Hello Everyone,
I have a question for you about recycling at events. I work for the City of Guelph in Guelph, Ontario and for Canada Day my colleagues and I set up 16 recycling receptacles throughout the park where the celebration was going to be held. The club running the event had never had recycling at the event. They set up about 50 garbage receptacles throughout the busiest area which meant that there was a garbage container every 20 metres in any direction and a garbage and recycling container every 40 metres. The garbage containers were metal (50 Gallons) with the appropriate coloured bags but no labels. The recycling containers were the carts with wheels (90 gallons), all blue, with blue bags, bullet hole on the top and labels that said "cans and bottles only" in big letters and "empty, no lids" in small with a picture of a can and a plastic bottle. We also had signs sticking up from the ground that said "look for the blue recycling containers for your cans and bottles" with the pictures. These signs were placed away from the recycling containers near garbage containers and by picnic tables. The day after the event it was found that a very small amount actually got into the recycling and that tonnes of waste was left on the field. In fact, 50 volunteer kids were busy picking up the waste for 4 hours that morning! In addition, many cans and bottles were found in the garbage even with the recycling container very close by! The event was from 2pm to 10:30 pm. So, my question is, why did people litter so much!? Why didn't they use the receptacles and why did they not put the recyclables in the recycling cart rather than the garbage??? Any thoughts, advise or resources to help myself and the city out with this would be really appreciated!
Julianna van Adrichem
Solid Waste Resources
Environmental Services
T 519-822-1260 x 2061
F 519-767-1660 E
[email protected]
guelph.ca
Recycling at Events
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from another list I'm on... There is a company here in Madison, WI, that facilitates recycling for large public evets, Madison RAH (Recycling Away from Home). They use volunteer teams at local music festivals, and educate festival-goers and vendors on such things as choosing recyclable beer cups, disposing of waste properly, etc. http://www.madisonrah.org/
Marcia Hartwig
Public Information Officer/
Storm Water Education Coordinator
Office of Lakes and Watersheds/
Madison Area Municipal Storm Water Partnership
Dane County Land & Water Resources
Dept. One Fen Oak Court, Room 234
Madison, WI 53718-8812
608-224-3746 (ph); 3774 (fax)
[email protected]
www.danewaters.com
www.myfairlakes.com
A few years ago we had an event where we let some of the local children manage the aluminum recycle stations. Since they got to keep the aluminum and cash it in, they did a very good job. They were from 11 to 14 years old.
Bear
Bear Slothower
HS&E Superintendent
BUILDING ENDURING COMMUNITIES ON SALT LAKE
VALLEY'S WEST BENCH 5222 West 11800 South
South Jordan, Utah 84095
Office: 801.743.4366
FAX: 801.253.5010
Cell: 801-599-4339
[email protected]
www.kennecottland.com
www.daybreakutah.com
Julianna and all,
A few thoughts as my group successfully advocated for recycling at our town's large annual festival beginning in 2006. The event is a well-established two-day event (30 yrs).
-- We publicized that recycling was going to happen in advance - articles & notices in the town paper & event brochure. (We did hear folks say that they "read about it".)
-- We went around to the food vendors & let them know about the recycling & gave them small bright yellow signs with the simple message "Please Recycle bottles, cans in yellow bins" to post at their booth.
-- We, too, had more trash cans than recycling bins, but the festival committee tried to be sure the recycling bins were in the key locations & always beside a trash container. Our recycling bins had slightly rounded dome lids with a single hole and a recycling logo on one "side" of the barrel. We taped a laminated strip on top with the wording "Aluminum Cans ... Plastic Bottles (CAPS OFF) ONLY, [with the word ONLY put between the two commodities in the layout]. Having talked to our MRF, the caps left on as what most commonly happens aren't ultimately going to matter ultimately at their end.
-- We had volunteer "roving monitors" who rotated around to the recycling bins throughout the festival area & encouraged folks as they walked near the bins to recycle their bottles/cans in the recycling bins. They also checked on both the recycling & trash bins to note how it was going to report back on progress. Doing a lot of the roving myself, I would take visible bottles/cans out of the trash & put them in the recycling bins & remove contamination from the recycling bins - serving as a visual lesson in proper recycling (knowing that people observed me in the process).
