corner of Cameron and Seneca.
Please feel free to contact us with any questions you may have about waste reduction – envirocrewoos@gmail.com and environment@glebeca.ca.
Della Wilkinson is chair of the Glebe Community Association’s Environment Committee.