An unhappy little red face will soon be seen on garbage cans throughout Langley Township — but residents can turn that frown upside down by using a Green Can.
Last spring, the Township introduced its Green Can program, encouraging people who live in single family homes and receive municipal garbage collection to mix food scraps, bones, and soiled paper in with their yard trimmings.
By marking an 80-litre can with a Green Can sticker, food and yard waste is picked up from the curbside each week and composted, rather than sent to the landfill.
“Food scraps account for 40 per cent of our garbage,” said Township solid waste coordinator Debbie Fleming, who noted that additional steps are now being taken to enhance Green Can use.
To remind residents about the program, stickers featuring a sad red face asking ‘Where is your Green Can today?’ are being placed on garbage cans that are still being used for food scraps.
As well, information about the Green Can and a disposal ban on food scraps has been included with tax notices sent out to Township residents.
“Recycling and composting are less expensive to process than garbage, and they are better for the environment,” Fleming said.
“In 2011, Township residents composted over 6,700 tonnes of food scraps and yard trimmings. That’s a great start but we need to do more. If we just take a few minutes to separate our waste, we can reduce disposal costs and help our environment.
“Township staff will continue to make every effort to ensure residents have the information they need to get started,” Fleming said.
For more information, visit tol.ca/greencan.