-- The following year we had a special "Caught Recycling" promotion in which we rewarded attendees who properly recycled as our volunteers roved past the recycling-trash stations. The prizes were donations of merchandise or gift certificates from our local businesses and art/craft/photography/music from our local artists. It was well- publicized in the local paper, event brochure, and in our e-mail recycling newsletter. Donors were acknowledged in the paper and at our recycling information booth at the festival. We also added recycling of vendors' cardboard boxes. It does take time, however. And as recycling and environmental issues are more forefront & in the public eye, the participation has increased. The town had 30 yard dumpsters for the bags of trash & 8 yd dumpsters for the bags of recycling. Checking on them after the second year of recycling at the festival, it appears that at least there could be a "swap" of one 30yd & one 8yd dumspster (allowing for more space for the recycling). [That was in one area where there was a large sit-down tent for BBQ, a popular eating venue at the festival.]
Best to you as you plan for the future!
Marilyn Sobanski
Rainbow Recycling
Black Mountain, NC, USA
[email protected]
Juliana,
I coordinate events recycling for the city of Boise. In addition to the suggestions that have been made so far, I'd like to describe another simple way to attract more attention to the recycling effort. We developed inexpensive signage structures that are visible from a distance. They consist of paper banners that were laminated and a 6' high pvc frame in the shape of an upside-down "U". We pound a short piece of rebar into the ground, slip the pvc "leg" over it, and use a slide-in coupler with each leg to hold the horizontal piece in place. We tape the laminated banner on the horizontal piece. It says "EcoStation - Recycle Here!" in bright colors. We have had a lot of favorable remarks about the structures, and I'd be happy to provide a photo if you email me at [email protected]. Also, I've found that using bright-colored icons of bottles, cans, and cups rather than words seems to work pretty well, as people can tell even with just a very quick glance what material the bin is intended for. With so many distractions at events, it is an uphill battle to capture the crowd's attention and keep recycling at the forefront.
Pamela
I don't know if studies have been done on features of an effective public event recycling program, but there should be. I can't help with your litter question, but my experience with public space/public event recycling is as follows:
1. It has got to be as easy to recycle as it is to throw the bottle/can in the trash.
2. Most people aren't going to go out of their way to find a recycling receptacle if they come to a trash receptacle first. There should be a recycling receptacle beside each trash receptacle.
3. There is a direct correlation between recycling/contamination rate and the distance between trash and recycling receptacles. Problems start beginning at about 1 foot apart. People often put the trash and recycling receptacles on either side of a door or walkway, but this does not work. For optimal recycling trash and recycling receptacles MUST BE TOUCHING.
4. Recycling and trash receptacles should either be an integrated unit, or match but look distinctly different. If using separate trash and recycling receptacles the trash receptacle should look like a trash receptacle, the recycling receptacle should be of comparable mass, but appear different (same shape, different color, or same color, different shape..).
5. The recycling receptacle should not look like a trash receptacle with the only difference being a sign on the top that informs the user about what to recycle.
6. Users should be able to easily recognize the recycling receptacle long before they get near the receptacle.
7. Recycling receptacle should have a restricted opening.
8. Being able to see the bottles and cans inside the recycling receptacle increases recycling and decreases contamination (for instance a clear plastic or wire mesh receptacle, or a frame that supports a clear bag).
9. Using black bags for trash and clear bags for bottles/cans allows bags to be removed from the trash and recycling receptacles at the same time and put in the proper dumpsters at the trash and recycling area. This results in only minimal additional labor costs associated with adding recycling.
Lastly, you can't blame the users. Our job is to figure out how to make the system work without requiring the user to figure it out. Hope this helps.
