Zero Waste

 
Zero Waste is a national movement of trying to become a sustainable society that uses waste as a resource. It focuses on reducing Markham's environmental footprint by reducing our waste and recycling and composting.

In 2008, Markham became a part of the Zero Waste movement.

What can you do to help?

• reduce energy use
• buy items with little packaging
• use reusable bags
• use a reusable water bottle instead of buying plastic water bottles.
• recycle everything you can
• use your green bin and a backyard composter
• use energy saving light bulbs
• hang your clothes to dry instead of using a dryer
• help pick up litter if you see any

For more information on how you can help and be a part of the Zero Waste movement, click here.

Waste

Hazardous Waste

What are accepted as hazardous waste?

• aerosol containers
• antifreeze
• batteries
• corrosives
• fertilizers
• fire extinguishers
• flammables
• fluorescent tubes and light bulbs
• devices with mercury
• oil containers
• used oil filters
• paints
• pesticides/herbicides
• medicine for humans or pets
• pressurized containers
• reactive materials
• sharp objects

What is not accepted as hazardous waste?

• explosives
• ammunition
• hazardous waste generated by Industrial,
  Commercial and Institutional (IC&I) business sources.
• PCB's
• asbestos

For more information, click here

Yard Waste

 What is accepted as yard waste?

•  leaves
• shrubs
• twigs and branches
• weeds
• pumpkins
• flowers and garden plants

What is not accepted as yard waste?

• grass clippings
• sod
• dirt
• gravel
• coment
• top soil
• rocks and stones
• animal droppings
• driveway/road sweepings
• tree stumps and root balls
• branches/bushes larger than 6 inches in diameter or longer than 4 feet

 For more information on yard waste, click here.

Garbage

Garbage

Non-collectible garbage

• loose and not in a bag or container
• in an oversized container
• in a cardboard box
• grass clippings
• yard waste
• hazardous waste
• beverage containers
• broken glass unless properly sealed and labelled 
• tires
• construction waste
• medical waste
• dead animals
• radioactive waste
• liquid waste
• manure, hay or straw

If you have appliances or scrap metal that you wish to dispose of, you need to make an appointment.

Televisions can be dropped off at York's Household Hazardous Waste & Electronics Recycling Depot.

Bulky items such as chairs, sofas, mattresses and other furniture can be collected on regular garbage days. 

For more information on garbage collection in Markham, click here.

Recycling

Blue Box Recycling

We save over 35% of waste from landfills by blue box recycling!

What can you put in the blue bin?

• paper
• most plastics
• cardboard
• glass
• metals
• aluminum 

What can't you put in the blue bin?

• Styrofoam (bring to Markham's recycling depots to recycle)
• shredded or waxed paper
• plastic film 
• plastic utensils or straws
• plastic toys
• flammable/corrosive material bottles
• batteries (bring to York's Household Hazardous Waste & Electronics Recycling Depot for disposal)

For more information on recycling, take a look at Markham's recycling guide here.

Electronics Recycling

Electronic waste (E-waste) are items that need a plug or batteries to function. 

If you have e-waste, try to sell it, give it away or donate it first before recycling them at a local electronics recycling depot. 

Accepted e-waste 

• televisions
• computers and computer accessories
• scanners
• telephones/cellphones
• CDs and DVDs
• radios and stereos
• digital cameras
• printers
• modems
• electronic pagers
• video game consoles
• fax machines
• VCR's
• electronic games

For more information on electronics recycling, click here.          
Recycling Depots

Recycling depots are areas in our community where they accept a wide range of recyclables that are usually taken elsewhere to be reused or recycled.

What can be recycled at the recycling depots?

• all materials that can be put into our blue boxes
• cell phones
• ink cartridges
• some plastic bags (grocery, shopping, bread or dry cleaning)
• scrap metal
• Styrofoam
• tires
• used clothing (that can be donated)
• fluorescent tubes and light bulbs
• rechargeable batteries 

What cannot be recycled at the recycling depots?

