Photo by Vince Fedoroff
A CASE FOR BETTER WASTE MANAGEMENT – A raven contemplates its plans for this bag of garbage during a week that’s focused on improving the territory’s waste management system.
Do the heavy lifting to reduce waste, YG urges
The Yukon government is taking steps to improve the territory’s waste management system, and is asking all Yukoners to do the same.
The Yukon government is taking steps to improve the territory’s waste management system, and is asking all Yukoners to do the same.
Yukoners are encouraged to make the extra effort to reduce waste during Waste Reduction Week, Oct. 21-27.
The government is working to modernize and improve the territory’s waste management system by introducing a ban on single-use bags and improving how rural waste facilities serve each region.
In partnership with municipal governments, YG is also working toward a more sustainable solid waste management system in the territory. Work is underway to finalize regional landfill agreements with municipal partners that will:
• improve the operating standards of waste management facilities, including weigh scales, fences and onsite staff; and
• introduce a user-pay system to make tipping fees consistent across Yukon, the government said.
It’s also continuing work on enhancing designated material regulations, implementing extended producer responsibility where possible and improving the Yukon’s recycling system.
Extended producer responsibility would add the environmental costs of managing a product at the end of its life to the price of that product.
“Yukoners generate nearly one tonne of waste a year,” Community Services Minister John Streicker said Monday.
“Reducing waste is an incredibly important part of being a good steward for our territory. I’m asking all Yukoners to do the heavy lifting and make the extra effort this week and every week to reduce their waste.”
“Being mindful of how the products we buy will be disposed of is an important step in reducing what ends up in our landfills,” added Environment Minister Pauline Frost.
“I encourage all Yukoners to remember to use reusable bags, coffee mugs and water bottles, say no to single-use items, repair what we have, and to compost and recycle as much as possible.
“Reducing waste is all our responsibility; let’s do the heavy lifting together.”
Waste management and recycling costs have increased dramatically over the last 10 years, the government said.
It costs the territorial and municipal governments about $11 million each year to manage the waste in Yukon.
Introducing tipping fees across the territory is a way to help cover these costs and ensure all Yukoners pay their part to manage the waste they produce, the government said.
The Departments of Community Services and Environment are participating in Waste Reduction Week by running a friendly competition.
Employees will compete to determine which office spaces can reduce the most waste by composting, recycling and making better choices.
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Comments (9)
Up 16 Down 0
Guncache on Oct 25, 2019 at 9:57 pm
If you take a vehicle to the dump it will cost you $150 if you remove fluids and tires, $300 if you don't. I foresee a lot of abandoned vehicles on the roadways.
Up 14 Down 0
Nicky on Oct 25, 2019 at 6:43 pm
Yes, OVERpackaging needs to be addressed, however the use of thin plastic wrap with fresh food does more good than harm, especially if it's recycled and burned for energy to make electricity or cement like our recycled waste plastic in the Yukon.
I do not want my food contaminated by snot-nosed kids pawing over it or sneezing and coughing on it because their parents are irresponsible.
The thoughtless crusade to eliminate plastic packaging is misinformed. Lighter, non-recyclable packaging actually generates less waste. And once you start looking into plastic packaging, this kind of counterintuitive conclusion comes up all the time.
Some packaging is a foolish waste, but are shrink-wrapped cucumbers really so silly if it means they stay fresh for 14 days rather than three? Which is worse 1.5g (0.05oz) of plastic wrap or entire cucumbers going off before being eaten?
Plastic bags stop bananas going brown so quickly, or new potatoes going green; they catch grapes that fall off bunches.
About a decade ago, one UK supermarket experimented with taking all its fruit and vegetables out of their packaging - and its food wastage rate doubled. And it's not just shelf life - what about waste created before food gets to the shop in the first place?
Another supermarket, stung by criticism for putting apples in plastic-wrapped trays, tried selling them loose from big cardboard boxes - but so many were damaged in transit that the approach used more packaging per apple actually sold. According to a UK government report, only 3% of food is wasted before it gets to shops. In developing countries, that figure can be 50% - and that difference is partly due to how the food is packaged.
