Recycling: the definitive guide

Recycling bottles, cans, paper and plastics and composting leftover coffee grounds and orange peels can sometimes be confusing. Scratching your head over what to do with a dead house plant? Not sure where to recycle your old cell phone? We’ve compiled a definitive list of what goes where to help you sort through your rubbish.

 

 

What goes in your City of Toronto blue bin:

• household paper (junk mail, writing paper, computer paper, flyers, envelopes)
• gift wrap and cards (bows and ribbons removed)
• paper egg cartons, cardboard tubes, paper bags
• boxboard boxes (cereal, tissue and detergent boxes)
• newspapers, phone books, old TTC transfers
• magazines, catalogs, books
• corrugated cardboard (clean, unwaxed, flattened)
• cardboard cans (frozen juice, powdered drink mix, powdered cleanser containers)
• plastic food jars, tubs, lids (margarine, yogurt, ice cream)
• plastic bottles/jugs with lids
• milk/juice cartons
• empty paint cans/lids (separated)
• empty aerosol cans
• metal cans
• glass bottles/jars
• aluminum rigid trays and pie plates
• drink boxes

What doesn’t:

• toys, makeup jars, caulking tubes, clear egg cartons, fruit/veg containers, food storage containers, drinking cups and takeout food containers, pails with metal handles, motor oil jugs, bags, plant trays, flower pots, Styrofoam or polystyrene containers, drinking glasses, dishes, light bulbs, mirrors, pottery, pans, coat hangers, batteries, foil wrap and bags, tissues, wax paper, foil gift wrap, waxed cardboard
  

What goes in your City of Toronto green bin:

• fruit/vegetable scraps
• meat and fish
• pasta, bread, cereal
• dairy products, egg shells
• coffee grounds and filters, teabags
• soiled paper and tissues
• soiled paper food packaging
• cake, cookies, candy
• diapers and sanitary products
• house plants, including soil
• pet waste, bedding, kitty litter

What doesn’t:

• plastic wrapping, containers, trays or milk bags; dryer/lint sheets, Styrofoam; hair, pet fur, feathers, fireplace or barbeque ashes, wood scraps, vacuum bags and contents

Stuff that can be recycled at solid waste drop-off depots:

• drywall
• scrap metal (tools, auto parts, pipes, ride-on lawnmowers, bike fames, appliances)
• polystyrene (rigid and foam plastic such as cups, food containers, cutlery and flower trays)
• computers
• tires (rims removed)
• used motor oil

For drop-off locations, visit www.toronto.ca/recycle, or call 416.338.2010.

 

Cell phones, clothes and other stuff:

The Toronto Zoo offers a free cell phone recycling program in partnership with Eco Cell. For every cell phone recycled, Eco Cell will make a donation to the Toronto Zoo’s Green Fund, which supports “green” initiatives. Drop off your old phones at Guest Services or mail them to the Toronto Zoo - Cell Phone Recycling Program, 361A Old Finch Avenue, Scarborough, Ontario, M1B 5K7. For more info, check out their website.

To recycle your personal computer, desktop server, monitor, scanner, printer, fax machine, modem, hard drive, ink or toner cartridge, consumer electronic device, TV, external components like cables, mice, keyboards and speakers, contact Toronto’s Accu-Shred. Computers for Schools refurbishes old laptops and PCs and donates them to schools, libraries, and not-for-profit groups. Send old floppy disks or data CDs to Green Disk Services. If you use disposable cameras, drop them off at your local photo store for recycling. Believe it or not, they have the highest recycling rate of any consumer product.

Canadian company On & On écolo chic lets you donate old togs or buy new ones made from recycled fabrics. When you’re ready to trade in your winter coat or update your favourite jeans, drop them off at local shelters and charities who are accepting donations. Goodwill turns revenues from donated clothing into job training programs and other services.

Still left with some junk you don’t want to dump in the landfill? Freecycle, a grassroots and nonprofit network where unwanted items are traded free of charge, has a Toronto group worth checking out. For creative ideas on recycling and reusing random stuff, visit Recycle This or its partner site Compost This.