Making it Work: Improving Your Collection Programs
Tamara Shulman
Tetratech
Vancouver, British Columbia
As diverting organics continues to mainstream, the regulatory and behaviour change tools needed to get organics systems in place and increase capture while minimizing contamination are distilling. This presentation will delve into specific commercial and residential organics management programs across Canada and beyond that are yielding measurable results.
Learn how prominent organizations in the Industrial, Commercial and Institutional (ICI) sector are changing their waste management practices and benefiting from their new programs. Case studies will highlight key drivers and strategies for system and behaviour change. They will speak to how Vancouver’s International Airport andPort, a global hotel chain, and a large food manufacturer are taking steps to produce less waste and implement new programs to manage what’s left behind in a sustainable manner. Learn about the drivers that spurred these changes, the processes that were undertaken, the system assessments that were conducted, the processes that were updated and the new operating plans and schedules that were developed.
Municipalities across North America, including more than 50 municipalities across Canada have introduced green bin programs in recent years. In the presentation, we will review the many collection variables involved in program design and implementation: how materials are collected (food scraps and/or yard waste); pay-as-you-throw incentives and set out limits; frequency of collection across material streams; use of sensor technologies; measurement and enforcement; and behaviour change programs. We will also review a growing trend of every other week trash collection and how it consistently results in a 30 to 40% drop in trash tonnage and increased recycling rates within months of making the switch.
The presentation will conclude providing easily accessible, user-friendly tools for business technical assistance and summarizing key take aways for overcoming barriers and creating successful organics management programs.