Don’t be surprised to see a smiley or sad face on your bin in coming weeks – it’s part of the city’s plan to push for more responsibility in recycling.
The bin-tagging program will see Waste Education officers from the city inspecting bins as they are put out for collection.
From a preliminary viewing of the top of rubbish piles, the officers will make an educated decision and place one of two stickers on bins – a smiley face for those who have recycled properly, a sad face for those the city and environmental groups would like to do better.
According to the city, officers will not be ‘rummaging’ through the bins; rather they will be aiming to gain a general overview of how a household is sorting their waste.
In an attempt to avoid promoting the project as some form of punishment for those who don’t recycle properly, there will be no adverse actions placed on anyone and as always the city is offering a range of resources to help residents educate themselves.
South East Regional Centre for Urban Landcare (SERCUL) chief Amy Krupa said the group was behind the idea, as increasing people’s awareness was a signifi ]cant yet simple step to increasing the recycling rate.
“Promoting responsible recycling in Canning will hopefully have a major impact by less recycling being disposed of inappropriately,” she said.
“If people are recycling responsibly there will be less chance of these items ending up in our rivers.
“If we all put in a bit more effort to put the right items in the right bin and make sure they are clean then our combined effort will make a huge difference.”
Cannington resident Gillian Harry said she was glad to see more impetus for residents to recycle.
“I just get a little annoyed with some of the stuff I see sticking out of people’s recycle bins around the area when I walk to the bus stop,” she said.
“I think it is a great idea as not recycling properly stops recycling being done effectively at the plant if it is contaminated.”
The project has been met with a mixed reception from the community, with some maligning the cost to ratepayers.
But the City of Canning responded by saying the project was funded by the Waste Authority through the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery Account and that the hope is that improving recycling efficiency would actually bring more savings back to the community.
