Almost everything we buy leaves behind some kind of waste. In 2009, Ontarians generated 12,000,000 tonnes of waste, of which 9,000,000 were sent to landfills.
How can YOU help?
Make sure you do the right thing with the waste you produce. But what’s the right thing to do with things like old phones, fertilizer, or old medication? The Waste Navigator tool on the right will help you find the right place to dispose of many types of household waste — and minimize your impact on the environment.
By diverting and reducing your household waste, you will:
- extend the life of landfills and reduce the need for new ones
- reduce airborne emissions
- reduce the potential for groundwater and land contamination
- contribute to Ontario’s growing green economy
- conserve valuable natural resources.
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Want to know how to recycle specific types of household waste? |
Eco Bulletins
Make waste reduction a priority when shopping—and save money
A lot of people assume that being environmentally friendly involves spending more money. But you can actually save a lot of money by reducing waste.
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Do you REALLY need it? Borrow it, rent it, or use something you already have and keep your money in your wallet. |
Blue Box
Ontario's Blue Box collects residential waste materials such as household paper, glass, metal and plastic. The program surpassed its 60 per cent overall diversion target in 2006, two years ahead of the required date of December 31, 2008.
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Make recycling programs even more successful by choosing 100% recycled products. |
Feb 9, 2011 - McGuinty Government Protecting Environment And Strengthening Clean Economy
Sims Recycling Solutions opened its new Mississauga e-waste recycling facility on February 9th, 2011. It will create up to 200 jobs and process 100,000 metric tonnes of waste electronics and electrical equipment annually. That is equivalent to 14,700 full garbage trucks.
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Recycle old electronics. Use the Waste Navigator on the right to find out where to drop them off. |
Household hazardous waste – what is it? What do you do with it?
Household hazardous waste is a common term, but can be confusing. Are common products we use every day hazardous? What does “hazardous” mean, exactly?
Some household products like paint, solvents and pesticides contain materials that can be harmful to the environment if improperly managed.
All of us have a role to play to keep these materials out of our landfills and waterways and keep our environment clean.
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Bring hazardous waste like batteries, motor oil cans, propane tanks or paint to hazardous waste depots. Find a depot near you using the Waste Navigator on the right. |
What do you do with that old cell phone?
So you’ve got an old beige desktop with 500MB of RAM. In that spot at the back of the closet, there’s probably an old VCR and a cell phone too. They’re collecting dust but you don’t think you can just drop them in the garbage. So where do they go?
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Find a collection spot near you for recycling electronic waste. |
