(Image: City of Saint John)
Waste Reduction Week runs from Oct. 18 to 24 this year.
It is a national campaign to draw Canadians’ attention to the amount of waste that is produced, and the various steps citizens can do to reduce their impact.
Brenda MacCallum, public relations and program development officer with Fundy Regional Service Commission, said in an interview that larger items, such as building supplies and furniture are piling up in landfills.
“And a lot of these items can go somewhere else, and could be reused … when we look at trends in terms of consumption we’re using more of the larger items, and smaller items as well.”
With that in mind, MacCallum mentioned, with citizens consuming more, “we’re turning into a throw-out society.”
MacCallum said there are simple ways everyone can reduce waste, such as donating items to a restore or dropbox.
“As well … pick a habit and try and tackle one new thing (at a time), whether that’s instead of purchasing a cup of coffee in a disposable coffee cup, use a reusable mug every day.”
MacCallum added another factor the campaign is addressing is food waste.
She mentioned citizens should try to “use up all of your food that you can without wasting it, and anything that has to get tossed just make sure you’re composting it.”
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