As more of us live in cities, far from where food is grown, this matters.
Even the dreaded single-use shopping bag might not be the villain it seems.
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-47161379
Natural gas is used to make plastic. The plastic is used to wrap food, keep it fresh and relatively uncontaminated. It's also widely used to wrap products to reduce damage and pilferage. Once the plastic has served it's purpose it can be burned like natural gas to provide heat and electricity in a Waste-to-Energy facility like the one in Burnaby BC, or used as 'engineered fuel' to heat cement kilns at 2000°C. That's a far better use for waste plastic than having it litter the land or end up in the ocean.
Up 25 Down 1
Groucho d'North on Oct 25, 2019 at 10:24 am
We are reaping the results of a culture change that happened over the past twenty-ish years. Nobody fixes anything anymore- they replace with new products. Case in point, I used to bring home electronics products found at the old Free Store home and fix them. In many cases the article needed perhaps just a minor adjustment or the removal of a CD not inserted correctly, sometimes it was just a blown fuse at fault.
The old Radio Shack is no more. There I could buy replacement parts like switches or controls and semiconductors to make these cast-offs work like new once again. But that was then and this is now and government wants to be seen to be doing something to address the problem. Here's a hint: Make sure free stores are located at landfill sites so the public can select what has some life left in it for their purposes rather than causing somebody to go buy a new item complete with ridiculous packaging.
A final thought: Mr. Striecker will all the Superfluous single-use plastic packaging for cannabis products be corrected to be compliant with what you are preaching?
Up 23 Down 1
And... on Oct 25, 2019 at 9:06 am
How much more money is Raven Recycling going to make off of this? Why are we sending garbage down south to be burnt for energy? How much money is that costing us? Why aren't we using it to make our own energy? I would encourage anyone who thinks that Raven can't be abusing our tax dollars to take a very close look at Many Rivers.
Up 22 Down 5
JC on Oct 24, 2019 at 5:11 pm
I'll pay them tipping fees when they lay off all the staff at the garbage dumps. As long as I pay their salaries out of my taxes, then they can do the work and the governments can pay the bill.
Up 51 Down 1
Richard Bishop on Oct 24, 2019 at 4:43 pm
Programs that increase the cost of living for the average citizen, is as Streiker says "Heavy lifting",
What it means is "No lifting" for big box stores and corporations that produce most of the waste thru their packaging.
Up 35 Down 3
Max Mack on Oct 24, 2019 at 4:25 pm
Of course waste management and recycling costs have "increased dramatically". It is the politicians, government administrators and self-serving NGOs that have demanded the very programs and policies that are driving costs through the roof.
In fact, the "new" plan is more of the same: forcing us plebs to absorb another round of costs. Of course, these costs are for our own good. Never mind that the environment will actually be worse off . . .
Trying to shame us with the "dramatic cost increase" angle is so specious.
Up 16 Down 8
Juniper Jackson on Oct 24, 2019 at 2:45 pm
Maybe the government could start a tattle tale program? Everyone, (but me) has a cell phone these days..get a picture of someone dumping garbage, littering our streets.. fine the perp as you would a DUI, seize their vehicle, etc. and the tattle tale gets ..? Something.. Personally, I hate littering.. I don't like a lot of our 'street' garbage so to speak. I saw and heard, this guy.. hock up a lugie and spit it on our side walk.. little kid came along, stepped on it.. someone walking their dog stepped on it too.. then they go home and jump on your bed..
As long as all the efforts to manage waste are sensible, I support this minimization a 100%.. but, like all things a government does, I think it's going to get stupid. We'll see.
Up 41 Down 1
Al on Oct 24, 2019 at 2:36 pm
Oh boy - more environmental taxes for users !! Hurrah, I am so excited that our government once again has their grubby hands in our pockets. Yippee !!