Reduce, Reuse, Recycle for the Planet

This week's blog post focuses on the topic of our latest podcast - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle for the Planet with Michelle Dias. You can click here to listen to the full episode! We've also kicked off our second Planet Clean-Up Month, where info can be found all about the event by clicking here! Michelle Dias teaches us what the three R's REALLY should be, with a little bit of a C mixed in there! Michelle works for the Waste & Recycling Services at the City of Calgary. She has been a naturalist and environmental educator for over 20 years, and has always felt curious and inspired by nature. Below are some tips and information Michelle shared with us on the podcast. Some of the information below will be specific to Calgary, AB, so please check the rules for the recycling and composting programs in your municipality.

The Three R's

REDUCE (as much as possible, first) Then REUSE, And if you can’t do either of those, RECYCLE (recycling does require a lot of energy, so put YOUR energy into the first two!).

Reduce

Try products with less packaging, like laundry detergent strips, or bar shampoo and conditioner Remove purely recyclable items from your kitchen, such as Ziploc bags, and use reusable jars or bags instead. You can buy reusable sandwich bags and although the invest may seem large to begin with, it is worth it in the end!

Reuse

Get things second-hand. There are tons of secondhand resources, including Facebook Marketplace, MEC Used Gear, Consignment stores, and so much more. Reuse items like jam jars and other containers! You can use jars as water glasses, and re-use butter or sour cream containers to store leftovers.

Recycle

The three categories of recycling are: Containers (plastic, tin, glass…think kitchen and bathroom packaging), paper, plastic bags Loose bags do not belong in the blue cart. Plastic bags should be stretchy material and bundled all in one, so they do not fly away at the facility. Crinkly plastic bags, like pasta bags are not collected Household items like toy trucks, shoes, and toothbrushes are not for the blue cart (when recycling, think about packaging over items) Black plastic can be a challenge to recycle in some systems, because of black conveyor belts camouflaging the items and the scanners not recognizing them Recycling metal, glass, and paper is way more valuable than recycling plastic (although, we should still recycle plastic that can be recycled...or reduce it in the first place!) Rule of thumb: anything smaller than your hand cannot be recycled. For example, Starbucks lids or to-go sauce containers. However, if recycled at the locations you received them, they usually have a program to recycle!

Compost

Remember, no food packaging and plastic can be composted, even if it says compostable (remember, it also takes a lot of resources to make compostable containers) Some offices or festivals have their own compostable systems that can handle compostable containers Food, yard scraps & cat litter can be composted Paper towels are compostable in most places