尤物视频

On March 11^th, SFU Urban Studies students and City of New Westminster staff toured in Coquitlam. The centre accepts waste and recycling from commercial, municipal, and small vehicle customers. While on the tour, *the Urban Innovation Lab students and staff discovered not only how the facility operates but learned some important tips about recycling.

Built on the site of the former Coquitlam Landfill, the centre opened in March 2022 and processes upwards of 600 tonnes of garbage per day. Students visited the 60,000 square foot transfer building where garbage is sorted on the tipping floor and pushed into a compactor. They also went to the free recycling area, which accepts more than two dozen types of items. These items are carefully sorted for recycling, such as the black Styrofoam plates students saw in one bin. Other items like books and clothing are sent to charitable organizations like Big Brothers of Greater Vancouver and The Salvation Army.

The Metro Vancouver region recycles 65% of the waste generated (compared to a Canadian average of 26.5%) and by reducing, reusing, and recycling, residents have managed to decrease the amount of waste disposed per person by 23% since 2011.

The United Boulevard Recycling and Waste Centre helps to facilitate commercial and residential recycling, but people can do more to help achieve waste reduction and recycling in their homes and communities.

Check out these five tips:

1. Seek out alternatives to fast fashion: Invest in well-made clothing that will last. This doesn鈥檛 necessarily mean spending a lot of money, as quality clothing can be found at thrift stores. Also, even if new, quality clothing costs more upfront, it tends to last longer leading to long-term savings.
2. Repair when possible: Whether it is clothing, furniture, or something else around the house, try to repair rather than replace it. This helps to keep items out of landfills and can be a cost-effective practice.
3. Remember reuseable items: Many people have water bottles, metal straws, bags, and other reusable items, but forget to bring them when going out. Metro Vancouverites dispose of 1.3 billion single-use items per year, so remembering reusables needs to become a habit.
4. Avoid nesting when recycling: Nesting involves placing smaller recyclable items in larger ones. This practice makes it difficult for automated sorting machines and even human sorters to separate materials. Sometimes, contamination can result, as not all plastics are the same, for example.
5. Think before putting 鈥渃ompostable鈥� plastics in the green bin: 鈥淏iodegradable鈥� or 鈥渃ompostable鈥� plastics may not break down at all commercial facilities, as they need to be exposed to very specific conditions to do so. Thus, it is best not to put them in the green bin unless told otherwise by a particular municipality or service provider.

*SFU鈥檚 Urban Innovation Lab course offers undergraduate and graduate students many opportunities to learn outside of a traditional classroom setting. Learn more in our .