1. Reducing Contamination (or at least trying…)
Nadine Kerr
City of Toronto
MWA Spring Workshop May 2018

2. MWA Spring Workshop May 2018
Contamination in the City of Toronto
Blue Bin Contamination has been trending upward since 2013.
In 2017, about 25% of material in the Blue Bin was contamination.
Trending over 27% in 2018.
MWA Spring Workshop May 2018

3. MWA Spring Workshop May 2018
Contamination Trend
Overall trend is increasing
Somewhat cyclical – lower in December, jumps up in January after Christmas then slowly declines
Based on 75 to 100 audits per month
MWA Spring Workshop May 2018

4. MWA Spring Workshop May 2018
Contamination at a Glance
There are many challenges with respect to increasing contamination:
Increasingly complex recycling programs
Evolving product packaging
Stricter material quality requirements
Delays in adopting an Extended Producer Responsibility Model
Inconsistency in recycling programs; and,
Overall consumer confusion and recycling habits
MWA Spring Workshop May 2018

5. MWA Spring Workshop May 2018
Common Types of Contamination
MWA Spring Workshop May 2018

6. MWA Spring Workshop May 2018
Reducing Contamination Tactics
Ongoing Education:
Guides published in 18 different languages;
Annual Waste Calendars;
Online Waste Wizard;
Multi-million dollar campaigns (“Recycle Right”); and,
Wide array of other engagement activities.
MWA Spring Workshop May 2018

7. MWA Spring Workshop May 2018
Reducing Contamination Tactics (cont’d)
Monitoring and Enforcement (Single Family):
Direct Resident Interaction at Curbside
Curbside Bin Inspections
(Lid Lifts and Bin Empty’s to check
– 3% vs. 25%)
Tagging and Bin Rejections
(Initial Pilot showed great success - 85% improvement)
“Cost Recovery” Invoicing (Planned for Future)
1) Ongoing Education
Solid Waste Management Services offers a variety of educational resources and accessible media:
Blue Bin & Green Bin Guides published in 18 different languages;
Annual Recycling Calendars;
Online Waste Wizard; and,
Education Campaigns
2) Monitoring & Enforcement
In 2017, Solid Waste Management Services further expanded monitoring and enforcement through a Pilot Program for Single Family Homes, where staff visually inspected bins and tagged any with excess contamination.
Originally it was found that only 3% of bins were contaminated
Upon closer inspection it was found that the contamination was actually buried deeper in the Bin with contamination rates closer to 25%.
Some addresses that were visited a second time, showed a significant improvement after refusal to collect, and the pilot will continue through 2018.
Since late 2017, when we notice significant contamination in front-end loads we collect and charge those as garbage, as opposed to recycling.
In 2017, we visited about 24,000 sites and found that roughly 16% had contaminated Blue Bins.
MWA Spring Workshop May 2018

8. MWA Spring Workshop May 2018
Reducing Contamination Tactics (cont’d)
Monitoring and Enforcement (Multi-Family):
Direct Property Manager/Superintendent Interaction
Direct Tenant Interaction (where possible)
Bin Inspections, Tagging and Bin Rejections
Invoicing for Contaminated Recycling Lifts
Results:
Some buildings have improved performance to reduce increased costs.
Some buildings continue to setout contaminated material and will pay additional costs rather than improve performance.
1) Ongoing Education
Solid Waste Management Services offers a variety of educational resources and accessible media:
Blue Bin & Green Bin Guides published in 18 different languages;
Annual Recycling Calendars;
Online Waste Wizard; and,
Education Campaigns
2) Monitoring & Enforcement
In 2017, Solid Waste Management Services further expanded monitoring and enforcement through a Pilot Program for Single Family Homes, where staff visually inspected bins and tagged any with excess contamination.
Originally it was found that only 3% of bins were contaminated
Upon closer inspection it was found that the contamination was actually buried deeper in the Bin with contamination rates closer to 25%.
Some addresses that were visited a second time, showed a significant improvement after refusal to collect, and the pilot will continue through 2018.
Since late 2017, when we notice significant contamination in front-end loads we collect and charge those as garbage, as opposed to recycling.
In 2017, we visited about 24,000 sites and found that roughly 16% had contaminated Blue Bins.
MWA Spring Workshop May 2018

9. MWA Spring Workshop May 2018
Reducing Contamination:
Potential Future Options
Exploring and/or fostering alternative markets and strategies
Additional Cost recovery and Bylaw enforcement measures
Exploring mixed waste processing alternatives
Continue pushing to advance Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) in Ontario (or Toronto)
MWA Spring Workshop May 2018

10. MWA Spring Workshop May 2018
Contact Information:
Nadine Kerr
Manager, Processing Operations
Solid Waste Management Services\
Jim McKay
General Manager
Solid Waste Management Services
MWA Spring Workshop May 2018