Composting is a lean, green (and free!) way to reduce the amount of waste you send to the landfill. While it’s not difficult, many people are intimidated by the process or simply don’t know what they can compost and what they can’t.
Here’s a quick primer on how it all works:
We like junk. I mean, we pick it up all day long. It’s always interesting to see what people discard and to imagine why they discarded it.
But you know what we like more? Less junk to bring to the landfill. Because we’re there all the time, we directly see the impact of our wasteful consumer habits. So we made this Slideshare presentation on how to reduce your junk production.
Check out the rest of our blog for more information about waste in Victoria and tips to reuse, reduce and recycle.
People around the world know Victoria as the City of Gardens. And yes, we have beautiful gardens and finely manicured lawns and blooming flowers almost all year long.
People who are not from the Pacific Northwest also think of the Pacific Northwest as a place where environmentalists rule the day. It’s easy to imagine that living in a place where nature takes so much space would make people want to preserve it as much as possible.
But among the Victoria sewage treatment plant controversy, the problems with the Victoria kitchen scraps program, we begin to wonder: is Victoria as green as it thinks it is? Here are some statistics to help clarify this a little.
Residential garbage makes up approximately 4,800 tonnes of waste sent to the Hartland landfill each year. Numbers from 2007 show close to 70,000 tonnes of solid waste produced every year, which includes commercial and industrial waste sent to the landfill or incinerator.
In general, BC still produces less waste per person than the Canadian average: 676kg vs 791kg (that was in 2004). In the same year, they also recycled more waste than the average Canadian.
In general, Victoria produces less waste and recycles more than the Canadian average.
Victoria’s total CO2 emission rate is about 5 tonnes per capita; the Canadian average is 18 tonnes and the US average close to 20. This definitely puts Victoria at the top of the pack when it comes to emissions.
However, 47.1% of Victorians still commute by car, with an extra 5.2% using carpool (2006 numbers). 12.6% use public transit.
One thing to be proud of, however, is the 9.5% of commuters that bike, compared to 2% in all of BC, and the 23.4% who […]
At Haul A Day, we have a philosophy. We call it the Pillars of Recycling. We believe that every old, broken or unused object deserves to receive thorough and thoughtful consideration. Is it really trash? What consequences will sending it to the landfill have on the environment and on others in the community?
Give it away
You’re probably a lucky person. You have a roof over your head, food to fill your belly and maybe a car to take you places. You have enough money to replace old objects, and would rather get a new one than spend money getting a broken one repaired. But not everyone has the same luck.
The first pillar of recycling is charity. It means giving away things that we don’t use anymore to those who gladly will. It means considering the needs of the less fortunate in the community.
Many charitable organizations are always looking for donations in kind—whether it’s your old fridge, your now grown children’s clothes, or even a couch that doesn’t suit your new paint color. They will give them away to those who need them, or sell them to sustain their charity activities. Your things get a second life.
Don’t worry: people are very creative with old objects. They recycle, upcycle, reuse and remake. They repair and beautify. They create things outside of the purchase-and-throw-away cycle; they resist the corporate call to never-ending consumption.
Avoid the landfill
Another good thing about giving away your old stuff is that you prevent adding to the landfill for no reason. The Hartland Landfill Facility, hidden away in the woods of Saanich, may be out of sight for most of us, but it certainly isn’t out of mind for people who, like us, […]
Updated: May 1st, 2015
We want this guide to be as useful as possible, so please leave a comment if you think something should be added or changed. We update it on a regular basis.
As you probably already know, not everything is accepted in the CRD’s blue bins and blue bags. Things like light bulbs, electronics, Styrofoam and paint will be left on the curb on pickup day. So, where do you recycle the things that the CRD won’t pick up? Here’s a list of commonly requested items and where they can be disposed of.
Televisions, computers, speakers and other electronic equipment shouldn’t be simply put in the trash. Some components are toxic and can seep into groundwater.
