It’s time Delta led the way again when it comes to recycling.
About 30 years ago Delta became the first jurisdiction in Western Canada to offer curbside collection of recyclables, which made recycling depots that had been set up at community centres obsolete. Soon every town and city came on board as there was widespread agreement that the easier you make the recycling process, the more people that will take part in it.
Curbside collection has been a resounding success, preventing countless tonnes of everyday material from ending up in landfills and incinerators, but only a fraction of what can be recycled these days is eligible to be picked up at the curb.
The local bottle depots accept some of those additional items, but only so many, leaving countless people trying to figure out where to do the responsible thing. The “Recyclepedia” feature on the BC Recycles website provides direction on many fronts, but having to navigate the George Massey Tunnel to get rid of something as mundane as a blender or a handful of batteries seems so last century.
The Vancouver Landfill has an expansive recycling section, so it might be best not to always heed Recyclepedia’s advice about heading to Richmond, but we’re still talking about two highways and a lineup to get the deed done.
It would be nice if that guiding principle when it came to recycling – the need to make it convenient – was embraced to a greater extent, particularly given today’s system is so complex it makes it difficult on those with even the best of intentions.
I realize curbside collection of every recyclable item is not a realistic option, but rather than force people to scour the web for drop-off sites, only to have them drive to one place for paint, another for power tools and a third for light fixtures, what about an old-style community depot? It would accept everything, relieving people of the challenge of figuring out what to take where, and would be convenient enough that all sorts of items now in garages or, worse, landfills would actually end up where they belong.
If curbside collection has taught us anything, it’s that people will participate if it’s convenient. And frankly, that’s not the case today.
