Since she spends so much time thinking about the energy required to produce, ship and package food, Heather Johnstone is acutely aware of what's going into her garbage can.
"There's actually not much that can't be recycled or composted if you can take the time to sort it," she says. The new mom gamely agreed to let us photograph her garbage, collected over four days. In fact, there was so little, that she also brought along some of her compostables.
Although she uses cloth diapers, a disposable diaper is in the mix - used after too many late-night feedings and not enough loads of laundry done. A paper to-go coffee cup (compostable) with a plastic lid (not compostable), also purchased after those same nights, when caffeine was a must and she didn't have her travel mug with her.
"No one can be perfect all the time," she laughs.
Although you can recycle thermal cash register receipts, some recycling advocates suggest it's not a good idea. The paper contains minute amounts of cancer-causing Bisphenol A, which can contaminate the recycled paper pulp. Private recycling companies will accept plastic bags, like WCS Recycling (wcsrecycling.com) or Pacific Mobile Depots (pacificmobiledepots.com).
Paper napkins and kitchen waste can all be composted. For more information on what to do with your waste, visit the North Shore Recycling Program's website at nsrp.bc.ca.
