The City of Guelph expects the high-density, multi-residential (MR) sector to grow to over 30% of its total housing stock by 2031, up from 11% in 2011. In an attempt to improve and expand collection services to MR buildings the City added front-end service in 2018. This involved purchase of a front-end collection vehicle with [...]

This week's blog post was originally published March 30, 2021 by Resource Recycling. Education campaigns may improve curbside recycling practices for residents who produce average or low amounts of contamination, but they may not impact the worst offenders, according to new research. The Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) has released a report developed by [...]

Appropriate engagement opportunities allow municipalities to make better decisions on projects or plans. Public input can maximize the benefits of a project, minimize any negative impacts, and provide new ideas or initiatives for communities. Since successful waste management systems rely on those that participate, getting public engagement in waste management planning ensures that those taking [...]

Contamination levels in the blue box program have been top of mind for many municipalities. The issue has led to a variety of contract management challenges, requiring, in some cases, that contracts be renegotiated. Contamination has also been a topic of concern in the development of the impending regulation. Interestingly, the pandemic offers program operators [...]

Public spaces have their own unique issues to manage when setting up collection programs. They can be a broad range of situations and the types and quantities of waste generated can vary significantly depending on who uses the space and how it is used. To assist municipalities with designing a successful program, the CIF has [...]

Using digital media to get a message out is a relatively new practice for municipalities Over the last few years, groups have tested their hand at communicating through social media and other digital media platforms. What we’ve learned is that digital media, while allowing for faster circulation of our ‘calls to action’, still requires just [...]

The Renfrew County Multi-Municipality Waste Group (“Group”) through CIF project 956 obtained technical RFP support, and financial assistance to develop promotion and education (P&E) materials. The Group aimed to develop a joint waste management procurement document between to standardize recycling and waste management contracts and improve access to recycling program for multi-residential buildings. The Group […]

High contamination rates got you stumped? Peel Region transitioned from curbside Blue Box service to an automated cart based collection system in January 2016. Cart based service offers residents more storage capacity so they can set out more recyclables. The good news is that the amount of recycling set out by residents has increased; the [...]

Promotion & Education (P&E) is the messaging to residents that builds awareness of the Blue Box program, motivates them to participate, and instructs them on how to do it properly. P&E messaging can be conveyed through a broad range of multi-media tactics and channels – newspapers, billboards, posters, flyers, calendars, guides, TV, radio, social media, [...]

Distributing P&E in person to multi-residential tenants requires a lot of resources and may not be feasible for all buildings in all municipalities. However, occasional in-person distribution to prudently selected buildings can reap valuable information and boost recovery. To test this theory, Simcoe County put a new spin on a familiar study. Staff selected three […]

Day in and day out we’re all required to communicate to try to encourage those around us to take action based on what we’ve asked them to do.  We’re required to drive changes in perspective and behaviour whether it’s in how residents set out materials at the curb, or in how a contractor collects or […]

Promotion & Education (P&E) is important because, done well, it can secure public support and help ensure the success of Blue Box recycling programs. Here’s a closer look at a P&E strategy that the City of London has undertaken. When the Corporation launched a YouTube Channel they began posting educational videos from various service areas. […]

CIF Staff interviewed communications expert Barbara McConnell as well as some of our municipal colleagues who are actively engaged in P&E campaigns to find out how they analyze the impact of their P&E campaigns. Here’s what we found. Audits are a great starting point, but they’re not the whole story Barbara tells us, audits answer […]

The new public space recycling and signage page features a lot of great information for you laid out in a convenient, drill-down format. When you go to the page, simply click Read More below the button on the topic that interests you to jump to the detailed information you need. (Note – the buttons are not clickable on […]

Convincing residents in multi-residential (MR) buildings to recycle is a challenge, getting them to recycle right can be even harder, but - as City of Ottawa staff have demonstrated, that doesn't mean you want to stop trying. The issue In 2015, staff approached CIF with a proposal to try a novel approach to MR P&E. [...]