How is garbage sorting done in Canada?

After about four years of brewing and coordination, kitchen waste and other garbage were finally sorted and recycled in Sainichi, British Columbia, Canada. Separate classification of kitchen waste is not a pioneering work in Saichi, but has been implemented in many countries for many years, such as San Francisco, Seattle, Halifax, Canada and Toronto. There are also several cities in BC province that started two years ago, but recently the three cities have also caught up. Why should this garbage classification be implemented?

The garbage truck carries the garbage in the ash bucket to the landfill.

City of victoria, the capital of BC Province, where the three cities are located, has its only landfill, named "hartland", with an area of 3.29 square kilometers, which is used by the city's population of 340,000. Hartland garbage dump is more than ten kilometers away from the urban area, located at the end of a residential area. I can't smell any rotten garbage here, and I can't see the bare garbage in the shape of a mountain bag. As far as the field of vision is concerned, it is a large piece of land with horizontal roads and vertical roads like turtle backs. Every area in the field will be covered and sealed as long as it is filled with 7 meters thick garbage.

Every area of hartland landfill will be covered and sealed as long as it is filled with 7 meters thick garbage.

Hartland has a series of monitoring and environmental protection measures for odor, air quality, surface water, groundwater, soil quality, and the infiltration of toxic substances in the process of garbage decomposition. After the garbage fills the covering soil layer, trees are planted on every land; Once the garbage dump is completely filled, the land will become a lush forest. Around the landfill, there are biogas treatment facilities and clear ponds for drainage and storage of rainwater. In summer, the lotus in the pond is graceful and clean.

However, landfills are more than just burying garbage. Before landfill, we have to check the last step: minimize the amount of landfill and don't let go of any reusable items. At the entrance of the landfill, there is a strictly classified collection and storage place for various items, and residents pay for it free of charge; Garbage that pollutes land and water sources, such as light bulbs, batteries, paints, gasoline, engine oil, flammable liquids, electronic products, etc. , are specially classified and recycled to minimize garbage pollution.

In BC province, there are countless civic organizations that make their own unique contributions to reducing garbage. For example, the reuse of clothes. There are many charitable organizations here, which are responsible for collecting old clothes, calling every household regularly to ask if there are any clothes to donate, collecting them at home in various living areas, and then transferring the donations from residents to the poor in their own country and other countries.

Another example is recycling books. Books can be used as waste paper, but they are still a waste. There are many poor areas that need books, and the reuse of books is more valuable than reproduction as waste paper. To this end, many local groups collect old books. In addition to second-hand bookstores, there are also second-hand book markets for fundraising, and more are donated directly to low-income families, educational institutions and poor countries. In our community, many places can see a big blue iron box with a height of more than one person, which reads "Collect old books". It is specially designed for residents and can donate unwanted books at any time.

And food donations. Many families have extra food, and it is a great waste to throw it away directly after it expires. The local supermarket has a food donation office and a non-profit organization called Food Bank. Universities, primary and secondary schools organize "food bank" donation activities twice a year to collect food for the poor, and it is also convenient for residents to donate surplus canned food or dry goods at home to reduce waste.

A box dedicated to recycling books

The content is quoted from "Environment and Life" magazine "What does Canada's top-down garbage recycling tell us?" , by Liao Xiaoying/Photography.