Information for residents

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  Common recycling area

  Check your building’s dedicated recycling area for bins and signage on what you can recycle as part of your building's collection services.

  Under Vancouver’s Solid Waste By-law, every property must have a plan to manage recyclables and organic waste.
  
  Taking the time to rinse, sort, and place your recyclable items in the appropriate bins makes our recycling and composting programs more efficient and successful.

  Contamination from items that don’t belong in there, like plastics in green bins or containers in paper bins, reduces the quality of the finished product and increases operational costs for everyone.
  
  Learn more about Recycle BC and how most items collected in BC are recycled and used to make new products External website, opens in new tab

  

  Information graph from a recent waste audit shows that 72% of items in our garbage could have been in the green bin for composting or recycled.

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  In-home recycling

  Apartment, condo, and townhouse dwellings can often have limited storage space for recyclable containers. However, with some creativity, you can set up a system that works for you.

  Since everyone’s home is different, take some time to determine the best location and system that will work for you:

  • Consider the following when organizing your bins:
    • Green bin items
    • Containers recycling
    • Glass bottles and jars recycling
    • Paper recycling
    • Landfill
    • Deposit beverage containers
    • Depot items, for example: 
      • Flexible plastics
      • Foam packaging
      • Household batteries
      • Light bulbs
  • Consider these storage tips: 
    • Use stackable bins or crates to store your recyclable items vertically 
    • Hang reusable shopping bags on hooks to free up floor space, and use them for your recyclable items  
    • Look for creative locations where you can store your recycling, such as:
      • Drawers
      • Closet
      • Pantry space
      • Hallway
      • Balcony

  Learn more about in-suite storage and organization tips for your recycling External website, opens in new tab

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  Depot recycling

  Accepted items

  To drop-off reusable and recyclable items that are not accepted in your building's recycling, visit Vancouver Zero Waste centre, or look up a drop-off depot near you External website, opens in new tab.

  The most common depot items are:

  • Electronics
  • Small appliances
  • Household batteries
  • Lightbulbs
  • Foam packaging
  • Flexible plastics

  Information icon London Drugs External website, opens in new tab offers recycling for customers that includes: flexible plastics, foam packaging, household batteries, and small appliances.  

  Items that require special care

  Many commonly used household items are considered hazardous waste and are not accepted in your garbage, recycling, or green bins.

  Examples include:

  • Household batteries
  • Propane tanks
  • Propane cylinders
  • Household paint
  • Aerosols
  • Medications
  • Pesticides
  • Cleaners

  If you are unsure where to recycle an item, consult our Waste Wizard and see how to safely recycle or dispose of it. 

Food waste and green bin tips

Food scraps, yard trimmings, and food soiled paper should be separated from regular garbage and placed in the green bin.

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  Benefits to recycling your food scraps

  • When food and organic waste end up in landfills, they become buried and don't decompose properly. Instead, they create methane, a greenhouse gas 25 to 30 times more potent than carbon dioxide at heating up the atmosphere.
  • By recycling all our food scraps, food-soiled paper, and yard trimmings in the green bin, we:
    • Keep valuable resources out of the landfill
    • Cut greenhouse gas emissions
    • Create nutrient-rich compost for gardeners and landscapers
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  Using a green bin in your kitchen

  Here is how to get started:

  1. Get any container with a lid or repurpose one.
  2. Line your container with newsprint, paper bags, or paper towels.
  3. Place your food scraps and other organic material in your container.
  4. Empty your container into your green bin frequently. Keep the lid on your green bin closed when not in use.
  5. Rinse out your kitchen container after each use, and reline with a paper bag, paper towels, or newspapers.

  Information icon No plastics in the green bin. This includes plastic bags and containers labelled as compostable and biodegradable.
  
  Tips to minimize odours and fruit flies: 

  • Drain excess liquids from your food scraps down the kitchen sink before placing in the container
  • Freeze smelly food scraps in a container or zipper-top bag until collection day
  • Wrap your scraps in paper towels or newspapers to minimize mess and odours
  • Capture fruit flies in a bowl of vinegar covered with plastic wrap, pricked with a few holes
  • Rinse and dry your kitchen container after emptying it and sprinkle baking soda in the bottom

  Learn more about green bins, our brochure, and bin signage