Ann Dorfman
Recycling & Resource Management Consulting
Newton, MA 02465
O: 617-244-9321
C: 617-413-4901
F: 617-446-1431
[email protected]
As indicated there will be many postings to this issue, In Nova Scotia (Canada) recycling (containers, fibre and organics; among other things) has been regulated for 10 years +; so people are generally 'trained' to do the right thing. However, when they lock the door to their homes, anonymity sets in and they are no longer responsible for their actions! We have found that the best sorted waste at events has the following characteristics for optimal public participation:
1.Clustered bins
2.Colour coded bins
3.Pictoral signs at 'eye level' (a level that can be seen clearly as patrons approach).
4.Different shaped holes for each stream of waste (conversely the Garbage should be the easiest to access and the biggest, open mouth - this helps keep contamination in the diverted streams lower - this has been studied a few times by varied groups and it always comes to the same results).
5.Train the ENTIRE Event Committee. Appointing a key person at an event who monitors volunteers has very limited success. Making the organizing committee responsible for waste in the same vein as they are responsible for securing vendors and aligning entertainment is key to giving waste a higher profile. There still ends up a Champion who lines up the waste committee, but he/she has the backing and support of the entire board.
6.Including media - before and after the event tell the media (not just about the huge crowds and successful event) the great achievements in keeping waste sorted. We have worked on many events using the above with examples of best practices since 2001 and have achieved some wonderful results - we also continue to perfect our events with ongoing networking with the organizing committees and 'paid' SWAT (Solid Waste Allocation Team) teams on the ground. By paid - community groups who send members as a fund raiser - the event committee makes a donation to the local Scout troupe or United Way . . ..or one major event has random people that dedicate time as a way to make some money - they are allowed to keep and cash in the returnables (nickel back beverage containers) that they collect from the ground and bins as long as they keep the other streams of waste emptied and the grounds clean of litter. They are highly visible (with coordinated t-shirts and hats). The answer is not straight forward nor will you find an event that is 100% successful, but abiding by the few points above and repeating the attempts and troubleshooting them year after year, you will meet success. Next week we set up our waste education booth at a week-long event that will see 50,000 through the noon to 11 pm daily fair - it is our 7th year setting up at this event and we traditionally achieve a minimum of 80% diversion - but we ALWAYS have many patrons that do not care and throw whatever they have in the garbage (where it stays) but I like to believe those patrons are getting fewer and fewer each year.
Valda Walsh BSc
TME Regional Coordinator
Region 6 Solid Waste Management
PO Box 40 Liverpool, NS B0T 1K0
P: 354-3709
F: 354-7472
Julianna and all,
A few thoughts as my group successfully advocated for recycling at our town's large annual festival beginning in 2006. The event is a well-established two-day event (30 yrs).
-- We publicized that recycling was going to happen in advance - articles & notices in the town paper & event brochure. (We did hear folks say that they "read about it".)
-- We went around to the food vendors & let them know about the recycling & gave them small bright yellow signs with the simple message "Please Recycle bottles, cans in yellow bins" to post at their booth.
-- We, too, had more trash cans than recycling bins, but the festival committee tried to be sure the recycling bins were in the key locations & always beside a trash container.
-- We had volunteer "roving monitors" who rotated around to the recycling bins throughout the festival area & encouraged folks as they walked near the bins to recycle their bottles/cans in the recycling bins. They also checked on both the recycling & trash bins to note how it was going to report back on progress. Doing a lot of the roving myself, I would take visible bottles/cans out of the trash & put them in the recycling bins & remove contamination from the recycling bins - serving as a visual lesson in proper recycling (knowing that people observed me in the process).
-- The following year we had a special "Caught Recycling" promotion in which we rewarded attendees who properly recycled as our volunteers roved past the recycling-trash stations. The prizes were donations of merchandise or gift certificates from our local businesses and art/craft/photography/music from our local artists. It was well- publicized in the local paper, event brochure, and in our e-mail recycling newsletter. Donors were acknowledged in the paper and at our recycling information booth at the festival. We also added recycling of vendors' cardboard boxes. It does take time, however. And as recycling and environmental issues are more forefront & in the public eye, the participation has increased. The town had 30 yard dumpsters for the bags of trash & 8 yd dumpsters for the bags of recycling. Checking on them after the second year of recycling at the festival, it appears that at least there could be a "swap" of one 30yd & one 8yd dumspster (allowing for more space for the recycling). [That was in one area where there was a large sit-down tent for BBQ, a popular eating venue at the festival.] Best to you as you plan for the future!