If your equipment still works and you’re just replacing it for a better model, consider donating it to a charity or non-profit or selling it online. Reusing is just as important as recycling.
However, if your electronic equipment is broken and not repairable, several places will take them.
The Bottle Depots on Glanford and Queens (not Quadra) will take all electronics, and so will the Island Return It locations in Esquimalt and Sidney. Most of them will also be accepted at Asset Investment Recovery on Glanford. You can also take them directly to the Hartland Recycling Centre.
The CRD bins won’t take light bulbs. You can take them to:
Styrofoam is not easy to recycle, so do your […]
Haul a Day Junk Removal has been part of the composting removal business for many years in the Greater Victoria Area. Composting is nature’s way of recycling and the cornerstone of organic gardening. Composting helps minimize soil erosion, helps plants grow stronger and it reduces the amount of trash we produce on a daily basis. Without question, British Columbians are leaders in composting and recycling in North America.
Composting uses all sorts of organic materials, from kitchen scraps to garden clippings. Last year, one of my clients inquired how we handle and dispose of noxious weeds or invasive plants. I was stumped, no pun intended!
Invasive plants, if left unchecked, can have a very negative effect on the native plant ecosystem and even on human health. Most invasive plants have been brought in by people who purchased seeds from other continents and planted them in private gardens. It is important not to re-introduce these invasive plants into our public or private composts. When these plants end up back into the compost ecosystem, the following can happen:
Some Common examples of Invasive Plants
Scotch Broom
English Ivy
Haul a Day Junk Removal has seen a lot of changes over the past seventeen years on how we separate the Recycling from the Waste Material. The amount of recycling presently diverted has without question changed our organization techniques and increased dramatically our loading and turn around times. The days of load it, dump it and on to the next job no longer exists. Fifteen years ago a typical load was brush, TVs, mattresses, computer monitors, printers, fluorescence bulbs, electronic devices and loose paper; today they are all banned from the landfill.
Some Quick Facts: The CRD services 340,000 people, receives 140,000 tons of waste per year and it now has the capacity to accept Solid waste until 2035. Victoria has also beaten National targets as of 2012 and the BC Electronic Waste Programs is the first to be implemented in North America. This is quite an accomplishment for the CRD and the Province of British Columbia.
Our Commitment to Recycle: Haul a Day Junk Removal Company diverted 100% of all recyclables from being dumped at the CRD Landfill, resulting in a much smaller “Carbon Footprint.” We also pride ourselves in donating much needed articles back to the less fortunate in our Community. These recycling procedures increases the probability that the 2035 landfill life may be extended.
For more information on our Services call Pete at 250 888-1221
I thought this would be a good Blog discussion on what we see left on the boulevards, corners and back alleys of our 13 CRD Municipalities. I did some research on the cost of illegal dumping in the CRD for example televisions, lamps, mattresses, drywall, and microwaves. In 2012 the CRD region collected 650 tons of abandoned and illegally dumped Junk for the cost of 330,000 dollars. Another travesty is people who dump their unusable gifts at Charities; these Organizations are struggling to help the less fortunate. The costs to Charities are in the thousands of dollars for the trucking, tipping fees and cleanup. Last, but not least, is the impact on our environment and the ability for others to enjoy outdoor recreational areas.
People often make the mistake of leaving unwanted articles in front of their houses, hoping that someone will give it a new home. As you know living in Victoria, it will rain and make that cabinet or TV worthless and there it sits, “as an orphan.” I have observed on many occasions a couch left on a vacant lot, the next day a couple of mattresses and the next day after that a chair. After a couple of weeks, you end up having a mini dump developing. The problem with abandoned Junk it’s like graffiti, If you don’t deal with it right away…you get the picture! Some Municipalities have tried to solve the problem by investigating who’s responsible and that takes a lot of time and money. The solution is that people understand that it is everyone’s responsibility to pitch-in and keep our CRD Region cleaner and safer for our environment.
If you don’t have a truck or the time, I highly […]