• garbage
• organics
• hazardous waste
• yard waste
• electronics (except cell phones)
• appliances
• some plastic bags (wraps, potato chip bags, milk pouches or gardening product bags)

For more information on recycling depots in Markham, click here.

Backyard Composting

Backyard Composting 

Composting is the process of breaking down organic materials into a substance known as compost that is great for your soil. It is a very good way to get rid of your waste while helping improve your soil quality.   

What can you compost?

• fruit and vegetable peelings
• dry leaves and grass clippings
• coffee grounds or filters
• tea bags or leaves
• wood ashes
• weeds before they seed
• plants and flowers
• straw, hay and corn cobs
• crushed egg shells
• bread, pasta and rice with no sauce
• wood chips and sawdust
• hair and dryer lint
• rhubarb leaves

 
What can't you compost?

• grass or tree clippings with chemicals
• poison ivy or other poisonous plants
• diseased plants
• walnut shells and leaves
• charcoal and coal ashes
• dog or cat droppings
• litter box materials
• meat and bones
• plastics and metals
• dairy products
• fats and oils

For more information on backyard composting, click here.

Non-Governmental Organizations

For more information, you can contact these non-governmental organizations:

Toronto Environmental Alliance
30 Duncan Street. Suite 201
Toronto, Ontario, M5V 2C3
Phone: 416-596-0660
Fax: 416-596-0345
TEA Canvass 416-596-0500
 http://www.torontoenvironment.org/

Toronto Environmental Alliance logo

York Region Environmental Alliance
225 Lakeland Crescent
Richmond Hill, Ontario
L4E 3A5
Phone: 905-660-9782
http://yrea.org/

York Region Environmental Alliance logo

 

How to Stop Land Pollution

What can we do as citizens of Markham to stop land pollution?

1. Instead of throwing all our waste into the garbage, see if it can be recycled, composted or reused. If it is e-waste, be sure to dispose of it properly by finding a local electronics recycling depot.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

2. For farmers and gardeners, they should try to use Eco-friendly pesticides that do not harm other organisms.

Eco-friendly pesticides

3. To reduce acid rain, factories and power plants should use scrubbers to decrease the amount of sulphur dioxide that is being released into the atmosphere. 

Smokestacks

4. Try to buy products that have little packaging and use products that could be reusable. For example, when packing your lunch, use reusable containers instead of plastic bags.

Reusable containers

5. Do not litter and if you see litter, please pick it up and throw it in the nearest trash can.

Throwing away litter

        

Effects of Land Pollution

What are the Effects of Land Pollution?

1. It can kill off many species in the wild because we are cutting down forests which are their habitats.

Deforestation

2. Acid rain which can kill trees and many plants. 

The effect of acid rain

3. Many trees and plants that can provide us food and shelter can become damaged or destroyed.

Damaged trees

4. Pesticides can kill small organisms in the soil as well as damage the crops, possibly kill vegetation and also poison and harm birds, fishes and other animals.

Effect of pesticides

5. Lastly, land pollution can disrupt the balance of nature. 

Causes of Land Pollution

What are the Causes of Land Pollution?

1. The waste that we produce, if not disposed of properly, can greatly damage our earth and land. For example, many people do not dispose hazardous waste properly like batteries and just throw them into their trash. Once the garbage is dumped in a landfill site, overtime, the chemicals from the batteries and other hazardous waste seep though the ground which damages our soil and can also get into our water that we drink.

Hazardous waste

2. The human population is increasing which means we need to produce more food. In order to produce more food, forests are cut down in order to create land for agriculture.

Agricultural land

3. Many of our forests are continuing to be cut down for urbanization. Also, in order to construct buildings, raw materials are needed which again, leads to cutting down trees and destruction of forests.

Urbanization

4. Pesticides and herbicides are used in agriculture to kill harmful pests but once they seep through the soil, they can kill small organisms in the soil, causing the soil quality to become not as good.

Farmer using pesticides/herbicides

5. Industrial activities like mining contributes to land pollution because once the miners have finished mining, there are a lot of poisonous mining waste left behind that can seep into the soil and damage the soil.

Mining pollution