Marilyn Sobanski
Rainbow Recycling
Black Mountain, NC, USA
[email protected]
Hi
I recently organized a zero waste initiative at our school spring fair. Our event started with a plan to reduce the production of waste as the primary step towards our goal. For example, cheap toys and ribbons were not given as prizes. Instead, we gave the kids stamps. Kids love being covered with stamps and we had very positive feedback from parents for that idea. We also chose our food vendors carefully and decided that only food without packaging would be permitted, eliminating the need to wash plastic packaging in preparation for recycling. For example, burgers and hotdogs were sold wrapped in napkins. Any waste from these products (including food stained paper) could be put in the food waste container to be composted by an industrial digester (a composter that can accept fats, cooked foods, meats etc). We also eliminated the need for tickets by asking for a single entrance fee of $5 per family. Zero waste stations were set up in several places around the grounds that were capable of sorting all waste into recyclable groupings. A garbage can was placed along side each zero waste station. Any additional garbage cans on site were taped shut. A trained volunteer stood at each station throughout the event to help guide participants. We learned very quickly that despite our efforts to educate participants prior to the event and during the event (announcements over the PA reminding people of the zero waste initiative), many people raced toward the garbage cans to dispose of their recyclable items and did so before volunteers could stop them. One volunteer turned the garbage can around to make it difficult to use and participants still went out of their way to use it! Although this population is well accustomed to recycling items such as cans at events, they are not accustomed to recycling items such as soft plastics and food waste at events. The initiative was a learning opportunity for all. Nonetheless, we received very positive feedback and anticipate a better-educated population in time for the next fair. One thing that assisted with the cultural shift was making the initiative part of the event and celebrating everyones participation, regardless of any failures. We concluded that next time, any garbage cans will be small and out of sight, perhaps behind the recycling receptacles and in full control of the volunteer. Participants will be required to stop and look around for a garbage can and in the meantime will be introduced to all the other options. One note: the popcorn machines came with bags of coloured oil that were very sticky and challenging to wash in preparation for recycling. They were rejected at the plastics recycling depot and were pretty much our only source of garbage, aside from the recyclable items that were mistakenly put in the garbage.
Best wishes,
Esther Callo
Victoria, BC Canada
Speaking from my own experience, it has to be a lack of education. In our office, we have a recycle bin five feet away from a waste receptacle and I always find copy paper in the waste receptacle, even though it is further away from the copier. For a presentation I will do, I went around several offices and every waste bin had recyclables therein. I took photos of all of it for my power point, so I hope to raise everyone's awareness.
Archie
Dear Julianna and Colleagues
I think this has been discussed recently on this list, but I'm not certain. I have been working on source separation at events for the past year now, on and off, and we have developed a program that works well. First off, all of the bins need to be right next to each other in sets. Secondly, all of the bins must be fully labeled--posters with photos, words and pictograms as needed. Thirdly, each of the sets of bins needs to be populated by a trained staff person or volunteer. We are not just doing source separation, we are doing waste management education--the what's and why's of composting, recycling, waste reduction at the source, etc., all of which lead to an understanding and consciousness of Zero Waste. At big events this is, for us, a volunteer-heavy program and the success of the source separation depends upon the number of volunteers available. [I don't think this list accepts attachments, but I will send you (Julianna) a set of photos of our set up for source separation.] For example, I was the source separation coordinator at a recent medium-sized event--a summertime block party with 1,500 attendees, live music, 3-4 food vendors all using compostable plates, "picnicware", etc., and about 60 tables populated by community orgainizations pushing their agendas. All beverages were vended in PLA cups--no bottles or cans were served, although one large trash bag (19 pounds) of returnable/recyclable cans and bottles was collected. All of these, mostly soda cans and PET plastic water bottles, were carried in from off-site. Two sets of containers were used each consisting of 2 large blue compost collection bins, a trash bin and a recycling bin. The event was from 2-8 p.m. I populated one set of bins and a volunteer and another master composter took turns at the second set of bins. We really needed more volunteers, but didn't have them! At the end of the event, we had 4 very packed full compost bins, the above mentioned bag of bottles and cans, and one smaller garbage bag of trash. The trash was mostly plastic wrap from the vendors and plastic cups and straws carried in from off-site--mostly Starbucks and McDonalds PET beverage cups! The one bag of trash was less than 10 percent of the waste managed from the event. I considered this to be a very successful source separation. I'm not sure about the littering bit. Maybe it was the set up of the trash cans and recycling bins? Maybe it was just the crowd attracted to the event? At any rate, I hope this is useful information. Take care.
