The City of North Bay has teamed up with students from Canadore College for a second consecutive year to audit the residential waste going to the Merrick Landfill, according to a news release from the municipality.
The results of the week-long audit, which winds up Monday, will be used to help measure the effectiveness of the City’s waste diversion programs.
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It involves the sorting and categorizing of materials from randomly selected bags of garbage from each truck arriving at the Merrick Landfill over the course of the week. A total of approximately 80 bags of waste is expected to be sorted, allowing the City to capture a sample from every neighbourhood in North Bay.
Once bags are opened, the Canadore students divide the material into two main categories — waste not included in the City’s diversion program, which is expected to find at the landfill; and material that is included in the City’s diversion program, which should not be disposed at the landfill.
Last year’s waste audit indicated that 60 per cent of the material going to the Merrick Landfill from residential curbside pickup should have been diverted through the City’s waste diversion programs.
Recyclables made up the largest portion of that, representing 25 per cent of the total waste that should have been diverted. Clothing/textiles were next at 15 per cent, followed by leaf/yard waste at eight per cent and hazardous waste at two per cent. The remaining 10 per cent consisted of other divertible materials such as tires, electronics, and reusable items.
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“These audits provide us with important information that can be used to improve our waste diversion programs, education and outreach,” said Victoria Thomas, an environmental control officer with the City of North Bay. “After last year’s audit, the City stepped up its effort to inform residents about which materials should be diverted from the landfill. This included the creation of a School Waste Diversion Outreach Program which is aimed at educating students about how they can help limit the amount of waste going to the landfill.”
The waste audits are also an opportunity for Canadore students to benefit from hands-on experience in the waste management field.
“Community collaboration is an important component of our sustainability plan, so we are happy to support the City of North Bay with this initiative and grateful for the opportunity that they are providing to our students,” said Jesse Russell, project leader – sustainable development at Canadore College.
The group of Canadore students will be providing a report to the City with their complete findings, which will be used to help update the City’s Waste Diversion Strategy.
