Newmarket's highly acclaimed annual blue box campaign is back! During this public education campaign, the Town of Newmarket aims to educate residents on correct recycling procedures for its curbside blue box program. Between August 6 to 30, Town staff will be visiting randomly selected neighbourhoods to conduct visual inspections of recycling placed curbside to ensure only recyclable items are in the blue box.
"Results from last year's campaign showed that 54% of households visited had contaminated recyclables," says Mayor John Taylor. "Reducing contamination will reduce the number of recyclables that end up in the landfill, reduce the environmental impact and reduce the cost associated with processing contaminated recyclables - and this is the goal of the Blue Box Educational Campaign. It is integral that we all do our part to divert waste. Please familiarize yourself with what is recyclable so that we can continue to save energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions."
From August 6 to 30, Town staff will visit neighbourhoods at random to perform visual inspections of blue boxes placed at the curb for collection. Residents can anticipate seeing one of two different sets of door hangers left behind once the inspection is done. One door hanger will identify that there are items in the blue box that do not belong, and the second door hanger will point out that the residents of the home are doing a good job with their recycling efforts.
Please note that this is an educational program, and no enforcement will be conducted by the Town. However, our collection contractor GFL may leave blue boxes at the curb if contamination is found and if set-out requirements are not met.
For the 2023 blue box campaign program, 83 per cent of Newmarket households visited had their blue box at the curb. 46 per cent of households visited received a 'good job' door hanger and 54 per cent received a 'recycling reminder' door hanger with tips on proper recycling methods.
Items placed in the blue box that are not accepted in the program are considered contaminated. This includes plastic shopping bags, recyclables in plastic bags, paper towels, Styrofoam, take-out cups, black plastic, and containers with food or liquids.
Items placed in the blue box that do not belong can pose processing challenges. These items can disrupt the sorting process and affect the quality and value of the recovered blue box materials.
Residents are reminded to review the Town's blue box recycling webpage for more information about the blue box program. If they aren't sure what goes where, they can use the Recycle Coach App feature on the Town's website or download the app onto a mobile device to find out.
Finally, everyone is reminded to keep these recycling tips in mind when placing material into your blue box:
- Plastic bags and plastic wrap are not accepted in the blue box. Please place these items in the garbage.
- Remove all food residue from containers before recycling. Wipe food residue with a paper towel before placing the item in the blue box. The paper towel can be placed in the green bin.
- Textiles (cloth items) do not belong in the blue box. Take these items to a textile recycling bin located at one of Newmarket's facilities.
- Plastic toys, batteries, medical waste, coffee pods and take-out cups and Styrofoam take-out containers do not belong in the blue box.
- Do not overfill your blue box to the point of overflow. Flatten boxes to save space.
- Place heavier items on top of lighter items in your blue box. This will help prevent lighter materials, such as paper, from blowing out of the bin and becoming litter.
- Cardboard boxes can be placed out for collection beside your blue box if flattened and in securely tied bundles no larger than 36" x 36" x 8".
- Residents can exchange their broken blue box for free by calling Green For Life (GFL) at 1-866-421-5625 and scheduling a replacement bin exchange.
For more information, please visit newmarket.ca/wasteandrecycling.