Tom
Tom Shelley
118 E. Court St.
Ithaca, NY 14850
607 342-0864
[email protected]
Compost Educator and
General Sustainability Geek
Julianna
I'm sure I'll be only one of a chorus of responses to this posting, but here goes anyway. I can't answer why so many people leave litter on the ground, but realistically you always need trash pickers at these festivals. On recycling, though, I can see two very obvious flaws in the strategy that was used to collect recyclables at your event. First, there needs to be a recycling bin for each and every trash can. With the numbers you cited, 2/3 of the trash cans had no corresponding opportunity for recycling. So 2/3 of your cans and bottles are lost right off the bat. People at event settings won't walk out of their way to recycle. The rule of thumb is, no trash bin without a recycling bin--and never a recycling bin without a trash bin (guaranteed contamination of recyclables). In fact, the recycling bin and the trash container need to be touching each other. I don't know how closely your bins were positioned to trash bins, but even 2 feet apart isn't close enough, in my experience. And the recycling bin opening can't be higher than the trash can opening. People won't lift their arm. I'm not kidding. The recycling opportunity has to be equivalent in every way to the trash disposal opportunity. Second, the recycling bins you used are not designed for event recycling, so they didn't work very well. Carts are designed to hold separated recyclables for curbside collection. You need a bin that is designed to motivate separation of recyclables by individuals in a public setting. The most effective ones I've seen have an open metal frame with a clear bag that is suspended from the top. They look nothing like trash bins or carts, but more importantly people can see what's inside the bags and as the bags fill up with cans and bottles that other festival-goers have clearly separated for recycling, they stimulate further recycling behaviors (see the social norms paper that was also referenced on the listserv today). And they're not as tall as a trash barrel. Finally, I might suggest you check with your recycling processor on the lids -- my impression is it doesn't matter much anymore whether lids are removed, and you really want to keep things as simple and convenient as possible. You'll never get more than a small percentage of folks to remove a lid and put it in a different receptacle anyway, and many are more likely to just toss the whole shebang into the trash rather than take the time to remove the lid. Sad but true. Hope this helps, and good luck!
Brad Wolbert,
P.G. Hydrogeologist
Waste & Materials Management Program
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
(*) phone: (608) 264-6286
(*) fax: (608) 267-2768
(*) e-mail: [email protected]
Hi pro-recycling fair coordinators,
As the Enviro Coordinator for the North Country Fair for the past 10 years, we have found that several of the strategies mentioned in this disucssion work for us, as well as a couple that were not mentioned.
- Have recycle stations at each garbage location
- Bottles and cans at North Country Fair are placed in chicken wire enclosurtes, without bags (juice leaks into the ground) then bagged at collection by tipping the enclosure into a bag.
- recycling is prominantly mentioned in the program of events (full Enviro page with map shows location of all Compost, garbage, recycling initiatives)
- Stage MC's are directed to 'talk up Mother Earth' with an enviro message between each set.
We do have a bit of an advantage in that we are a Summer Solstice Celebration, and, as such, are host to many neo-pagans and others who celebrate environmental sustainability. For sure the participants to a festival can make a difference, but social marketting can help us to all get closer to the same sustainable page.
Jule Asterisk
Mission Sustainable project participant
Recycling council of Alberta/Alberta Environment
Canada